The economic stimulus was signed by the Obama administration about 5 months ago.  It's too soon to tell if the stimulus "worked," since it is still rather early to make a judgment.  Of course, it is possible to pass judgment on the implementation of the stimulus, along with the rationale behind it.

     Stimulus funds will be released over the next 2  to 3 years.  That is one of the problems,  There has been criticism at all levels of government over the speed with which funds have made distributed.  This is a valid point, since funds should not be distributed evenly over time, they should be distributed as quickly as possible to counter the faltering economy.  The rate may increase over time, but by that point, will too many jobs, businesses, and homes have been lost unnecessarily due to the slow pace?  Of course, this argument assumes the country needed a stimulus bill in the first place.

     The idea behind such a large stimulus seemed questionable from the beginning.  The country certainly needed to spend more to help the unemployed, but some of the projects seemed dubious: Skate parks, fish ladders, ATV trails, etc.  Sure, they will create temporary jobs in the short -term, but how does a new half-pipe contribute to the general economy?  Democrats seemed to ignore the possibility that the stimulus would be wrong for the country and forged ahead with a plan for more than $1 trillion in spending.  Republicans helped bring the cost down to $787 billion, but it is still far too much to spend.

     At the time the stimulus was being negotiated, the Obama Administration felt unemployment would peak at 8.5%.  Here we are 5 months later, and the U.S. unemployment rate is up to 9.5%, and Barack Obama himself feels it will easily top 10% in the near future.  Vice President Joe Biden admits the administration misread the economy.  They admit to being wrong about the condition of the economy, the effect of the stimulus on unemployment rates, plus they also appear to have miscalculated the cost of their healthcare plan.  Initial estimates were just over $600 billion, while many Senators have estimated it will cost between $1.5 trillion and $2 trillion.  Just in case you think these are partisan estimates, even members of the President's own party admit that healthcare reform could exceed $1 trillion.

     After being wrong about so much, it's troubling to hear Laura Tyson, one of Barack Obama's economic advisers, suggested a second economic stimulus package.  There seems to be little regard for whether the United States can actually afford another mammoth expenditure that may not work, little discussion of growing deficits, and not much concern for a National Debt that has topped more than $11 trillion.  The amount of money owed to foreign countries, the falling value of the dollar, and the amount of interest paid annually are all pushed aside.

     For eight years, the Bush Administration spent excessively and ran up deficits and the National Debt.  In just 6 months, Barack Obama's administration has put the United States on a dangerous course that threatens the foundation of our economy.  it is being done solely under the guise of being an "economic stimulus," but it will have another purpose.  It will be the foundation of a massive expansion in government involvement and spending that will be extremely difficult to reverse once Barack Obama is out of the White House.  Beware of yet another stimulus.  Once the second one is signed, a third one will be planned.