Most Rebate Checks Going For Bills And Gas, Not Spending

New York Times:

The federal government is showering households with tax rebates to spur spending and invigorate a troubled economy. But many Americans are so consumed with debt and the soaring price of gasoline that they are opting to save the money or use it to pay bills, according to surveys, sales data and interviews with people from Florida to California.

Between late April and the end of last week, the Treasury handed out more than $50 billion of the $100 billion in tax rebates it plans to distribute to 132 million households. But only once in the last six weeks have chain stores registered an increase in sales, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers, whose weekly sales survey is a widely watched barometer.

"The initial sense is that people are not running out to the malls to spend their checks," said Stuart G. Hoffman, chief economist at the PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh. "It's not quite proving to be a hot potato that's burning a hole in people's pockets."

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[dadw5boys]

07:23 AM on 06/03/2008

My Neighbors took theirs and bought windmills to produce their own electric to heat their homes.

With the Dark Pools controling the Natural Gas Furtures Contracts and doubling or tripling the price each time they sell through the new Swiss Banking Crossfinder computer program. It seeks countracts in these Dark Pool thru Company A then A seeks the contract from B then B seeks from C even if B has contracts to sell. C will the tranfer a contracts which B will mark up in price then transger to A who will mark up the price then semd to the Crossfinder who marks up the price again before selling it to the Natural Gas Companys.
See for yourself.
http://www.rsi-ireland.com/documents/DarkPoolsVol2.pdf

Here is the law that allows them to do it:
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/07/17/how_traders_gamble_with_your_energy_dollars/

[gonavy]

06:02 PM on 06/02/2008

We set the entire check aside to pay for preschool next fall. We do not need the money now, we have learned to live within our budget. But, we had no idea how we were going to afford preschool, so, thank you.

[gakabani]

02:43 PM on 06/03/2008

Exactly, how are we going to afford living, that simple. Forget about school! what about safe water and safe roads! We have been duped by a criminal president. By the way were is Osama? You see it has been all a farce to destroy our economy!

[NYC80]

04:36 PM on 06/02/2008

Many people are ignorants and don't study this government. The chimp took that money from the Social security trust fund and gave it to the people so they can pay credit card debt and energy which are his two more important bases. Taking the money from social secury ensure that program to die faster. Everything is calculate by the chimp and the rest of the gang, the two parties are two sides of the same coin.

I hate the fact that this blog block my messages when I speak truth to power. This blog is in bed with this government and doesn't want people to awake.

[Gary47]

03:56 PM on 06/02/2008

The rebate is nothing more than another mechanism to give taxpayer money to oil companies.

[MurrayAbraham]

09:29 AM on 06/02/2008

Surprise, surprise.

[Harrier]

09:27 AM on 06/02/2008

If your expenses go up, b definition, you are forced to spend money on it. As oil companies more understand more and more people want to invest in technology to eliminate gas, oil companies are rise prices to make everything as difficult as possible

[VivaZapata]

06:04 AM on 06/02/2008

The economy cannot rebound by gimmicky tactics like the stimulus package. This bogus proposal will allow Bush to get out of town before the total collapse. Then people will say, "things were bad under Bush, but not this bad," and they'll believe that because they won't see the continuity. People on fixed income who are the solid base of spending in this country have nothing left with which to purchase. More and more people will be forced to sell their houses for less and less. Communities will have less of a tax base which will affect services and cause increases in crime and lawlessness. The so-called free market economy (code word for corporate exploitation) is showing its ugly side. FDR had no walk-in-the-park in trying to pull the country out of the Great Depression, but the problems are much more complicated in this New World Order, so called global market economy. The only financial stocks relatively impervious to the oncoming mess are VISA and MASTERCARD, which shot up towards the end of last week. Gold is very volatile, but it's climb is inevitable. At some point it will skyrocket.

[loki]

12:42 AM on 06/02/2008

Im sorry, but if you spending on bills and gas or spending on big screen TVs and condoms, its still spending. Its just not the kind of spending the powers that be told us it would be used for. Then again, when was the last time you can remember them getting anything correct. They are worse the meteorologist when it comes to predictions.

[MetalCanuck]

11:46 PM on 06/01/2008

Hmm where did they get that money? they printed it out of thin air...you are spending money that will add to the cost of everything you buy...LOL. Pay the debts folks...force the government to pay your debts before it too late.

[gakabani]

09:38 PM on 06/01/2008

We are a pathetic nation. We let our president buy our souls, and for that matter our country, with a rebate.

[willo]

08:38 PM on 06/01/2008

You want to hear a real joke. The price of energy and food are not figured into the governments statisticts on inflation.

[biwee]

09:23 AM on 06/03/2008

Well, energy and food ARE figured into the CPI from BLS. It is the so-called "core" rate of inflation
that does not include energy and food. Of course, this "core" rate of inflation is of no interest to normal people. The reason we are hearing such low inflation numbers in the spring of 2008 is that BLS fudges the inflation rate to be much lower than it actually is. Using "seasonal" adjustments, and other garbage, the inflation rate from BLS is a scam to lower Social Security COLAs on 1 Jan. The true inflation rate in America is in the 7-8 percent range.

[dadw5boys]

02:23 PM on 06/01/2008

DID YOU ALL GET YOUR $600.00 WELFARE CHECK YET???

MUST BE WELFARE WE DID NOT EARN IT!

NAME THE WORK YOU DID TO EARN THIS MONEY?

IF YOU CAN'T IT IS WELFARE!

OR ARE WE CHAIRTY CASES?????

[forpeace]

07:12 PM on 06/01/2008

*

dadw5boys
====================

Those checks are paid by Tax Payers to Tax Payers!

Bush is just trying to save his Failure Administration till election time, so McBush can get elected, then it's going to be business as usual.

*

[dadw5boys]

09:17 PM on 06/01/2008

300,000,000 Americans X $600.00 each = $180,000,000,000.00

Why not put pay that back to Social Security WHERE BUSH BORROWED IT FROM????

[robinhood2]

10:26 PM on 06/01/2008

I actually didn't do any work for the money in 2007. It came from exercising the last of my deferred employee stock options from my prior job. But I did pay taxes on what the IRS classifies as "wages" and under the Democrats' rules, I was entitled to the rebate. Whether the government could afford to be so generous is another issue. Your boys will be paying off the government's debt long after you and I have passed on.

[CrazyDemocrat]

02:11 PM on 06/01/2008

I gave mine to today's charity telethon

[Pepper14]

01:54 PM on 06/01/2008

A majority of people haven't even gotten their rebate. I only know of one person that got his and that was because his was direct deposit. This headline is misleading because paper checks will be issued the whole month of June and first part of July.

[robinhood2]

10:27 PM on 06/01/2008

I think you are right. Next time, use direct deposit. It actually works.

[loki]

12:45 AM on 06/02/2008

Almost everyone I know has theirs already. And yes, it went to bills, gas and food.

[tcagle]

12:45 PM on 06/01/2008

A lifelong friend of mine had a heart attack and bypass surgery four years ago, was not insured through his job, and lost his home. He is using this check to relocate the mobile home he now lives in to another site because a corporation bought out the park where he lives to build a resort.