Which would be the best idea for a jobs program?

[yurbud]

Arguably, the real solutions are long term like basing trade & monetary policy on what's good for the broad middle class not just the sociopathic douchebag trust fund babies on Wall Street.

But for an immediate jobs program, which would have the greatest bang for the buck?

[Sherman A1]

1. I voted for number one, but I have to ask

what do you have against dog food?

[yurbud]

3. nothing, if it's made from clean living, hard working folks. I just don't want to be the main

ingredient.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. How about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act?

That used the first two options, among other things.

Here's what it did with "energy" alone, from wiki:

Total: $61.3 billion (on energy)

$11 billion funding for an electric smart grid
$6.3 billion for state and local governments to make investments in energy efficiency
$6 billion for renewable energy and electric transmission technologies loan guarantees
$6 billion for the cleanup of radioactive waste (mostly nuclear power plant sites)
$5 billion for weatherizing modest-income homes
$4.5 billion for the Office of Electricity and Energy Reliability to modernize the nation's electrical grid and smart grid.
$4.5 billion for state and local governments to increase energy efficiency in federal buildings
$3.4 billion for carbon capture experiments
$3.25 billion for the Western Area Power Administration for power transmission system upgrades.
$2.5 billion for energy efficiency research
$2 billion for manufacturing of advanced car battery (traction) systems and components.
$3.2 billion toward Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants.<40>
$500 million for training of green-collar workers (by the Department of Labor)
$400 million for electric vehicle technologies
$300 million for federal vehicle fleets, to cover the cost of acquiring electric vehicles, including plug-in hybrid vehicles.
$300 million to buy energy efficient appliances
$300 million for reducing diesel fuel emissions
$300 million for state and local governments to purchase energy efficient vehicles
$250 million to increase energy efficiency in low-income housing
$600 million to cleanup hazardous waste that threaten health and the environment
$200 million to cleanup petroleum leaks from underground storage tanks
$100 million to evaluate and cleanup brownfield land
$400 million for the Geothermal Technologies Program

[yurbud]

6. that's all good, but if it's done through a recognizable JOBS program

it would have a couple of extra benefits:

you would know less of the money was being skimmed off for scams.

The public's opinion and awareness of clean energy would improve since they would see people working on it.

A highly visible job creation program run directly by the government (as opposed to Walmart-like jobs in the private sector) would create the sense that the government is doing something directly for the working and middle class and give people the hope and confidence to start shopping again.

[yurbud]

8. I started another thread on why I think the gov't directly employing people is a good idea:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=433&topic_id=4335&mesg_id=4335

[Warpy]

4. The first three together, of course

but added to a government program to update things like bridges, dams, the electrical grid, and everything else that was allowed to fall into disrepair as the rich stripmined the country over the last 30 years.

Most of all, we have to rebuild strategic industries in this country. That's the real national security issue, not foreign bases, more nukes, or overdesigned crap that's obsolete as soon as the drawing board paper is changed.

[Sinti]

9. +1 Lack of manufacturing is a real national security issue in this nation n/t

[Phx_Dem]

5. All of the first three. Why chose only one?

[damntexdem]

7. Federal run, not just government run.

Some states took stimulus funds to hire more workers (e.g., teachers) and used them to offset state budget cuts that laid off workers. OK, workers continued working who would otherwise have been out of jobs -- but it still didn't EXPAND jobs.

[robo50]

10. What about a combination of several ideas? Then we could

see if giving out which x dollars for each job created would be most effective one or two years down the road.

I would think tax credits would work, if they were clearly and effectively targeted, with a 90 day or greater "open" position being filled, and targeted to jobs where the most loss is felt. Auto and other manufacturing jobs might not be recoverable in some instances, but in others this might work well. The job would have to be linked with one or two social security numbers, so as to clearly be eligible for the credit.

The green energy jobs might be great for some as well.

We might also need some sort of WPA type jobs, artists, writers, as well as simple outdoor jobs, youth employment camps, jobs recovering rivers, forests, lakes, seashore. There might be thousands of ways we could employ a half million people for six months to a year and see a what wonderful ways we can restore our nation.

Where are the jobs in high speed rail creation? Where are the jobs in fixing our bridges? I see few if any in my state so far.

There is also need for prison construction and restoration and maintenance/security, (not that I like having 2 million people in jails, but that's reality). Some hospitals need infrastructure repair and expansion. Some schools need the same, when do those jobs start or are they already ongoing and I just don't see them because I live in an affluent area?