Sex & Politics

So Bush signed the Bailout Plan Today making it a done deal. But the price tag of the 700 billion dollar bailout sky rocketed when 150 billion dollars of pork was added to sweeten the deal and grease it’s passage in both the House and the Senate. So, if I understand this correctly these “tax cuts” were needed to save our country’s ass from financial Armageddon? 150b EXTRA dollars and supposedly we broke? And supposedly everyone wanted a “clean” bill to pass without any unnecessary extras. Right. So I guess this extra 150b was needed. Let’s see what we got for 150b dollars:

Arrows
An excise tax exemption for a specific type of arrows used by child archers.|
Politicians It Benefits: Sens. Ron Wyden (D) Gordon Smith (R) of Oregon
Total Cost: $2 million over 10 years

Cyclists
Would allow employers to provide benefits to employees who commute to work via bicycles
Politicians It Benefits: NA
Total Cost: $10 million

Movies
Allows US production companies to deduct the costs of producing a film from their taxes
Politician It Benefits: Rep. Diane Watson (D) California
Total Cost: $478 million over 10 years

Racetracks
Keeps racetrack depreciation tax deductions at 7 years instead of the 15 the IRS wanted to switch it to for another two years.
Senators It Benefits: NA
Total Cost: $100 million dollars over 2 years

Rum
Tax break on rum form Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
Politicians It Benefits: NA
Total Cost: $192 million

Wool
Would help worsted wool fabric makers and clothing manufacturers.
Politicians It Benefits: Reps. Louise Slaughter (D) New York and Melissa Bean (D) Illinois
Total Cost: $148 million dollars over 10 years

Earmark information from CNN.com

So on a bill that supposed to save our asses folk got in their little pet projects too. Isn’t McCain (and Palin) supposed to be the anti-pork guy? Doesn’t Obama rally against this kind of stuff as well? Where was their “leadership” on any of this? How does adding more debt to the budget help save us form the debt that’s killing the economy now? That $700 billion plan now costs  $1 trillion and is actually OVER $1 trillion when you add in the total cost to taxpayers many of these extras will cost.

This is a sad, sad day for America. And an equally bad day for capitalism and I’m not even much of a capitalist…