Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Update on Stimulus Job Creation Hype

UPDATE: below

I've already detailed the errors in the Administration's tally of jobs created or saved by the stimulus package. Seemingly conceding the point, the Congressional Budget Office moved the goal-posts (at 2):
Economic output and employment in the spring and summer of 2009 were lower than CBO had projected at the beginning of the year. But in CBO’s judgment, that outcome reflects greater-than-projected weakness in the underlying economy rather than lower-than-expected effects of ARRA.
Got that? As The Corner's Stephen Spruiell says:
The case that the stimulus is working is thus rendered non-falsifiable. Its supporters will always claim that it is working fine, but we can't see it, because the "underlying" economy (whatever that is) is so much worse than anticipated. Belief in its efficacy is a faith, at odds with sound economics. If Climategate succeeds in crumbling the AGW cabal's temple of doom, I wonder if "stimulus spending" will replace global warming as the hip new secular religion.
MORE:

Assistant Village Idiot in comments
: "Can you imagine the howls (of rage or laughter) if Bush had measured the GWOT as 'terrorists killed or prevented?'"

(via Instapundit)

3 comments:

OBloodyHell said...

> I wonder if "stimulus spending" will replace global warming as the hip new secular religion.

Idiocy is the new religion. Is the idea stupid? Yep. Worship it!

Believe, YE Sinner, and REPENT!!!

Marc said...

Thomas Sowell has a new column on this topic.

http://townhall.com/columnists/ThomasSowell/2009/12/08/jobs_or_snow_jobs

Assistant Village Idiot said...

As soon as jobs created or saved went into the equation, the fraud was evident. Can you imagine the howls (of rage or laughter) if Bush had measured the GWOT as "terrorists killed or prevented?"