Will President Obama's stimulus plan work? That's the trillion dollar question and the topic has dominated the news since the bill was passed by the House and Congress.

The majority of Democrats say it will, while the majority of Republicans say it won't. No surprise there. The same holds true for the verdicts of economists and financial “experts” — a split decision. Then again, I don't take much stock in the conclusions coming from the latter two groups. They haven't got it right since the turn of the century, but they do like to listen to themselves talk.

I take no comfort in saying this, but I don't think Obama's plan will work and I'll tell you why. It doesn't stimulate the concept of “hard work pays off.” It rewards those who feel entitled to get something for nothing. It's a taxpayer-funded, feel-good plan that Obama hopes will instill confidence in consumers and get them spending again.

My brother and I run PaperAge, or better yet, O'Brien Publications, Inc. (sounds more impressive, doesn't it?) We fit neatly into the “very small business” category. The only way we could benefit from Obama's plan is to go out of business, collect unemployment for what will soon be an extended period of time and apply for welfare. Stealing a line from the Three Stooges, “Nothing to do but eat, sleep and live off the fat of the land.” You can draw your own analogies from “fat of the land.”

To genuinely stimulate the economy the government needs to offer incentives to the people who create the jobs, and I'm not talking government jobs. It's the entrepreneurs and small businesses who employ millions of people in this country, and Obama's stimulus bill does nothing for them. In fact, through increased taxation hinged to the amount of money a business makes, the bill creates a disincentive for a business to grow and increase its workforce.

My two-cents worth is this: to create long-term job growth that will lead to renewed consumer spending, our government needs to create incentives for businesses to grow and start hiring again. This could be accomplished through tax cuts and applying greater pressure on lending institutions to provide financing for credit-worthy businesses, entrepreneurs, homeowners, car buyers, and so on. Washington should also consider lowering capital gains taxes to get the capital markets moving again.

Instead, Obama's stimulus plan relies on “borrowing” around $800 billion in U.S. taxpayer dollars — money we don't actually have (sound familiar?) — and using this money to subsidize government programs and short-term jobs. Granted, it will put cash in the pockets of some folks for a few years, but will that be enough to revitalize our economy and sustain real growth?

Lastly, we got into this mess by living beyond our means and spending money we didn't have. Doesn't it go against reason to think that spending more money that we don't really have will get us out of it?

Let me know what you think.

John O'Brien can be reached at: jobrien@paperage.com

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