Hand Outs: Notes on politics and history

Even Rupert Murdoch's Wall Street Journal is now conceding that President Barack Obama's economic stimulus package is having a positive impact.
In an article today, WSJ quotes economists as saying the bill has boosted economic activity even though it has not taken full effect yet.
The article states:
Many forecasters say stimulus spending is adding two to three percentage points to economic growth in the second and third quarters, when measured at an annual rate. The impact in the second quarter… Continue

A few years back a public opinion poll found that viewers of Fox News believed the U.S. military had found weapons of mass destruction when it invaded Iraq.
Viewers of other news network knew the truth - that no WMDs had been found.
Now another poll once again shows how badly informed Fox News fans are.
The NBC-Wall Street Journal poll found that 45 percent of Fox viewers believe in Sara Palin's fantasy about Obama Death Panels in health care reform legislation.
The finding once again raises the… Continue

A new Rasmussen Reports poll found that only 6 percent of voters believe President Barack Obama is likely to cut taxes.
That is a shame because Congress and the president have already cut taxes for nearly every American.
The $770 billion economic stimulus package included $300 billion in tax cuts. It was the largest segment of the package.
Every working American making under $250,000 got an income tax break. That amounts to about 95 percent of all workers.
Social Security recipients got a $250 c… Continue

Conspiracy theorists have moved on from claiming that Page 16 of the health care bill outlaws private health insurance. They have a new straw man, Section 1233.
The conspiracy holds that Section 1233 would set up death panels and have doctors encourage elderly patients to submit to euthanasia.
The section - which originally had bipartisan support - actually allows for the reimbursement of services for doctors who counsel patients on "end of life" issues.
Many people like to set up a living will… Continue

Page 16 of the health care reform bill has become the grassy knoll or Area 54 of health care for conspiracy buffs.
No matter what anyone tells them they are convinced that Page 16 outlaws all private health care plans.
It is not quite as facinating as Sara Palin's claim that her son Trig, with his Down Syndrome, would have to go before an Obama "death panel" to determine if he lives or not, but it is one of the more enduring myths of the health care debate.
(By the way, the National Down Syndrom… Continue