This last week, the first checks began hitting the mail as part of Dubya’s economic stimulus passage.  Washington can’t wait for this money to hit our pockets so that we can spend like the consuming Americans we are and hopefully turn the struggling economy around.  While this is what they would love for us to do, and what most Americans will do, I still don’t think it is the wisest choice.

I’ve written a little bit about this before, but felt it deserved more attention.  Millions of Americans are struggling right now, and they absolutely need these rebates to help put food on the table or gas in the tanks.  However, the Americans who aren’t feeling the slowdown as bad should seriously give some thought to what they are going to do with their check. 

The problem is, contrary to what seems to be a widespread opinion, these rebate checks are not really free money.  I’m pretty sure there wasn’t an extra $150 billion budgeted this year for this possibility.  It was funded just like a ton of other of our government’s expenditures- by adding it to the debt.  What’s another $150 billion or so on top of the $9 trillion tab we already have?  Many of this country’s current economic and financial problems originated from our insistence on spending more than we make, and this stimulus package only illustrates this further. 

I know that paying off debt or stashing the check away are definitely not the best short-term options for helping the economy, but I don’t think it’s the end of the world.  Our economy may be slowing, but that’s a normal aspect of any growing, strong economy.  I think we need to worry less about the short-term health and more about the what lies further down the road.  I don’t know when or how severe the breaking point will be, but I do know that our current financial ways are unsustainable. 

This rebate check can give us the chance to help reverse this trend.  By paying off some debt or putting the money away, we are doing ourselves a huge favor down the road.  And although Uncle Sam wants us to spend, spend, and spend some more, the long term benefits of using this money to build wealth far outweigh any short term jolt it can provide.  Even if it’s only a portion of the check, try to do your future self a favor.