Federal tax refunds won't help address real fiscal problems
DAN MEYER Political Columnist
Time to take a break from the analysis of the ongoing presidential primaries and briefly touch on some topics that may or may not be making headlines as we enter the unofficial

winter blahs" portion of the calendar for all who live in Western New York:

While some folks are prematurely celebrating the arrival of their federal tax refund check, I can't help but wonder how many people can't see the big picture when it comes to the fiscal woes of our country.

Specifically, the federal budget for fiscal year 2009 is going to weigh in at about $3.1 trillion. That's trillion with a

t."

Federal deficit spending is spinning completely out of control, thanks in large part to expenses related to military costs for the war in Iraq. Add to that a rising unemployment rate, increasing consumer debt, totally wacked-out foreign exchange rates, our free-falling dollar, a shaky stock market, skyrocketing costs associated with pension and retirement accounts and a mind-boggling forecast of around one million foreclosures for 2008 and we've got a real mess on our hands when it comes to our country's fiscal policies and procedures.

Simply sending out a $600 check to every Tom, Dick and Harry is not going to solve the problem because that money is not going to "stimulate the economy" the way our federal officials think it will.

The mortgage defaults that began last year hurt both the average homeowner and the banks. We had more than half a million people watch their lives go down the toilet last year when they saw their homes get foreclosed, with the end result including some massive hits suffered by our banks, since those mortgages with the subprime high rates that our top financial institutions made hundreds of millions of dollars on, exploded, taking with it the nice white picket fence that so wonderfully decorated the front lawns of these one-time dream homes.

So when those $600 checks arrive in the mail later this year, we'll all run to the store and buy a new iPod or recliner or tires for the car and all will be right with the world.

Yes indeed, the American economy is ready to be "economically stimulated" as we all whistle a fun little tune, completely ignoring a fiscal meltdown of epic proportions.

Here's a quick item of interest that will likely have you thinking twice and turning off the light in a room once you exit stage left.

According to information obtained from the Business Council of New York, the cost of electricity here in the Empire State rose approximately 12 percent over a one-year period of time, nearly twice the national average cost increase.

Calculating those new numbers finds that New York's overall electricity costs are the nation's fourth highest, meaning the cost of turning on the juice is a whopping 66 percent above the national average.

I had to chuckle when I heard Erie County Democratic Chairman Len Lenihan mention in a radio interview not too long ago that, while on vacation, he found himself flipping on C-SPAN to watch what was sure to be some mind-numbing and extremely dull coverage of something only true die-hard, hardcore political junkies would get some sort of satisfaction from.

Hey, Len, it's called a vacation. Step directly away from the television set and head down to the pool. Stop off at the hotel bar for a margarita. Leave your BlackBerry, cell phone and pager in your suitcase.

Here's hoping Erie County Executive Chris Collins decides to support the idea of constructing a new convention center for downtown Buffalo.

An idea that was fully supported by Dennis Gorski when he was the region's top elected official, the concept of abandoning the current building and erecting a new state-of-the-art facility was basically ignored by Joel Giambra during the eight years he was in office as the county's head honcho.

Collins needs to get behind this quest. Conventions bring people and money to town. We need that. Badly.

(Daniel Meyer is a columnist for the Weekly Independent Newspapers of Western New York. Comments on this column can be e-mailed to: meyersmusings@gmail.com. Opinions expressed here are those of the author.)