Still waiting for the stimulus jobs?

It's still coming.

Oh, sure, we were all promised change immediately. I'm privileged: I have a secure job, a double-income household, and expenses within my ability to pay. I realize that a lot of people are anxious, but the stimulus will come.

So, what's the hold up? Simply put, the federal government does not like to take a shit without checking its bowels two or three times to make sure that it's a good idea. The jobs that were "created" with the $800 billion appropriation commitment are in the process of being made, if only we weren't so critical of turtle crossings, high-speed rail, and bridges in the middle of nowhere.

The trepidation is understandable. The last time Congress acted without proper consideration, millions of dollars fell into the hands of brokers who drove AIG into the ground. The government had to messily clean up that failure. This time around, the government wants to make sure the money is going to the right people, and that the proper approvals are made. This applies even to expenditures made by President Bush: the TARP legislation created the Neighborhood Stabilization Program with $2.3 billion, but none of that money has made it to the cities and counties that need it now. Everyone is so concerned that the money will be spent "appropriately"; no one is concerned about what the delay means to the average citizen.

We have shovel-ready jobs now. Republicans and Democrats alike are stalling on the bill, questioning why the money is going where. No one is talking about what the money is supposed to do -- create jobs, even bullshit jobs, so that the money gets back into the hands of the people. Bandying back and forth about the "appropriateness" of the expenditures is political jockeying that is preventing the jobs from being created.

Just make the jobs happen.