by Curt Kovener 
As we are short of space and time this week, a thought on all of the ballyhooed stimulus packages being considered.
Perhaps we are looking in the wrong place to stimulate the public’s economic spending.
Maybe we should be encouraging TV weather forecasters to continue doing what they seem to do best: scare us into near panic with their dire “The End Is Near” weather holocaust predictions.
When predictions of a winter snow storm greet us, the amateurs run to the grocery for milk & bread…purchased in quantities that under normal weather conditions would not have been purchased. The rest of us head to the liquor store to stock up on the internal antifreeze that helps to pass the hours in a snow bound house. In addition to calming nerves frazzled by the doom and gloom forecasts.
And if in the forecast it is ice (most recently) or wind (like Hoosier Hurricane Ike in September), prepared residents purchase batteries, candles, electric generators, and maybe even plywood to cover windows like the coastal residents do for a hurricane. If you don’t use the wood to prevent any damage, you’ll have it on hand to help repair whatever damage you sustain.
And all of these purchases help stimulate someone’s economy while preparing you to pacify your time suffering cabin fever.
