My tax accountant just called to say I would receive a stimulus check. In conferring with him about reinvestment, he said, with some exasperation, “It’s a stimulus check. You’re supposed to spend it.” I am retired and lucky to have hibernated for the year in economic comfort, so I left that call in deep thought.
Was it unethical to send one whopping big check to something like Doctors without Borders to help those abroad? And I remembered that last year, too many people simply deposited checks because they knew not what lay ahead. Deciding I should spend it, I wondered how I could do something to feed the local economy and not the profits of stable big businesses.
I immediately thought of local nongovernmental organizations. Some are doing fine, but I could support others in their time of need. I have a friend with a shop that is really struggling to stay open: I could buy all my Christmas presents there, now, helping one store to stay open. Or I might support a local restaurant by gorging on takeout. Is that too self-indulgent? I began to think of food pantries, of animal welfare efforts, of support groups for asylum seekers. Could I spend in some way that would affect climate control? Give money to support someone in buying a heat pump? All these possibilities are flowing through my mind.
I guess I am urging all of us who can afford it to think strategically about how we spend stimulus checks.
Linda Miller Cleary
Kennebunk
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