Life in Quarantine: One man's reflections

[Dan Fienen]

Charles, I received my payment by direct deposit because I took the time and the trouble, it wasn't really very hard, to go in the appropriate IRS website and provide them my banking information. If you couldn't be bothered to do that, you had to take alternatives, which I'm sure cost the government more money some of which cost was passed on to you. Too bad. 


Perhaps they did you a favor by putting it on a debit card, a check with his name on it you would have had to on principle destroy uncashed.

[NCLutheran2]

   Bottom line: I have my “stimulus check,” though not a check. Darn! I was going to frame His autograph.

Don't worry, Charles, in about a month you will be mailed a letter, via the IRS, from Donald himself informing you that you received your economic impact payment, complete with (a pixelated digital) signature, suitable for framing! Another excellent example of government stewardship.

[Michael Slusser]

When my brother worked for the U.S. Government as a liaison to petroleum wholesalers in Michigan and Minnesota, he always got a chuckle from his audience when he said, "I'm from the Federal Government and I'm here to help you." Yeah, sure. It doesn't always malfunction, but it does so often enough to make people leery of promises to solve all our problems. Yet the Feds keep offering--or threatening.

I've always had a direct deposit relationship with the IRS, Charles, but I just got my first "stimulus" check in paper form, last week.

Peace,
Michael

[Dan Fienen]

Years ago as I was watching a TV game show a new contestant came on and they asked him (per usual) what he did for a living. He replied that he was a fund raiser for a non-profit. Upon further questions it came out that he was an IRS agent. What could be more non-profitable than the US government?

[Matt Hummel]

I avoided the fees but I am not surprised to find out that someone, somewhere, is making money out of these transactions. That can’t happen if someone else just sent a check. So I wonder whose friend runs the financial institution that’s making money from these debit card. And will make money in the future if people choose to refill these cards and keep using them.

Well golly. So many of the Bank Card businesses are here in Wilmington, DE. A Democrat city in a Democrat county in a Democrat state. Also home to VP Joey Hairplugs. So given the fact that Speaker Pelosi and Chuck Schumer had their hands all over the enabling legislation, I would not necessarily start with Trump cronies.

[Steven Tibbetts]

I avoided the fees but I am not surprised to find out that someone, somewhere, is making money out of these transactions. That can’t happen if someone else just sent a check. So I wonder whose friend runs the financial institution that’s making money from these debit card. And will make money in the future if people choose to refill these cards and keep using them.

Perhaps the ChiComs (who gave us the coronavirus in the first place), from whom the Congress borrowed the money to pay for this bipartisan "stimulus."

[Richard Johnson]

And to think my 91 year old father simply and thankfully received his card, took it to his bank and deposited it ... no TDS, no snark, no attempted political statement. 


Oh by the way, the fact that the card was on the way had been carefully reported in the local media. The fact that "we almost threw away" is no one's fault and responsibly but yours ... your wife's, and definitely NOT Sally's.😶

Ridiculous. I read "the local media" and the national media voraciously, and this is the first I've heard of this. And congratulations to your 91-year-old father, but what Charles describes sounds like a recipe for disaster for countless households.

[James J Eivan]

And to think my 91 year old father simply and thankfully received his card, took it to his bank and deposited it ... no TDS, no snark, no attempted political statement. 

Oh by the way, the fact that the card was on the way had been carefully reported in the local media. The fact that "we almost threw away" is no one's fault and responsibly but yours ... your wife's, and definitely NOT Sally's.😶

Ridiculous. I read "the local media" and the national media voraciously, and this is the first I've heard of this. And congratulations to your 91-year-old father, but what Charles describes sounds like a recipe for disaster for countless households.

Ridiculous?? That your local media was silent ... yes! Heck .... my 75+ year old neighbors handled their debit card with no problem ... even having to find an open bank lobby to process the card .. and they are very apolitical ... never expressing opinions either way.


The debit card arrived in non descriptive envelopes very similar in appearance to how banks send out credit cards and debit cards. Unless you do not have any credit/debit cards, you should be very familiar with the appearance of these envelopes. 

Why does it seem that the most negatively vocal concerning these debit cards are those who would criticize President Trump on a clear sunny day for simply stating the sky is blue?  Regrettably, Charles sounds like he is suffering terminal TDS.

[Brian Stoffregen]

When my brother worked for the U.S. Government as a liaison to petroleum wholesalers in Michigan and Minnesota, he always got a chuckle from his audience when he said, "I'm from the Federal Government and I'm here to help you." Yeah, sure. It doesn't always malfunction, but it does so often enough to make people leery of promises to solve all our problems. Yet the Feds keep offering--or threatening.

I've always had a direct deposit relationship with the IRS, Charles, but I just got my first "stimulus" check in paper form, last week.

I don't know what's wrong with me (and don't give suggestions ), but we got our stimulus money through direct deposit back on April 15. I also got a small refund the same way from the IRS two months earlier.

[James J Eivan]

I don't know what's wrong with me (and don't give suggestions ), but we got our stimulus money through direct deposit back on April 15. I also got a small refund the same way from the IRS two months earlier.

I too received my stimulus check via direct deposit ... Googling concerning payments to social security recipients seemed to indicate that nothing needed to be done ... Apparently nothing needed to be done to receive payment ... by debit card.


Fraudsters are becoming more and more creative in tampering with checks ... the government and financial institutions are always looking for for alternatives to paper checks.

[GalRevRedux]

I keep hoping a payment will show up. In any form.

[Dan Fienen]

Thirteen days after I received the at-first confusing debit card, the mail brought a letter saying I would receive an Economic Impact Payment by “check/debit card” and the amount. (No mention of which - check or debit card - or direct deposit.) The letter says I am a “hard-working American,” thanks the House and Senate for “working so quickly with my administration”, and hopes the payment provides “meaningful support.”
The letter is “signed“ by the president.
Were I still an actively “hard-working American,” my payment, a little less than the amount as received by my truly “hard-working” younger relatives, would have covered - maybe - one month’s rent or a good part, but not all of a month’s mortgage, food for two, maybe three weeks if I shopped carefully, or one quarter of a dentist’s fee if someone in the family had a problem.
But OK. Thanks.

If your Economic Impact Payment is too insignificant for you to bother with you could just trash it or maybe simply donate it,  to your church, a food bank, or maybe a Black business owner there in Minneapolis whose business was burned out and looted during the recent peaceful protests and demonstrations.

[peter_speckhard]

Those checks are about the only bipartisan effort our government has done in years. I don’t think it is good policy, but sheesh, of all the things to moan about — the free money they sent me was a little confusing and wouldn’t have paid my all bills if I still had bills like I used to.

[peter_speckhard]

And of course we all agree the checkS were a good use of $2 trillion of federal funds.

No, I don’t agree with that, which is what I said. “I don’t think it is good policy.” But not because getting a card rather than a check is too confusing, or getting a belated notice is a waste of paper and postage, or that the check wasn’t big enough to sustain people through the (dumb) shut-down. It was a stimulus check designed to help keep the economy afloat. Whether it was fifty dollars or five thousand, their bipartisan hope was that whenever you spent it would be someplace that could use the business. Again, bad economic policy, probably, but understandable in theory and supported fairly broadly in Congress, though I’m sure you voiced your strong support of the few Republican who spoke against it.

[Dan Fienen]

And of course we all agree the checkS were a good use of $2 trillion of federal funds.

Perhaps you should make up your mind. First you complain that the amount wasn't enough, then you suggest it should not have been done at all. Which is it?