1) Alright, so I am throwing a fucking tantrum here of the sheer fucking stupidity of the SBA loans and tax credits.
Let me explain why, and why I'm now several times more fucking annoyed by this. I don't care if it was some honeypot or trap or whatever the fuck. It disgusts me.
Let me explain why, and why I'm now several times more fucking annoyed by this. I don't care if it was some honeypot or trap or whatever the fuck. It disgusts me.
2) The SBA loans are designed specifically around payroll; you have to spend at least 75% of the money from the SBA loans on payroll if you want the loans to be forgiven. If you spend more than 25% on mortgages, utilities, rent, etc, the loans are no longer forgiven.
3) Basically, the SBA loans are designed to keep people employed.
Which is why the Kennedy Center bailout pisses me off so much. The rules are different to them. They got $25 million directly, and laid everyone off anyways.
Which is why the Kennedy Center bailout pisses me off so much. The rules are different to them. They got $25 million directly, and laid everyone off anyways.
4) That $25 million could have gone to the SBA loans and given another 500 businesses $50,000 loans.
Not that those loans mean much, because $50k for a company with several dozen employees could last a week. Tops.
Not that those loans mean much, because $50k for a company with several dozen employees could last a week. Tops.
5) And that's where the other dickpunch comes in.
The tax credit for keeping people employed? Caps out at $10k. NOT $10k per employee. Just straight up $10k.
The tax credit for keeping people employed? Caps out at $10k. NOT $10k per employee. Just straight up $10k.
6) See, I get what they were thinking. It's just hilarious stupid and economically fucking illiterate thinking.
They're thinking, ok, we have an unemployment crisis, so let's dump a bunch of money to keep people employed.
But it's not an unemployment crisis. At least, not truly
They're thinking, ok, we have an unemployment crisis, so let's dump a bunch of money to keep people employed.
But it's not an unemployment crisis. At least, not truly
7) The problem is people are too scared to go out and buy things. They're too afraid to spend money on anything but the basics because they don't know how long their nonessential business shutdowns are going to last, how long they may still have their job if they have it, etc
8) It's a butterfly effect. Here's an example.
A strip mall full of nonessential shops has to shut down. Because of that, the stores within the strip mall can't pay rent. Because they can't pay rent, the landlords can't pay independent contractors to maintain any of the mall.
A strip mall full of nonessential shops has to shut down. Because of that, the stores within the strip mall can't pay rent. Because they can't pay rent, the landlords can't pay independent contractors to maintain any of the mall.
9) Let's reframe that. A strip mall full of shops... suddenly loses all their customers because everyone's afraid to go buy anything.
Those shops probably have no more than a dozen employees, maybe 2 dozen. They can't keep paying them all because no one's buying shit.
Those shops probably have no more than a dozen employees, maybe 2 dozen. They can't keep paying them all because no one's buying shit.
10) Even if they get the SBA loans, which don't matter if the shop is shut down and no one's working any hours to get paid for in the first goddamn place but we're assuming its still open, they still aren't getting any customers to come in because everyone's scared.
11) Even their employees after work are immediately going home and bunkering down rather than going out and spending any of the money they were paid thanks to those SBA loans.
Its money going towards NOTHING, and those shops are still going to need to pay costs of goods sold etc
Its money going towards NOTHING, and those shops are still going to need to pay costs of goods sold etc
12) Sorry, I'm trying to be clear, I may be getting confusing.
Let me put it plainly:
It doesn't matter how much money you give businesses to pay their employees if those same employees aren't spending their money as they were before. Eventually the same collapse will happen.
Let me put it plainly:
It doesn't matter how much money you give businesses to pay their employees if those same employees aren't spending their money as they were before. Eventually the same collapse will happen.
13) But again, let me get to the MOST FUCKED UP part of all this: these SBA loans can't be forgiven since most of an employers costs if the government mandates a shutdown aren't even in payroll.
14) These loans are trying to create a situation where even if a shutdown happens the employees will still get paid. It's basically just paying them unemployment by any other name, and this program is directly enabling states to shut down and keep unemployment numbers low.
15) There's no bailout here. There's no real economic saving grace here. It's just throwing $2 trillion at a numbers game that won't keep a company alive. Unless they take on these SBA loans, many of these companies will shut down, and then they'll be burdened with MORE debt.
16) Maybe, MAYBE, the overall goal is to make sure that when the crisis is past the economy will take off with a running leap since everyone that would have gone broke is sitting with bank accounts full of free money.
BUT NOW GOVERNORS ARE EXTENDING SHUTDOWNS THROUGH JUNE.
BUT NOW GOVERNORS ARE EXTENDING SHUTDOWNS THROUGH JUNE.
17) Maybe I'm freaking out for nothing here. Maybe my economics degree is fucking worthless. Maybe the 9 years I've been doing accounting specializing in small business accounting for struggling businesses in crises means absolutely fucking nothing and I'm talking out my ass.
18) I'm a loud asshole on Twitter with a red ring of rage.
SURELY I don't have a better idea of what the on the ground reality for small business looks like than career fucking politicians and bureaucrats who've never had to ask what they have to cut to cover payroll and taxes.
SURELY I don't have a better idea of what the on the ground reality for small business looks like than career fucking politicians and bureaucrats who've never had to ask what they have to cut to cover payroll and taxes.
19) The real crisis has yet to come. The crisis when small businesses don't emerge from the other side of this because they're so laden with debt from SBA loans that werent forgiven and their income didn't kick back in to help them repay those loans, b/c payroll wasnt the problem
20) The crisis when these businesses with at most 10 employees, small restaurants and small stores that families pour hearts and souls into, shut down because customers don't come back fast enough and then customers lose out on places to spend money.
21) Payroll is not these companies' biggest expenses. utilities, rent, loans, THESE are the expenses they're worried about.
In accounting, we call these fixed costs. They are costs which, even if everything else about your business shut down, you'd still have to pay.
In accounting, we call these fixed costs. They are costs which, even if everything else about your business shut down, you'd still have to pay.
22) Some DUMB MOTHERFUCKING SENATORS LOOKING AT YOU @SenateGOP @SenateDems seem to HAVE FAILED TO UNDERSTAND THIS BASIC FUCKING ACCOUNTING 101 CONCEPT.
Because you are ALL SEVERELY unqualified to do ANYTHING in regards to businesses.
Besides bailing out fucking Kennedy Center.
Because you are ALL SEVERELY unqualified to do ANYTHING in regards to businesses.
Besides bailing out fucking Kennedy Center.
23) Good job. Great. Fantastic fucking work.
I want the federal government to go into a full fucking shutdown, and fire every one of these federal employees, no sick leave, no vacation time, none of the fucking 'outs' they normally fucking get. I want it all gone.
I want the federal government to go into a full fucking shutdown, and fire every one of these federal employees, no sick leave, no vacation time, none of the fucking 'outs' they normally fucking get. I want it all gone.
24) I want all of the fucking salaries and benefits granted to politicians and their staffs stripped and fucking ENDED. Because they all have fucked up royal. Thousands of people and no one says, "Hey why are we playing a numbers game with unemployment when that's not the issue?"
25) This is what happens when our current political class of glassy-eyed, misshapen, macabre, screaming, spitting, perverted, psychotic, moronic, manipulative, shameless, soulless, opportunistic, greedy, foreign cock munching, authoritarian, coked out bug people hits a crisis.
26) They misunderstand the problem, shit the bed, wrap up all the shit in the sheets, and then throw it out onto the streets of LA and say 'here you go! we paid $25 million to the kennedy center so their orchestra can keep playing and all our employees are still getting paid btw'
27) "What's that? The Kennedy Center laid off everyone anyways and none of these loans matter because your governors all shut down your businesses anyways? Huh. Orange man bad. Toodles!"
/endrant
/endrant
