I came across this Reason article for another reason but this was so funny I had to send you back to it--the article has a number of fundamental problems and is a great example of the stimulus deniers often make claims that an economics 101 student knows are wrong and/or have their history wrong as "proof" that the stimulus won't work.
Even the massive spending during World War II, long touted for pulling America out of the Depression, didn't necessarily help. In a 2006 paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research, economists Joseph Cullen and Price V. Fisher asked whether the local economies that were the biggest beneficiaries of federal spending on military mobilization during World War II experienced more rapid growth in consumer economic activity than others. Their finding: Military spending had virtually no effect on consumption.
Um we had rationing. They didn't want to stimulate consumer spending and nonrelated war investment!!! The unemployment level fell below 2% and there was almost no excess supply of, well, anything. So their findings are, you know... um... right on the money. But not for the reasons they would lead you to believe! Its a gottcha moment that isn't so gottcha. Clever chess move though....
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