... at least not if government programs work the way they traditionally have. From Coyote : Frequent readers will know that I do not buy into the Keynesian multiplier effect for government spending. But there is an even better reason why the stimulus bill will never work: it is simply impossible to break ground on any new government construction project in less than a year. A year from now, any truly new incremental project in the stimulus bill will still be sitting on some planners desk with unfinished environmental impact assessments, the subject of arguments between multiple government agencies, tied up in court with environmental or NIMBY challenges, snarled in zoning fights, subject to conflicts between state, county, and city governments, or all of the above. Most of the money will have been spent by planners, bureaucrats, and lawyers, with little to show for in actual facilities.... To illustrate, let me tell a story. We operate a marina and campground on a lake in Ventura ...