I have been against any type of taxpayer bailout or “stimulus package” since Congress and America’s most liberal-spending president first passed the $700 billion one in October. I even asked my representative not to vote on the bill, which he did anyway.

As the majority of Americans predicted (60% in both a CNN and Gallup poll), the bailout didn’t work, according to today’s report in The Washington Post. Banks aren’t lending the $200 billion they received from taxpayers back to taxpayers. How kind of them.

But what did proponents of the bill think would happen? Can anyone show me one unconditional act of grace in history that actually worked? It doesn’t exist. It can’t. Though well-intentioned, unjust handouts only cripple the receiver, like a spoiled five-year old instead of fostering responsible adults.

And what’s more “shameful,” Mr. President: that congress (including you at the time) and our former president got duped into believing (or colluding with) persuasive salesmen (investors, bankers, financial CEOs, etc) to pass an unconditional handout using your constituents’ money? Or that wealthy Wall Street speculators and private-jet flying automobile honchos effectively secured one of the biggest welfare checks in our country’s history, to already rich individuals even? Some would call the latter group clever.

Bankruptcy was help enough to slow the economic bleeding. It protects risk-takers and ensures they can get back on their feet, and in many cases, continue to operate. Yet suddenly, this option is no longer satisfactory, because the consequences of job loss sting. Seemingly overnight, America has forgotten that natural consequences like forest fires (recession, depression, etc) must take place to replenish the soil (our economy).

Meanwhile, President Obama and the House of Representatives have already approved a ballooning $800 $900 billion second bailout that’s filled with wasteful, political, irrelevant, and ineffective spending (read it here, but it will crush your spirits). Only our elected Senators can save us from such a mess, but opponents still want to pass some kind of bailout, just one in line with their preferred agenda.

After studying the issue, I believe the only thing that pulled our country from the Great Depression — in addition to patience — was justified over-spending, using American purchased war bounds (as opposed to the foreign-bought bonds of today, mainly from China), to fund World War II’s victory. Without the American taxpayer, the war would have been lost, and we would all be hailing Hitler or suffering the consequences (death). I can’t think of a more just cause to warrant borrowed spending. Without a just cause, said spending is spent in vain.

What we need now is more patience and FDR-like charisma, leadership which helped our country endure tough times, even though it didn’t solve them. We have to let the bad parts of our market fail, even if it hurts. All we’re doing now is wishful thinking, crossing our fingers, trying to get elected to a second term, and unjustly spending other people’s money — mine — which will likely lead to hyperinflation, making our dollar worthless.

Pile on the recent cabinet scandals, and my optimism has quickly faded. Again, I feel like I’m taking crazy pills.