The Stimulus Package
Three contractors are bidding to fix a broken fence at the
Yarralumla
One is from Canberra, another is from Melbourne, and the third is
from Sydney.
All three go with a government official to examine the fence.
The Canberra contractor takes out a tape measure and does some
measuring, then works some figures with a pencil."Well," he
says, "I figure the job will run about $900: $400 formaterials,
$400 for my crew and $100 profit for me."
The Melbourne contractor also does some measuring and figuring,
then says, "I can do this job for $700: $300 for materials, $300
for my crew and $100 profit for me."
The Sydney contractor doesn't measure or figure, but leans over to
the government official and whispers, "$2,700."
The official, incredulous, says, "You didn't even measure like the
other guys!
How did you come up with such a high figure?"
The Sydney contractor whispers back, "$1000 for me, $1000 for you,
and we hire the guy from Melbourne to fix the fence."
"Done!" replies the government official.
And that, my friends, is how the new stimulus plan will work.
