[stupac2]

I'm using my "stimulus" payment to pay for one of my dogs to have a skin tag on his elbow removed that he can't leave alone. Haven't bought anything other than essentials since March.

I do need a new pair of shoes, however!

A good chunk of ours went to a new water heater. It was frustrating, if it had died pre-covid I would've just replaced it myself, but so many options for getting around not having one aren't possible now, and taking multiple trips to Home Depot was a lot less appealing...

It’s not just the propensity to save increased, it’s that the ability decreased. Some big ticket items like travel, restaurants, entertainment, and medical care have been difficult to spend money on. 

That was a flaw in the design of the inappropriately monickered stimulus package:  a lot of the money went to people who didn’t need it and ended up saving it.

I mean, sure, but what do you think should have happened? Also, to some extent increasing the savings rate is the point, because now more people have some cushion. Some brobdingnagian fraction of the population can't afford a $400 emergency, now that population is higher, which seems like a good thing to me.

[stupac2]

I'm using my "stimulus" payment to pay for one of my dogs to have a skin tag on his elbow removed that he can't leave alone. Haven't bought anything other than essentials since March.

I do need a new pair of shoes, however!

A good chunk of ours went to a new water heater. It was frustrating, if it had died pre-covid I would've just replaced it myself, but so many options for getting around not having one aren't possible now, and taking multiple trips to Home Depot was a lot less appealing...

It’s not just the propensity to save increased, it’s that the ability decreased. Some big ticket items like travel, restaurants, entertainment, and medical care have been difficult to spend money on. 

That was a flaw in the design of the inappropriately monickered stimulus package:  a lot of the money went to people who didn’t need it and ended up saving it.

I mean, sure, but what do you think should have happened? Also, to some extent increasing the savings rate is the point, because now more people have some cushion. Some brobdingnagian fraction of the population can't afford a $400 emergency, now that population is higher, which seems like a good thing to me.