Well, THAT Was Fun (and Expensive)! [Updated]

Remember a while back, when we were informed that, without the Spendulus, unemployment would skyrocket? But that, through the Magic of Gummint Spending© we could avoid this potential cataclysm, restore the economy to its formerly robust state, and once again enjoy the fruit of our labors?

Turns out, not so much:

What, you may ask, does this have to do with insurance?

Glad you asked. It's pretty simple, really: if the rocket surgeons in DC got this so bone-achingly wrong, why would anyone believe they could get health care right?

[Chart courtesy Innocent Bystanders]

UPDATE: On a related note, all those TARP (Toxic Asset Relief Program) dollars that went to bail out ailing financial institutions (like AIG)? Bet you thought that, like all good gummint programs, there was some adult supervision.

You'd lose that bet:

"In his 256-page report to Congress, [TARP Inspector General Neil]Barofsky notes that the Treasury Department's failure to implement anti-fraud measures, or even to require TARP recipients to report how they used the billions Congress and the Treasury Department gave them, makes it highly unlikely that the $317 billion outstanding -- nearly half the TARP total -- will ever be returned to taxpayers."

What's that sound?