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NEW YORK (Reuters) -
A New York shopping mall is doing its
part to stimulate the struggling U.S. economy by giving away
$20,000 in cash to unsuspecting passers-by, hoping that handing
out $50 bills will boost consumer confidence.
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People dressed as Uncle Sam and the Statue of Liberty
started handing out $1 bills around the borough of Queens
earlier in the week, then began shelling out $50 bills at the
Atlas Park shopping center on Friday.
Recipients are asked to spend or invest the money and told
that if people have confidence in the economy it will become a
self-fulfilling prophecy.
The handouts will continue for two months until reaching
$20,000, equivalent to $0.05 per square foot of retail space.
The mall owners say the private-sector effort will
"supplement" the $168 billion stimulus package signed into law
by U.S. President George W. Bush on February 13.
Atlas Park owner Damon Hemmerdinger noted that tax rebates
in the stimulus plan won't reach consumers for months.
"It (the stimulus package) is important and I'm not at all
critical of it, but I'm watching layoffs and bankruptcies and
pain and suffering," Hemmerdinger said. "That's not enough. We
shouldn't wait for anybody else to solve our problems."
Hemmerdinger estimated that if every shopping center in the
country gave away cash using the same formula it would pump
$340 million back into the sagging economy.
One economist, while acknowledging the giveaway may not
have much impact on the $13 trillion U.S. economy, but said the
gesture could boost consumer confidence.
"It moves us in the right direction," said Frank Tinari,
professor emeritus at Seton Hall University. "It's taking money
out of savings or profits and pumping it back into the
economy."
Pretty dope, I don't know if this will have much of an effect though because I can't see too many businesses doing something like this.
