B. O.'s Neighborhood

 

Broken Fences—A Stimulus Story

 

Three contractors are bidding to fix a broken fence at the White House.  One is from Minnesota, another is from Tennessee, and the third is from Chicago.  All three go with a White House official to examine the fence.

 

The Minnesota 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 for materials, $400 for my crew and $100 profit for me."

 

The Tennessee 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 Chicago contractor doesn't measure or figure, but leans over to the White House 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 Chicago contractor whispers back, "$1000 for me, $1000 for you, and we hire the guy from Tennessee to fix the fence."

 

"Done!" replies the government official.

 

And that, my friends, is “hope” and “change”.