How would you like $1,000 right now, no tax, no strings attached from your government? Well that’s what is happening in Australia. I just hung up the phone from talking to my mother and apparently Australians are very happy right now. Why? Because the government is staying true to its word regarding its $AU10.4 billion economic bailout plans to strengthen the Australian economy again. I have talked about this earlier in this blog, as Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced his “Economic Security Strategy” aimed at relieving personal debt to lift Australians out of the global economic crisis. Lump sum payments will be given to veterans, families, the disabled, seniors and pensioners. Here’s what citizens will get:

Pensioners, people with disability, seniors, carers and veterans will receive $AU1,400 for singles and $AU2,100 for couples

Families will receive $AU1,000 per child under 18 that is monetarily depended (that includes university students!). Think about it. If you have four children, that’s $AU4,000 upfront, no tax.

Sounds great right? So why can’t this sort of action happen in the United States. Instead of giving money to the corporations and expecting wealth to trickle down, the Australian Government has given money directly to the people who need it most to free our country from debt. Better still, a specific date of December 8, 2008 has been announced for payments to Australians. It’s a no strings attached action by the Rudd Government to help Australians now.

Now, I am no economics expert to say the least, but it seems logical to me. Yes, the population differences in Australia compared to the U.S. is enormous, but just look at the Australian bailout plan figures ($A10.4billion) compared to the U.S. figures ($US700billion). Between the two candidates in the running for presidency, Barack Obama has the right idea for strengthening the U.S. economy. Last week he announced his economic plans if elected president, with a focus on lowering taxes for the elderly and middle class. But people need to pay off their debts and they need to do it now. An immediate, lump sum payment straight into people’s pockets allows them to walk down to the bank and pay off their credit card right then and there.

Barack Obama and John McCain have finally come clear on their plans to relieve the financial crisis if elected president. We can now see the two candidates’ economic policies after McCain’s announcement of a $52.5 billion plan yesterday. Here’s the run-down:

Obama has proposed a $60 billion plan with emphasis on tax cuts for the middle class and low-wage workers. He intends to increase spending for public works to create jobs. He has also reinforced his call for eliminating income taxes for older people with less than $50,000 in income.

McCain’s economic policies comes to a slightly lower figure of $52.5 billion. His new plans seem to focus on the elderly with tax cuts on capital gains and on withdrawals from retirement account by people 59 and older and tax waiver for unemployment benefits. But the New York Times explains these benefits will not come into play for months. Both these plans are on top of the billions of dollars already injected into financial institutions.

But what I’m concerned about is how their plans will affect me. Being from Australia, I want to know what the new economic plans will mean for Australia. Whether America is aware of it or not, their actions, your actions, who you vote for and your economic policies all affect Australia. Your economic woes are translated in Australia as middle class families struggle to pay off a mortgage, pay the bills and pay for gas. More and more families are selling their homes and switching to renting because they simply cannot afford it anymore. In times of a global crisis, the entire world is affected. The U.S. economy is basically now in recession and we are feeling it overseas.

Australian leaders too are announcing their solutions to the economic crisis, with Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd addressing the nation yesterday. An article in the Australian, a credible and balanced Australian national newspaper, today reported our prime minister’s plans to strengthen the Australian economy. With a slightly smaller budget figure of $10.4 billion, Rudd will give a one-off cash handouts for pensioners, low-income families and first-home buyers, will fuel a six-month spending spree that will sustain economic activity and allow Australia to maintain economic growth. The article explains Rudd’s measures are designed to counter weeks of international stock market turmoil and overseas bank collapses now cascading into the real economy, threatening economic growth and jobs in Australia. This is just one example of countries around the world in financial angst over the declining stock markets.