To begin solving the current economic crisis, President Barack Obama’s economic plan has taken the center stage of his growing agenda. His stimulus package for immediate economic relief includes tax cuts for workers, relief for homeowners hit by the housing crisis and expansion of unemployment insurance.

“We need a middle-class tax cut now more than ever not five months from now or five weeks from now, but now,” Obama said. “I’m announcing a plan to jumpstart the economy by putting money in the pockets of those who need it most and will spend it quickly.,” he has said.

Obama’s economic revitalization plan begins with a $75 billion injection into the economy in the form of tax cuts and direct spending by the people who need to do so most. The main objective of the plan is to improve the economy immediately as well as in the long term. If the initial $75 billion fails to improve the economy, Obama’s plan reserves an additional $45 billion for another jumpstart attempt.

However, social studies teacher Phil Lyons believes that Obama’s plan to further cut taxes is flawed. “I’m against tax cuts to stimulate the economy because Bush did this twice and neither one produced the multiplier effect that was hoped for,” Lyons said. “People just saved the money or paid off existing bills. Plus this will just make the national debt even worse.” Social studies teacher Chris Johnson agrees. “Tax cuts are good, but not at this time,” he said.

In 2001 and 2003, former president George W. Bush cut taxes to encourage spending among American citizens. But rather than the money circulating into the economy through material purchases, Americans who received tax cuts mostly used their rebates to pay off credit debts and bank loans. Obama proposes to cut taxes again with the hope that middle-class Americans will spend more to help stimulate the faltering economy. But Lyons believes that the government should address the mortgage crisis first. “If I controlled such matters, I would have the government take over shaky home mortgages and rewrite them,” he said. “Foreclosures must be halted, and banks need to start loaning again before we can expect any recovery to begin.”

With rates of growing unemployment steadily rising and citizens quickly becoming unable to maintain assets such as housing, some speculate that this economic crisis could spiral into a second Great Depression. But Lyons disagrees. “The recession will definitely get worse, but won’t spiral into a depression,” he said. “This happened in the 1930s because of poor monetary policy (the supply of money was allowed to decrease), weak fiscal policy and the imposition of higher tariffs, which led to dramatically less international trade.”

While the worsening economic situation may seem bleak, Johnson has a different perspective. “After observing society and the economy for nearly a decade, I’ve always said we’ve needed a good economic emergency,” Johnson said. “People had and still have too much complacency, especially when it comes to major investments like houses. Now people will have to determine what they really need and make responsible financial decisions. I don’t mean to say my wish has come true, but this could really be a good thing in the long run.”