Our company owns a group of newspapers near Boston (not GA). I read an editorial in one of their papers recently about “found” money by one of their cities. It seems leaders of this town had bemoaned the economy according to the same script you hear everywhere.

The difference there was that on two different occasions when program cuts were announced, a miracle happened and the government leaders “found” money to save the day. This time, it was $1.2 million. Not a bad find. I wonder if we have any money hiding around here.

Our federal government announced Friday that the great “Cash for Clunkers” federal program might have to end early (like after less than a month) because they don’t have enough money. Congress gave them a billion dollars to spend and they are about to be overdrawn at the bank.

If I remember right, the original idea was to get the gas guzzlers off the road. Fewer old vehicles will help make us less dependent on oil. That sounds reasonable to me. We wrote about a woman who purchased a new vehicle in Valdosta under the federal “clunker” program. She told the writer that $1,000 had been the best offer she could get for her car until now. After getting $4,500 for her car from the Feds and another $4,500 from the dealer in rebates, she was a happy new car owner.

She is now driving a more fuel-efficient vehicle. So what went wrong?

We have way too many people who want to take advantage of the program. Driving to work any morning in South Georgia, you will see many qualifying vehicles. When they gave billions to the big corporations, big banks and automobile unions, no one said we might not have enough money. Now when we are actually seeing a little wealth distribution our way, the money is running out.

In late September or October, President Obama says there will be a vote on the “new” National Health Care plan with the “public option” to cover everyone with health insurance.

I do not know how much money is going to be in the national health account, but I do know it will be a bit more (actually that would be a BIG, BIG BIT more) than what our government set aside for the “clunker” program. Now I can accept I will have to keep my old car for a few more years, but when the doctor opens my chest for heart surgery that is not the time to hear there is no money to pay the bill.

Hopefully, they will be able to find some of that “found” money. How silly of me. I just realized that once the Feds learn that our state and local governments are “finding” money, they will just “take” theirs. My suggestion to you is to eat an apple a day and find an old coffee can — we are going to need it.