During the course of a comment section debate, I came across a few surprising facts I think its important to share. Someone had re-posted someones status talking about how the government is giving away too much free stuff and how entitlement programs are destroying the budget and that giving money to lazy people who dont want to work is Obamas big plan. Its the same thought process behind the socialism arguments and the idea that Obama is taking money away from hard-working people to give to people who just dont want to work. Consider these absolute facts before you jump on that bandwagon... 1) The bulk of entitlement spending goes to the middle class. 2) 75% of entitlement spending goes to the elderly or disabled. 3)...the one that is most important and germane to this argument... Only 9% of entitlement spending goes to non-elderly, non-disabled households without jobs. Only 9%!!! You have to figure that the percentage of that 9% who are trying to crook the system and being underhanded about it is pretty small, too. So a small percentage of 9% of the entitlement budget is the abuse these people are talking about...that is, people who just dont want to work and want to live on Obamas handouts. To lay the blame for inflated government spending at those peoples feet is erroneous. I agree that its a bad thing for people to abuse the system in such a way...we should totally make it a priority to find further ways to crack down on such abuse...but the assumption that they are a leading contributor to the expenditure is simply not true. The idea that these lazy people that Obama is now subsidizing is the reason we have budget issues is simply ignorant. 4) The number of people needing government assistance rose dramatically after the financial crisis...yet, there are still right-wing politicians lobbying and fighting for LESS government regulations on the stock market...think about that for a second. THis reckless attitude led to the crisis which threw a LOT of people out of work and left them in need of assistance...now the same people who support the awful practices that led to the mess are mad at the people who got fired as a result of it because now they need help! In what world does that make any sense??? There is no question that a reduction in entitlement spending is very much worth examining. The part I take exception to is the lazy argument. Pinning the cost of entitlements on people unwilling to work is fallacious to the Nth degree. I think it detracts from a real discussion of what the ACTUAL causes of rises in entitlement spending are. THe thing that irks me the most is the failure to realize that the actions of those behind the stock market fiasco and the historic greed they have shown is a BIG part of the reason so many people are in a position to need assistance. THEN they complain that the number of people needing assistance went up...while simultaneously lobbying the government for LESS regulations! Its insane.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 01:06:57 +0000
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