4 ms·

Ok, so, you just want to punish people who, for whatever reason, haven't accumulated an emergency fund. I'm going to assume that you mean this in the most char

Ok, so, you just want to punish people who, for whatever reason, haven't accumulated an emergency fund. I'm going to assume that you mean this in the most charitable sense of "their budgeting does not allow them to accumulate an emergency fund," because a bank balance is a point in time view and not always reflective of overall financial health. (Speaking of which, how would you determine that? Require 6 months of bank statements to apply for disability insurance? That seems awfully intrusive.) I'm sure you're familiar with the study that says 4 in 10 Americans can't cover a $400 unexpected expense? Well, it doesn't quite say that [0], but it does cite a study that says only 24% of households have $400 in liquid assets. And, it also says that 14% of households would not be able to pay some bills if such an expense arose, and 12% could not cover the expense at all (I'm unclear if the 12% overlaps with the 14% though). Are you saying you're okay with those people taking the first step into total financial ruin, just because of something they have little or no control over (becoming temporarily unable to work due to disability)? And, I'll ask again: why should one's bank balance affect one's ability to claim benefits when one paid into the system in order to fund those very benefits? --- [0]: https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-06-04/the-400-emergency-expense-story-is-wrong https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-06-04/the-40...

gpm 7y ago
I don't appreciate you putting words in my mouth. I have never said I wanted to punish anyone. I have never suggested looking at bank balances - in fact I explicitly argued against this the only time I mentioned it. You are arguing against a straw man. That said - I have no interest in replying to the content of the argument - I stay away from arguing about things on the internet where there is no right side. The general question of what to do is too political for me to approach here. All I am willing to do, and have done in my comments, is respond to clearly incorrect statements.

gpm 7y ago

I don't appreciate you putting words in my mouth. I have never said I wanted to punish anyone. I have never suggested looking at bank balances - in fact I explicitly argued against this the only time I mentioned it. You are arguing against a straw man. That said - I have no interest in replying to the content of the argument - I stay away from arguing about things on the internet where there is no right side. The general question of what to do is too political for me to approach here. All I am willing to do, and have done in my comments, is respond to clearly incorrect statements.