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> People on social programs should not be treated as “beggars.” They should be allowed to live their lives with dignity. Living their lives with dignity doesn'

by tivert 3y ago

> People on social programs should not be treated as “beggars.” They should be allowed to live their lives with dignity. Living their lives with dignity doesn't mean buying luxury items with benefits that many who don't get benefits can't afford. A lot of people support social programs to keep people from going hungry or being homeless, because those are serious problems. There's a lot less support for taking those programs farther, to providing free or subsidized luxuries. And taking them that far, frankly, is a short-sighted own-goal, because it serves to undermine support for the whole endeavor.

archagon 3y ago
Studies have shown that just giving people resources with no strings attached produces really positive results. It also keeps our welfare systems simple, less expensive to run, and less prone to moralistic posturing. ("How dare these people buy raw salmon when there's canned tuna available?") Personally, I'm happy if there's 9 people using EBT to get what they need without trouble for every crab leg lady. As for perception, the Republican dogma is starving the beast. "Welfare queens" are just an excuse: any remotely plausible reason will be used to defund social programs, crab legs or no.
- tivert 3y ago
  > Studies have shown that just giving people resources with no strings attached produces really positive results. And that misses an important part of the picture. > Personally, I'm happy if there's 9 people using EBT to get what they need without trouble for every crab leg lady. Are you a well-off software engineer, who would have no problem buying all the crab legs you want, even if your taxes were higher? If you are, you might not be able to see certain things from your lofty perch, and therefore may need to put in a little more effort to understand some important dynamics.

by tivert 3y ago

archagon 3y ago

Studies have shown that just giving people resources with no strings attached produces really positive results. It also keeps our welfare systems simple, less expensive to run, and less prone to moralistic posturing. ("How dare these people buy raw salmon when there's canned tuna available?") Personally, I'm happy if there's 9 people using EBT to get what they need without trouble for every crab leg lady. As for perception, the Republican dogma is starving the beast. "Welfare queens" are just an excuse: any remotely plausible reason will be used to defund social programs, crab legs or no.

tivert 3y ago
> Studies have shown that just giving people resources with no strings attached produces really positive results. And that misses an important part of the picture. > Personally, I'm happy if there's 9 people using EBT to get what they need without trouble for every crab leg lady. Are you a well-off software engineer, who would have no problem buying all the crab legs you want, even if your taxes were higher? If you are, you might not be able to see certain things from your lofty perch, and therefore may need to put in a little more effort to understand some important dynamics.