<i>If you truly think that most people have "fairly equal" access to opportunities, you understand extremely little of the world.</i> I'm not talking about the

<i>If you truly think that most people have "fairly equal" access to opportunities, you understand extremely little of the world.</i> I'm not talking about the world. I'm talking about the US. Our poor don't hold a candle to the rest of the world - if you are poor in the US you are better off than most globally. Unemployment numbers are just one part of it. We have over 46 million Americans on food stamps. We have programs that give benefits for housing, health care, mobile phones and all sorts of other "entitlements" ... unemployment is just one piece of the ever growing entitlement pie. If you consider my opinion that we should not support those that are sitting on their ass as "moralizing" then I suppose I am guilty of that. That you think that the lazy, good-for-nothing, sits-around-doing-nothing American is mythical is laughable. And, yes, I know people who have been on welfare, who have received government assistance. I know people who take unemployment. And in my experience I have seen these people make bad decision after bad decision. Is some of it out of their control? Sure. But many times they share in the responsibility for their financial situation. I've seen people that are struggling to make rent, but always have beer or liquor around. Those are the kind of stupid financial decisions that keep people where they are. I don't think it's incumbent on those of us that are working, paying taxes, and trying to be responsible citizens to have to keep funding those that aren't working, pay no/few taxes, and continue making irresponsible life choices.