Why Do We Work?

[jamil]

If the adage of "don't feed the bears" because they will forget how to fend for themselves applies to those living in the hood or trailer park, why wouldn't it apply to third world nations? How would a third world nation ever learn to defend and maintain their own liberty and safety if some benevolent third party is always there to bail them out?

See now I can get behind that kind of conversation. You're treating this as the value judgment that it is, and you're trying to convince me in a way that demonstrates that you understand that at the end of the conversation, I can choose against your advice.

 

[BugI02]

After the 9 of us in our pool win the powerball, I won't be working either.

The lottery is a tax on people who can't do math

 

[BugI02]

My friends at work and I have concluded that each working American is currently supporting 2 to 2.5 deadbeats, the exact ratio is open to discussion. We also believe that ratio is trending higher all the time.

 

[phylodog]

The lottery is a tax on people who can't do math

A tax applied in what way? I have yet to be forced to purchase a lottery ticket.

 

[BugI02]

The lottery is a tax on people who can't do math. Is that better? 1 chance in 172million+ of winning. Your government enables and promotes the game and takes a cut. Kinda seems like a tax to me.

 

[jamil]

The lottery is a tax on people who can't do math. Is that better? 1 chance in 172million+ of winning. Your government enables and promotes the game and takes a cut. Kinda seems like a tax to me.

At least it's voluntary.

 

[phylodog]

The lottery is a tax on people who can't do math. Is that better? 1 chance in 172million+ of winning. Your government enables and promotes the game and takes a cut. Kinda seems like a tax to me.

Tax
1.
a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers' income and business profits or added to the cost of some goods, services, and transactions.

synonyms:

duty, tariff, excise, customs, dues;

The purple helps, at least you're acknowledging that it isn't. It wouldn't surprise me if a legislator decided to try and force people to play though, then it would be a tax.

 

[BugI02]

I should have known better. Taxes and taxation are too sensitive a subject to joke about. Mea Culpa

 

[DanSwanky]

"I work haaard for the money, So haaarrd for the money, Oh I something something money, Come on give me lots of honey."

 

[Twangbanger]

...If being on public assistance is such a gravy train, why doesn't everyone just quit working and enjoy it? You already know the answer. I wouldn't trade places with someone on welfare for anything. And for those who abuse the system - what goes around comes around....

I've heard this line of reasoning applied many times before in these types of discussions. I'm not sure I understand the point of it. It seems to suggest: "this level of existence isn't very desirable to those of us with higher expectations, so therefore, we should just lay off them and let them live peacefully in depravity, keep financing it, consider ourselves lucky, and let God extract payment out of them for what they take from the rest of us."

That just isn't very convincing reasoning for me, when you're talking about making responsible public policy. It sounds like a recipe for destroying people's initiative and creating more low-initiative people. I cannot see the point of that, either in a religious-moral context, or in a practical societal one. Public budgets are not the Catholic Church. This may be your personal philanthropic philosophy, but extended across a society, it's a disaster.

And the comment about the 1% is just an irrelevant distraction, just designed to change the subject in my opinion. Fixing welfare on one end of the income spectrum is not mutually-exclusive to fixing it on the other end. One of them is not the "real" enemy, while the other is just the "imaginary" enemy - they are both facets of the same flawed public policy, and they work in concert with each other to fleece those of us in the middle. If anything, the proponents of welfare at the "top" are some of the biggest proponents of welfare at the "bottom," because it makes them look compassionate, as if they're doing something to "give back" and help fix things.

 

[10mmMarc]

Sorry to say I know people who got laid off and basically refused to work, unemployment met their needs, they picked up the phone and called companies and ask if they were hiring, when they said no, that was their job contact for the week. Just when all the extensions ran out they were lucky enough to be called back to work.
When I got laid off for 2 years , I had several different jobs because I just didn't want to sit idle , I had to make contacts and earn a living, sitting at home gets me bored after about 2 days.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

If anybody's interested, the guy is supposed to call back into the show tonight at 6:30 our time. Some people called in later and expressed, what many would, doubts about his claims. He said he'd dig up the documentation. So, if you want to quit your job and go on the dole, think of this as a conference call training session.

Go to the TJ Network and click listen. You can also get it on the TuneIn app.
WTJS 1390 AM - Smartphone-Homepage

BTW...the guy stood them up. He never called in...I guess he had to be somewhere.