Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dan3 who wrote (153313)	10/14/2002 10:41:26 PM
From: i-node	Respond to of 1585192

No system is perfect ... Let me suggest a little experiment for you. Every morning for the next year or so, walk out your back door and pitch a pound of fresh, red meat on the ground. Come back in a year and tell me what has happened. Understand that humans are animals, too.

To: Dan3 who wrote (153313)	10/14/2002 11:14:37 PM
From: Joe NYC	Respond to of 1585192

Dan, Look at table 6 on page 20. Definition 4 excludes transfer payments (Social Security, Veteran's Benefits, Educational Assistance, Railroad Retirement, Medicare, Welfare, etc.) and leaves 20% of households with 0.9% of the income. The top 20% get 55.6% of the income - about 60 times as much on a per household basis. Ok, I see what you are saying. I thought you were talking strictly about Earned Income Tax credit. No system is perfect, but I think our balance of "here you are" welfare and "get a job or starve" has been better than that of most societies. In recent years, we've been moving away from that balance, and I think it's starting to damage the economy. The benefits have not been reduced, and if more of the 20% move to workforce, I can't see anything other than economic benefits. There is a huge difference between a person sitting around watching Oprah and someone working some kind of job. I think the trend in the employment % has been moving up after the welfare reforms (federal and state). I don't know what the recession will do to this trend, but hopefully, it will continue after the recession. I see a bigger problem for the economy and the society if the trend was in other direction - more people out of work force receiving some kind of assistance, but living in a complete disconnect with economic realities. Joe