danke

I've always had a beef w/ welfare for numerous fundamental reasons, but I'm watching the second airing of the Daily Show right now where Assaf is making fun of the law here in Florida that requires welfare recipients.

Well, the guy he interviewed that happens to be on welfare has a car, a condo, and is going to school to become a pharmacist.

WTF?

Why am I paying someone like that with my state corporate taxes?!

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

lukep

Cause you live in a state where the majority of people literally live on welfare (medicare) and would naturally vote for more of it?

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ly2 from WF

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danke

I literally HATE Welfare. FUCKING HATE IT. ALWAYS HAVE.

When I was a kid food stamps were something that you didn't want to use. You didn't even want your friends to think that you're using food stamps.

Now that they use debit cards I've probably seen about 10 people using them at the supermarket or walmart when in front of me.

Buying stupid shit and fatty foods.
.....

When I was learning how to work for myself I lost weight because I HAD to eat less. I didn't think to myself let me ask for welfare. I told myself that if I wanted to eat tonight I better make some money today.

What the fuck is happening to this country?!

FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

stickyicky

We are all fatass entitled faggots who wouldn't know true happiness or freedom if it crushed our stupid faces in. And by we I mean everybody but me.

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Andrew Scherer

I think the only thing welfare does at this point is keep the peace.

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Dankface

danke

I see Like | Share, but I don't see one to flag for stupid as shit.

You don't know my race and this has nothing to do with anybody's race...

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

poisonsembrace

Welfare is a good thing but American's are always concerned by somebody else getting something that they're not. A guy on welfare who is studying to be a pharmacist and you're angry? Fucking Americans.. education should be free and available to all. If someone else wants to sit on welfare and do nothing with their life, who cares? You're paying much more to wage war than support these lazy cunts. Get angry about that instead of allowing the media to pull your strings over some welfare bum who's cost to you is minimal.

Go read about the welfare models they have in different euro regions. For America, it's just a race to the bottom.

Beach Affiliate

Unless I'm severely mistaken, I've heard/read several times that there are more white people on welfare than black.

And fuck you for making the assumption that a welfare discussion equated to a "black/white" issue.

That makes you racist. Not the OP.

danke

Eurofags... Figures, just want the whole world to be as broke as you guys right?

The guy probably has student loans from the government and now he's getting tax money to buy food instead of just getting a job?

Are you fucking serious? If so, just drink some goddamn hemlock now.

Pay your way through college, get a second job. Dude had a car under 10 years old and better furniture than I did for a LONG TIME.

It's not about people having what I don't have. How the fuck am I going to look down with envy?

C'mon Sherlock! It's about misappropriations of funds and priorities.

Taxes should be going to infrastructure and education, not to nearly 50% of the state's residents to buy food while they milk their unemployment for 60 weeks. A state that doesn't even have an income tax BTW...

With all due respect. Stick to eurofaggotry.

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

slayerment

Why is it okay to force somebody to give something they legally worked for to another person?

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Bad music
Stupid blog

poisonsembrace

I'm not euro for a start but their system works better than the American one. I don't get why you think people need to do things the hard way, work more for less money yet be a proud American about it.

They trick you to get upset that the little guy is getting a hand out to better his circumstances through education yet none of you get up in arms about the people who really are robbing your country. Why let them pull your strings like that? You're country is not in a shit situation because an individual is getting a small hand out to help with school yet talk to any American and they seem to think that's the case.

You should read this book.


American's who work for companies for all their life who lose all their benefits, pension, healthcare and turn around and say well that's the American way and think taking it in the ass is how it's meant to be. I didn't realise how retarded American's truly are until I read that book. Can't help but take pity on them when you're a person who gets to look at American from the outside in.

geomark

Yep, it's called mob rule aka democracy. Worship of the Mob - Ben O'Neill - Mises Daily

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It means what I say it means - Thaksin Shinawatra

papajohn56

Better, yet unemployment across the Euro zone is higher than the US, and in some areas (ie Spain) is over 20%.

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mimoza3

I wouldn't say Europe is perfect in this regard... Germany will, in a couple of years, be in a really serious mess over the amount given to (mostly) immigrants, and many other Euro countries have concerns over the possibility of paying so much to so many people, however this is an internal problem so it does not get out.

lukep

You don't understand us at all then.

A good 50% of America, really more than that but I don't have the numbers on hand, is on the take. The stupidest among us of course, our trailer trash, our inner-city welfare familes, our retirees, our unions, pretty much everyone that isn't a capitalist, is on some significant form of Welfare here.

We're as socialistic as your society, taxed even more. It's just not an income tax... We get taxed on all kinds of things we don't even know what half of them are!

What you're hearing from americans however isn't the lazy masses. You must have heard from the few americans that are tired of being TAXED OUT THEIR PECKERHOLES to pay for the majority of lazy slobs in this country.

We Libertarians take it even further than that and feel it is UNJUST to rob Peter to support Paul's stupid habits. And we're fucking right.

If the state could work on a non-negotiable fee for services rendered, instead of forcing tax out of everyone, then far more goodness would exist.

Sure, you might think there would be no nice roads and fire departments if we could choose to pay that fee or not; but then again, do you really think that the vast majority of us wouldn't pay it? Because until it gets that dire, that would raise more money for social services than we are raising now because the majority here do NOT pay taxes and in fact are the recipients of our money instead!

Consider this your introduction course to America.

For our next class, we'll talk about the American Dream and how it's now located in China.

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ly2 from WF

I personally hate this fucking country. The issue is, I don't have the balls to pack my shit and just go. And even if I did have the balls to do it, I worry that I wouldn't find anywhere better and that scares the shit out of me. Because if this is the best place to be...hole lee fuck.

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lukep

Smarts and the courage to admit your weaknesses. You know you're getting sexier with age, right, ly2?

I'm in the same boat, luckily I've travelled a bit so I know I can live in Thailand or Northern Europe when teh SHTF, but it's still hard. I'll have to build a lot more savings up to get residency somewhere in Northern Europe, and I'll have to build up a LOT of heat tolerance to move to thailand...

Anyway, keep in mind Ly2, that anyone telling you that this is supposed to be the best place to be is either selling you something, or simply working on 50-year-old information.

You can do it man... Just try some vacations to various countries first and see which grow on you.

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poisonsembrace

Come to Australia.

johnysc430

you leave america you still have to pay american taxes, what's the fucking point?

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cougarclaws

"If I can just pray over this here...a...get it processed and stay focused... do the right thang... maybe God will bless me."

Its not God blessing you, you dumb fucking bitch its the tax payers and the state.

Fucking looters aren't even grateful for who is making their hand outs possible. These people are breeding.

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tatrasim

I can respect that. At least going to school to become a pharmacist. The problem is that the majority don't even want to go to school or do anything with their life, that's where the problem is at.

ly2 from WF

What in the world gives you the idea I would move to a tax haven and still pay taxes to this piece of shit country?

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ly2 from WF

That's a good idea...and it gives me a reason to take vacations too

But my passport is expired, guess I should do that soon as I hear it takes like 6 months to renew?

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Scalped

Yes indeed. Its hit ~30% in canaries.

The baffling issue with the eurozone is how much the politicians tend to spend on 'trips'. for example they went to Africa for ~8 days to discuss 'poverty issues' and tallied up a bill close to 900.000 €.

They came to the canaries and tallied up a bill close to 600.000 € in 5 days.

Thats the worst part of it, apart from the fact they are taking peoples rights from them willy nilly.

Like a song says: "You are free to do as i tell you..."

Napolean

Slavery was never really abolished, it was socialized.

They systematically train people to accept welfare as their way of life. Anyone go to public school in the inner cities? There is no encouragement, they don't even teach addition and subtraction until 1st and 2nd grade.

When I moved to a suburb, I had no idea what half the stuff they were teaching in my new school was. My older school hadn't even taught anyone how to read a clock face, let alone multiplication or division. I saw school papers from a friend in kindergarten with that "advanced math" and couldn't believe they were taught all that so early.

It is drilled into your head from the beginning that it's a rigged game, you cannot succeed, you have to have connections to get anywhere in life, otherwise you are doomed to dead end jobs, if you are one of the lucky ones. They teach you that that's what your "realistic" plans should be. Don't shoot to high.

It's not surprising at all to me. The tax system alone is enough to discourage you. It's hard moving up from lower class to middle, to upper middle, and beyond. The cost of mobility between tax brackets (if you make just $1 beyond your current tax bracket) are:
Moving from 10% to 15%: $ 425.15
Moving from 15% to 25%: $ 7,350.10
Moving from 25% to 28%: $ 14,783.03
Moving from 28% to 33%: $ 34,144.05
Moving from 33% to 35%: $ 75,150.52

How does that not discourage someone who's growing a business? It really sucks when just making a few extra dollars costs you thousands of dollars, especially when it catches you off guard.

Every step of the way, government discourages us from self-reliance and independence. We have to pay a self-employment tax on top of other taxes just for working for ourselves. How is that even justifiable?

It's no wonder so many people just say "fuck it" and give up. It's also no wonder that most don't even try. Every single prime time television block is filled with get rich quick shows that teach people further that the only path to success if pure dumb luck. Ask anyone off the street what trial and error is, and they will either think its some kind of court, or some new law drama on a cable network.

After all that, the most successful self-made people in public are demonized for their success. If you worked for everything you have, starting from nothing, you are the bad guy. If you inherited your money and did nothing for it (and have the XX chromosome), you are celebrated. Just don't go do something stupid, like building upon that inheritance with anything beyond a reality tv show.

megatabbers

Despite all the bullshit, this is not such a bad place to live. I have dual citizenship and have spent half my life in Europe. And still... after packing my bags in '05 to "never look back"... I was back in '09.

I feel your frustrations but there's a lot of shit you're taking for granted. Take a few months to live elsewhere (live, not vacation; much different) and then it all becomes apparent.

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"I have always believed that writing advertisements is the second most profitable form of writing," said BBDO Chairman Philip Dusenberry. "The first, of course, is ransom notes."

ly2 from WF

Yea but Euro is as bad or worse than here, def not on my list of possible locations except maybe Ireland?

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joshyybaxx

Move to Australia.

We have welfare, healthcare and no recession.

We also have the sickest wildlife, decent club scene, beaches, rain forests and everything else, the AUD is going heaps good right now (there's a lot of Aussies buying whole blocks of property in America because of how cheap it is).

Napolean

One thing people don't mention when they talk about their countries providing welfare and healthcare is what is missing from their countries budget: Defense.

The reason the U.S spends 12+ times more in defense than everyone else is because we're providing defense for all these countries. We're also giving a lot more money in foreign aid to other countries than all these other countries.

If these countries had to provide for their own defense, and were paying everything the U.S does, relative to their GDP, they would be in a lot of trouble too.

poisonsembrace

The old man and I were actually talking about that a couple months ago. I'm not sold on the idea as I think the US will never recover and this is just the start of it's decline as China and then India rise up. Of course, by the time those 2 countries are the super power of the world, I'll be an old man but the USA is going the way of the USSR imo.

Where's the upside in investing in America? There isn't any. Huge fucking risk with little chance of coming out on top.

jellyfish

Fixed it for ya.

Pseudo Nym

Sorry if I've misunderstood, but this sounds like (the unfortunately common) ignorance of marginal taxation. Earning "a few extra dollars" should never cost you "thousands of dollars" in a marginal tax rate system.

I sort of agree with this, but I think it's more to do with the perception that very successful people had to do a lot of unethical things to get there. After all, what does the media show us but rich people and corporations exploiting and screwing over the "little people" on a regular basis. It's no wonder there's some resentment. On the other hand, people are more than willing to idolize successful people that are perceived to have earned their success ethically and who have created genuine, high-quality value (e.g., Steve Jobs).

But on a smaller scale, I don't think a successful restaurateur, for example, is going to be demonized.

joshyybaxx

USA - 4.9% of GDP for military
Aus - 1.9% of GDP for military

Also on foreign aid

America - 0.3% of GDP
Australia - 1.2% of GDP

Aus = no recession, strong $.
USA = Recession, weak $.

We have welfare,healthcare and no real dramas politically, USA on the other hand is pretty much the opposite. If America didn't go chasing wars around the middle east and tried fixing shit up back home you'd be in a much better position.

Also on investing in America, it's a big risk. There's money to be made if their $ goes back to what it was with the AUD about .20 below the USD = instant 20%, if the recovery happens and property values rise you'll increase that further.

Not to mention properties here in Aus run for about 350k minimum for a piece of shit, 350k in America is a very nice property.

I love America, it's in a very bad state right now, and the people who are in denial are doing more harm than good.

Pseudo Nym

Huh... aren't they a bit too... socialist, for you? Seems a bit ironic considering your libertarian bent.

Reminds me of a piece I saw recently: How Swedes and Norwegians Broke the Power of the ‘1 Percent’

I guess that "enviable standard of living" does sound pretty good, doesn't it.

kamired2

As someone who has lived his entire life in Europe I find the notion that the US is somehow a better place to live than most of Europe pretty surprising. Yeah Cost of Living is on average a bit higher than the US but I imagine that that's something most people, who are looking for the optimal place to live, can afford.

Vienna is No. 1

The U.S. may still have some of the world’s best universities and most innovative companies, but it does not rank highly in quality of life, according to a survey published Nov. 29 by human resource consultancy Mercer. In fact, not one U.S. city made the top 20 (of 221 total) on this year’s list. Austrian capital Vienna ranked No. 1 in the Mercer 2011 Quality of Living Survey, followed by Zurich, Switzerland; Auckland, New Zealand; and Munich, Germany. Tied for fifth place were Düsseldorf, Germany, and Vancouver, Canada. The highest-ranked U.S. city, Honolulu, placed No. 29, and San Francisco came in at No. 30. New York City ranked No. 47, behind Boston (No. 36), and Chicago and Washington, D.C. (tied for No. 43). Mercer’s survey evaluated cities’ quality of life based on their political and social environments, economic environment, sociocultural environment, health and sanitation, schools and education, public services, transportation, recreation, availability of consumer goods, housing, and natural environment.
http://images.businessweek.com/slide...-of-life-2011/



FACT: In the United States nearly 14% of Americans live in poverty – about 40 million people — compared to 6% in France, 8% in Britain, and 5% or less in Germany, Sweden and Belgium. Twenty percent of American children live below the poverty line, as do nearly 23% of the elderly, the highest figure by far in the west with the exceptions of Russia and Mexico. The U.S. is ranked 29th in infant mortality, tied with Poland and Slovakia (in 1960 the U.S. was ranked twelfth) and 37th in health care (France is ranked first). The wealthiest 10 percent of Americans now owns 70 percent of the wealth but in Germany the top 10 percent owns 44 percent.
Myth 6: Europe has a lower standard of living than the UnitedGAYStates. « Washington Policy Watch



Rating Countries for the Happiness Factor

A study pulled together from sources and surveys found that good health care and education are as important as wealth to modern happiness

White's research used a battery of statistical data, plus the subjective responses of 80,000 people worldwide, to map out well-being across 178 countries. Denmark and five other European countries, including Switzerland, Austria, and Iceland, came out in the top 10, while Zimbabwe and Burundi pulled up the bottom.
Not surprisingly, the countries that are happiest are those that are healthy, wealthy, and wise. "The most significant factors were health, the level of poverty, and access to basic education," White says. Population size also plays a role. Smaller countries with greater social cohesion and a stronger sense of national identity tended to score better, while those with the largest populations fared worse. [...] The U.S. came in at 23.

Rating Countries for the Happiness Factor - BusinessWeek








Although the under-5 mortality rate in the United States has fallen in recent decades, it is still higher than many other wealthy nations – 2.3 times that of Iceland and more than 75 percent higher than the rate of the Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Japan, Norway, Slovenia and Sweden.United States Has Higher Death Rate Than Most Other Countries



And so on and so forth.

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Scalped

Hilarius! Love it! So true...

Bofu2U

True, but as you said - unfortunately, it is so common that it's almost accepted. Not actually accepted, but to the point where I hear more people talking about that than non. But hey, I can understand why.

For those that don't want to click on the link and are wondering what I'm talking about:

(from Wikipedia).

You only get taxed at the rate within that bracket, then adjusted remainder is pushed to the next.

(inb4 "You mean people don't know this...?")


+1. But they encourage small businesses *rolls eyes*

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geomark

The thing is, so much of the U.S. military and covert activity creates the problems that then must be defended against. Like killing half a million kids in the war on terror which has created millions of potential terrorists seething with hatred and bent on getting some kind of revenge. Many countries don't go around invading other countries for their oil or fomenting uprisings or assassinating leaders etc etc. The biggest risk many of those countries face is getting caught in the crossfire when terrorists come looking for Americans on vacation to blow up, ala recent arrest in Bangkok.

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It means what I say it means - Thaksin Shinawatra

turbolapp

It is a pickle isn't it? When something like this makes me feel crappy I try to pollyanna the situation. So it does make me feel a bit better that, even though so many things suck about this country, and it's so far from where it should be, it's still has the potential to be greater than any other country just by it's very foundation.

soulbyproxy

Most Walmart employees are on welfare because that fucking company doesn't pay a living wage. Naturally you see a lot of miserable fucks using foodstamps there; the company encourages its employees to get on welfare.

If it wasn't for a couple of lucky breaks, you might have been in the same boat.

soulbyproxy

Thats what they say in every country dear.

geomark

lol at the anger. Nobody is forced to work there. Walmart does a great service - it gives jobs to losers who probably wouldn't work at all otherwise.

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It means what I say it means - Thaksin Shinawatra

danke

Lucky breaks? You poor excuse for a carbon based lifeform.

I struggled and worked 60-100 hours a week for five years to make it. That was five years of cold calling, door knocking, spending under 20 a week for food, and barely making rent on the months I wasn't actually late. Seeing my friends hang out and get real jobs while I stayed at home in a studio apt on Sat building a business all the while lying through my teeth on facebook pretending I was already successful.

Yeah, lucky fucking breaks.

You're what's wrong with the world, you look at a fucking expert, wealthy individual, or world class athlete and totally ignore the blood, sweat, and tears to get there.

Do everyone a favor a shut the fuck up. Seriously.

As for these people talking about Australia and Vienna and shit.

Australia: 23 million people
USA: 313 million people

Stop trying to compare the two, you insipid kangaroos.

EDIT: This is why I rage so goddamn hard around liberals... Lucky fucking breaks. People may be born as equals, but it's hard work that sets people apart. That Kumbaya socialist bullshit will lead to the decline of society just like it has whenever exercised at an extreme, all while motherfuckers like you live off of the tit that capitalism provides-yet, have the fucking nerve to curse the thoughts that spawn the beast.. I'm working to build a fucking legacy so my kids, kids, kids never ever have to worry about money ever. Not live for the collectivist good.

It's days like this that make me wish Ayn Rand was still alive.

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

geomark

"I struggled and worked 60-100 hours a week for five years to make it."

That's peasant talk. All I've ever done was recline in my La-z-boy and day dream, order my minions to make it so, and watch the money roll in. Working hard doesn't make you more worthy. It's just an unfortunate necessity for those who are not truly gifted.

But calling it a couple of lucky breaks is truly ignorant no matter how you made it.

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It means what I say it means - Thaksin Shinawatra

danke

Goddamit! When Morpheus asked me if I wanted the blue pill or the Lay-z-boy I thought it was a trick question.

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I'm not an entrepreneur, I just play one on TV...

soulbyproxy

You're lucky that your IQ isn't one point lower, your lucky that you don't have a serious speech impediment, you're lucky that you weren't hit by a bus on your way to that 60 hour a week job. You're lucky that you weren't born a girl in the south of Sudan. Your life is a series of jackpots.

Most of all you're lucky that given the circumstances of your life, you were able to visualize a plan of success and implement it in spite of yourself. Do you really want to say that in five years you didn't fuck up at least once? Didn't need help once? You're lucky that being an ungrateful fuck isn't an impediment to what you call success.

Interesting that you immediately think that having empathy for other people naturally means that your personal wealth is under attack. I'm not advocating welfare or any equalization of resources. All Im advocating is that you don't despise people for being in the position that the majority of the human race is currently in.

Do you realize that for some people, visualizing success is about as easy as an aborigine visualizing a nuclear submarine? So yeah, you're lucky that in a world more likely to turn you into a lump of shit, your pathetic scramblings have gained you some modicum of success. And you're an arrogant fuck about it too.

erect

you guys should consider the merit of floating

geomark

lol at people who think luck has anything to do with anything.

You know, charity is a duty that each person should adopt as a personal policy. Welfare, on the other hand, is coersion under threat of violence by the state.

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It means what I say it means - Thaksin Shinawatra