Welfare

[RationalThought110]

I need to give some examples for something about an example of redistribution of resources in the US.   The concept of welfare sounds like it.   So what are some examples of welfare?

Medicaid?  Any others? 

Anything know of anything else besides welfare? 


In terms of giving something without getting anything in return, I'd say volunteering would be an example.  Anyone know of any others? 

[Bodhi]

  How about agricultural subsidies, oh and how about every time wall mart wants to build a big box store in an area and drive all the local businesses out of business they demand to be exempt from local taxes, this is the same thing as welfare, only much, much more costly...the president vetoes heatlth care for kids, while they are getting ready to spend 100 billion dollars to bail out large corporations who speculated in bad debt instruments, it's simply corporate welfare...for every dollar spent on medicaid or other welfare to poor people in this couptry about $100 is spent on coorporate welfare and subsidies to big business.

[HiWarp]

You've touched on a nerve so here goes.

Amount of my property taxes that go towards paying for the school district=$6300
Total number of children in school=0

My two next door neighbors have a total of nine children between them.  One pays less property tax than I do and the other pays about the same.

Seems fair to me.

[RationalThought110]

  How about agricultural subsidies, oh and how about every time wall mart wants to build a big box store in an area and drive all the local businesses out of business they demand to be exempt from local taxes, this is the same thing as welfare, only much, much more costly...the president vetoes heatlth care for kids, while they are getting ready to spend 100 billion dollars to bail out large corporations who speculated in bad debt instruments, it's simply corporate welfare...for every dollar spent on medicaid or other welfare to poor people in this couptry about $100 is spent on coorporate welfare and subsidies to big business.

Why do farmers get subsidies?  There are no requirements for them to receive the subsidies?

Walmart isn't required to pay taxes? 


That's a lie about SCHIP.  Bush proposed an increase in the budget for SCHIP.  As usual, the Democrats demand an even bigger increase.  Then because it's health-care, when Bush said he wouldn't increase by as much as the Democrats want to increase it, they falsely made accusations that he's against kids having health-care.


If corporations don't want to pay taxes, they could just move their headquarters to another country. 

[RationalThought110]

You've touched on a nerve so here goes.

Amount of my property taxes that go towards paying for the school district=$6300
Total number of children in school=0

My two next door neighbors have a total of nine children between them.  One pays less property tax than I do and the other pays about the same.

Seems fair to me.

That sucks. 

[newman]

I don't mind some things being subsidised if they're positive. The NY canal system cost $5, 500,000 to run & maintain last year. It collected only $58,000 from yachts & boats passing through it at $15 per day pass. The canals make NY a better place and attract boating people from everywhere. The flow on effect is a vibrant marine industry and jobs.

[RationalThought110]

Any other thoughts?

[Bodhi]

  Well I think that one of the main reasons that welfare is necessary in the US now is that people are isolated and alienated....we no longer live within familly structures, most "families" are now a single mother and their offspring.....when parents get old instead of caring for them the way they cared for us when we were young and helpless, we ship them off to nursing homes.....many brothers and sisters don't speak with one another, I'm not sure if these things are cause or effect, but there was a time when you would go to your familly if you needed help, and not the govenrment.....I think the Jewish community has a stronger sense of solidarity than the general population, but even there....modern society is very isolated, with people living in one side of the continent, their parents and grandparenst on another side, their sisters and brothers spread out all over the map, maybe that is how it has to be in a modern economy, but it tends to lead to social problems, if someone looses a job (which s happeneing more and more often), or has a catostrophic medical problem, it's not as easy to take care of someone when they live 2000 miles away........so uncle sam steps in, and then if you recover he'll tax you to death...

[Groucho Marxist]

Those agriculture subsidies are interesting. Sometimes the government is only paying farmers to dump gallons of milk or corn. Their intent was to create a bigger supply, but they spoil before they can be sold.

[RationalThought110]

Those agriculture subsidies are interesting. Sometimes the government is only paying farmers to dump gallons of milk or corn. Their intent was to create a bigger supply, but they spoil before they can be sold.

I think it was mentioned on a news program recently that some people who receive farm subsidies, don't actually have a farm. 

[Wayne Jude]

That would not surprise me.

[cjd]

You've touched on a nerve so here goes.

Amount of my property taxes that go towards paying for the school district=$6300
Total number of children in school=0

My two next door neighbors have a total of nine children between them.  One pays less property tax than I do and the other pays about the same.

Seems fair to me.

You and I are in the same boat when it comes to school taxes. When it was 3 thousand or so I didn't mind it much but at the 6 thousand  level it has started to become somewhat of a hardship. I am starting to resent paying school taxes like this because I know several teachers in the school district here and they are really somewhat over payed in my opinion. Some of the teachers with tenure are very close to the 100g mark or better. They get good pensions and medical for life. Something most average people don't get.  The fact that in some cases they make twice what most people do that live in the district tells me something is out of balance. While teachers should be payed well their salaries should not be using up all the school systems resources. In some cases the mortgage payments and taxes are putting people in a position of not being able to afford to continue living in their homes. While I am not in this position thank G-d.  I still feel its wrong to place such a strain on the hard working taxpayers who are struggling to make ends meet.

[RationalThought110]

cjd,

    "The fact that in some cases they make twice what most people do that live in the district tells me something is out of balance." 

   So the teachers in the district make a higher salary than most of the people who live in the district who are involved in a different job?  And people claim that teachers are underpaid.  In addition to their pension and medical benefits, they also get the summers off.  Any teacher who works during a summer to teach a summer school course would receive an increase in their salary. 

[cjd]

cjd,

    "The fact that in some cases they make twice what most people do that live in the district tells me something is out of balance." 

   So the teachers in the district make a higher salary than most of the people who live in the district who are involved in a different job?  And people claim that teachers are underpaid.  In addition to their pension and medical benefits, they also get the summers off.  Any teacher who works during a summer to teach a summer school course would receive an increase in their salary. 

Yes if they do summer school they would get extra pay. I have had some of the higher paid teachers cry to me that they don't actually get a check for the summer months. I always tell them for the yearly salary that they get they should learn how to budget throughout the year for the summer months when they are off. On top of this quite a few of them have started some great business they run during the summer months and move on to after they retire after 20 or so years. What really bothers me about people like this is they cry with a loaf of bread under each arm.

[MassuhDGoodName]

Re:  Farm subsidies & other such plans

Here's a thought for you all:

Corporations produce fertilizer, pesticides, hybrid crops, etc., all with the purpose of enabling farmers to produce healthier produce and larger crop yields.

Leftists are constantly insisting that we have an obligation to "feed the world's hungry", with "peace" being what will result from there being no hungry children in the world.

Now...ponder this thought:

When farmers are producing more crop yields, they are paid less and less for their work and product, as the glut of food means that consumers at the wholesale level are not willing to pay the farmers what they used to pay, the reason being the "law of supply & demand".

Result:  Scientific farming methods actually put the farmers permanently out of business...All farmers produce such large crops, that none of their crops are worth very much...it's a buyer's market...Farmers eventually have to sell their huge crop outputs for less money than their actual operating costs...Soon they can't repay any of their business loans...the "Big Boys" move in when the farmers go bankrupt, buy up all of the farms which once fed all of America...replace the American Farmer with Super Corporate Agriculture, paying illegal aliens to work, and then they must manage to keep their prices below those of farmers anywhere in the world, or else have no market!

Many scream and holler at the way Washington used to pay farmers to dump their milk, peanuts, corn, etc..., but the reason this was done was because it was the only factor which allowed American Farms to survive...it ensured that crop output remained within a profitable margin of return, thus guaranteeing American sovereignty and the safest and largest food supply known anywhere in the world.

Now that the "socialist scheme" is being abandoned, I hope you all enjoy higher and higher prices from imported food which is usually unsafe, contaminated, and may be cut off from the consumer by any disruption in the world wide "global" marketplace.  Meanwhile, your very own neighborhood farms can't even make a livelihood growing eggs and steak for your table.

In real life, (as opposed to theories in books) we often must bend the rules, and sometimes even throw the rule book in the trash altogether, if we intend to have a standard of living fit for an American.

[Groucho Marxist]

If the demand for domestic crops returns, we'll just hire back those farmers we fired.

No, kidding. If corporations have found more efficient ways of farming why do they need to import? And isn't there FDA regulation (makes me laugh) that for every 1 in 10,000 or so people that die from your food products you must improve standards or be shutdown?

I'd love to support local farmers, but there has to be a better way than setting price floors. We might even have more to fear from our own domestically produced goods. The hormones they put in cows it's very unhealthy. Lot of shady business going on with commercial farming.

[newman]

I'm in favour of agricultural subsidies. Here's why:

The reason the EEC (now EU) pays it's farmers to over produce is that before WW2, Britain and most other Euro countries imported a lot of their food. When the war came and Germany closed the sea lanes, they all nearly starved. We should all learn from this.

Australia has very little ag' subsidies and our farmers are going belly-up and we're importing turd world food fertilised with human sh*t!

 We're an Island nation surrounded by potential enemies with large navies. If they close our sea lanes WE'LL starve!!!