I’m not even sure there actually are.
I mean, there certainly are people who will be taking welfare checks all their lives, but in my limited experience while these people won’t hold any “official” jobs, they’ll always also be making money on the side, be it through criminal entreprises (e.g. slinging weed) or through unsanctioned labour, such as under-the-table landscaping, tarmacking drives, putting up drywall, painting over living rooms and the like.
I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who just sat on their arse all day, playing video games or watching TV with no source of income whatsoever besides the State. Welfare don’t buy steaks. More to the point, welfare don’t buy Xboxes.
I, too, am desperately seeking the answer to this question.
Since the banks (presumably under leadership of high paid executives) are the only ones who actually received government aid in the mortgage crisis, wouldn’t that make them the stupid people who entered contracts they couldn’t afford? Wouldn’t that also make them the ones who suck more out of society than they put in? Poor people went in with nothing and came out with nothing, while banks got trillions of our tax dollars to save them from themselves.
Socialism, indeed. Socialize the risks, privatize the profits. That’s what the wealthy want, and you’re willing to give it to them.
Ah but would you go so far as to say that people on welfare don’t eat steak or own XBoxes? I think that is the point the OP was trying to make.
Well, not anymore - since the mid-1990’s there have been a lifetime limit of 5 years on welfare in the US. Well, OK, you can get foodstamps without a time limit, but no housing, monthly money, or anything of that sort indefinitely, not any more.
Well, official government figures just released say 1 in 6 Americans are living below the official poverty level - but not even all of them are getting welfare. Some of them are working full time and are still that poor. Does that help at all?
Honestly, sometimes they don’t survive.
In other cases - they move into homeless shelters, or start engaging in illegal activities to simply obtain food and shelter.
I do some of my work for a landlord. Any property of his that stands vacant for more than a few days is at risk of being broken into and stripped - they steal the plumbing, rip the copper wiring out of the walls, peel the aluminum siding off the side of the house, steal appliances, whatever, and sell them for scrap. So they can get a few dollars. That’s just one example of how people survive when kicked off the government rolls.
Me, I’d rather have them on the dole and have less crime and vandalism, but what do I know? I’m just some softie.
I would go so far as to say that if they do, it’s not on the State’s dime.
Factually speaking, almost no one lives off of the government who wouldn’t be considered to be acceptably so (retired, looking for work, severely handicapped, etc.)
Also factually speaking, only about 2/3rds of anyone will earn enough to support themselves. The other 1/3rd are not technically living off of the government, but they will take more than they put in.
I work for a video game company. We have had open seats in our core engineering department that have gone unfilled since I started working here 3+ years ago, despite having a full time internal recruiter at various points in time. Are you really surprised that there are jobs available that require specialized skills that make it hard to find qualified candidates?
Who is doing that?
Why, I just completed a degree in software engineering, with a concentration in game development. Do you pay moving expenses? Can I get a green card?
I don’t know about a green card, but I know where you can get a pink slip.
Section 8 has no time limits. Not in Berkeley and Oakland, CA, anyway.
HumanBear–
If such people exist, what do you propose to do with them?
I would say people who start threads like this qualify as “useless.”
Try to re-read the OP (and his repeated attempts at reformulating his questions) with a more positive view, and you’ll notice he isn’t the monster some of you are making him to be.
Basically, he’s asking if there really are “social leeches” in the USA, if it’s really a significant problem, and if it is, what could be done to adress it.
I don’t really see any indication of, for instance, him being a conservative pretending to be a liberal. I’d rather suspect he’s mostly convinced that the issue of people living like parasites in the USA is vastly overblown, and waiting for evidences of the contrary.
He’s not saying that “useless people” are a significant problem in the USA, but that there are many people in the USA stating so. And asking for actual figures and evidences. I’m not sure why he’s taking so much flak.
I guess his mistake was to use the word “useless”.
Back off.
This is not The BBQ Pit.
[ /Moderating ]
I am. If your company cannot find engineers to fill positions, it is not due to a shortage of qualified candidates, it is because your company is not competitive in salary and benefits.
Hmmm . . . Well, rising petroleum prices threaten to raise the price of petroleum-based fertilizers, which in turn would raise the prices of foodstuffs . . . But where to find an alternative source of fertilizer?! . . .