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That is basically what Greece did and it worked out real well for them..
sigh, no its not.
Greece's benefits per person is in line with the rest of the EU actually, the problem came about when the people making the money engaged in massive tax evasion. its like a national sport over there. I know, the whole "they spent more money on welfare look at them!" sounds like a nice talking point, unfortunately its not based in reality at all.
In fact, greek social spending is only 80% of the average in the european union....up until the crisis hit, and then all the unemployment etc brought them almost to the average of the EU countries.
Lets do it, gotta get that paper!
Poor people getting money for nothing why can't the rest of America get money for nothing?
Because the vast majority of us really dislike being poor. Imagine that. Seriously folks here on CD act like every darned person out there would immediately go on the dole and be poor and not work, except of course for those tea party and conservatives of course!
Seriously if the only reason you imagine people going to work is because otherwise they'd starve or die, then really why dont we have MORE people on welfare? Why do we have so many people TRYING to find work? Why do so many of us work so hard to make more then minimum wage?
Sure we have some slackers, but to be honest them not competing for the jobs that are opening is not important. Talk to me when we have low unemployment and I will care. But automation is coming, and unemployment just going to keep going up. What do you people think is going to happen?
Oh I know...this is just like when all those secretaries lost their jobs! Except....its not. Seriously what new jobs do you think will open up that wont be automated away? How many people do we really need to do jobs when so much automation is coming? I'd guess in the next 20-30 years our unemployment will hit 70% if we dont do something about it. If your new job is easy it will be automated, and if it requires education, then by the time you get it...its too late, we will have smart systems do that too.
Go watch the "watson" computer dominate jeopardy. 2 years ago. IBM is opening up that system for developers with a api. Watching the show its obvious whats coming. The only question really is when. And its going to happen faster then any politician is prepared. This discussion? Its going mainstream. Everyone just KNOWS it wont happen here, but the people looking at the future know the discussion better happen now. Cause that sound you hear? Thats the train coming around the tracks, and we better be ready for it.
If you think Somalia is an example of anything besides anarchy and lawlessness, then hit a dictionary. You're using the same logical fallacy that libs often do. Some of us see around your bull. You guys are walking logical fallacy case studies.
Well.. then so be it. I'm selfish because I don't want to pay for more free stuff for people who just want more and more free stuff... I'll just continue to contribute to private charities and do all the other community service stuff I do as well. So I guess selfish I am.
In the last two weeks I've bought 100.00 worth of toys for a toy drive here in Kansas where we are working, bought canned goods for a food bank needing food for the holidays, signed up to sponsor a family for Christmas and this morning I opened the checkbook for tornado victims back in my home state of Illinois... what have you done lately, but complain on a website that you want more freebies for folks?
Ah, so you have done a couple things that amount to very little of your income so that you can pat yourself on the back while complaining about what's in it for me. So yes you are selfish if you look at things like how will they most benefit you.
VERY few are arguing for that. They can keep arguing for it til they turn blue. Shrug. Im sorry if some possibility in the future scares you. But "these same people"...are lumping together lots of different people. Its a falsehood.
Not "falsehoods" at all. I was not mentioning things that illegals have not been given, those are the things they ARE given. My own state passed legislation for a home mortgage loan program, specifically targeted for illegal aliens, and many states give illegals in-state tuition, and free taxpayer funded K-12 education, etc...
Ah, so you have done a couple things that amount to very little of your income so that you can pat yourself on the back while complaining about what's in it for me. So yes you are selfish if you look at things like how will they most benefit you.
At some point, do you expect to get any sort of gain from any of your daily efforts for anything you do? Then by your own definition, you are selfish. Let's say you work in a factory--if you go to that factory and slave away all day expecting to get some sort of personal compensation from your labors, then you are selfish. The idea is (your idea) that you go do whatever it is you do all day long on a strict voluntary basis, simply for the betterment of your beloved beehive. You get nothing in return personally for anything you do. Does that about sum up your life philosophy? Or does it not... making you a what's-in-it-for-me "selfish" person.
At some point, do you expect to get any sort of gain from any of your daily efforts for anything you do? Then by your own definition, you are selfish. Let's say you work in a factory--if you go to that factory and slave away all day expecting to get some sort of personal compensation from your labors, then you are selfish. The idea is (your idea) that you go do whatever it is you do all day long on a strict voluntary basis. You get nothing in return for anything you do. Does that about sum up your philosophy? Or does it not... making you what's-in-it-for-me "selfish."
That is false, getting paid for your time isn't selfish, it is just the price of labor.
A simple idea for eliminating poverty is garnering greater attention in recent weeks: automatically have the government give every adult a basic income.
The Atlantic's Matt Bruenig and Elizabeth Stoker brought up the idea a few weeks ago when they contemplated cutting poverty in half, and Annie Lowrey revisited it in today's issue of the New York Times Magazine.
No, it would rasie labor costs since the cost of labor would have to over come this free money people get. With the increase in the cost of labor, this basic income would have less and less spending power to the point it would be useless to support someone, thus the perosn would still be in poverty.
Problem is, this is a global economy, so the labor would have been shifted to low labor cost countries (as has been happening). So there would now be even less jobs for people.
Poverty would become even worse with a basic income.
What needs to happen is to bring the most costly expenditures down for people, thus increasing their spending power instead of having it sucked away into one or two areas of the economy.
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News, Giving All Americans a Basic Income Would End Poverty
I'll just continue to contribute to private charities and do all the other community service stuff I do as well. So I guess selfish I am. 
