Andrew Grathwohl Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/1917387.html Seems too good to be true... Could California become the first state in the nation to do away with welfare? That doomsday scenario is on the table as lawmakers wrestle with a staggering $24.3 billion budget deficit. County welfare directors are "in shock" at the very idea of getting rid of CalWORKs, which has been widely viewed as one of the most successful social programs in the state's history, said Bruce Wagstaff, director of the Department of Human Assistance in Sacramento. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MichaelH Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 http://www.sacbee.com/topstories/story/1917387.html Seems too good to be true... The state has to make dramatic budget cuts this year. The only alternative seems to be the federal government stepping in; fortunately they have given no signs of doing so. There's no question about the moral issue involved, so it will be interesting to see the effects of cutting welfare completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khaight Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 There's no question about the moral issue involved, so it will be interesting to see the effects of cutting welfare completely. My guess is that the effects will be bad. (Hear me out.) When welfare benefits are removed, the former recipients will need to get jobs. But the government has screwed up the economy so badly that for many of these people moving into the job market will be virtually impossible. It's all very well to say "get a job, you lousy bum" -- but what happens when the government has hogtied all the employers to the point where they can't hire anyone? The most likely short-to-medium term effect will be that the cut-off of their benefits will motivate the moochers to actually go to the polls to support the next attempt to raise taxes -- which will pass as a result. And it's all downhill from there. The real problem here is that government has entwined itself so thoroughly with the private sector that disentangling it without provoking the social equivalent of a heart attack is going to be a delicate and lengthy process. That isn't what's going on here; the public support for repealing welfare on moral grounds doesn't exist. These cuts are viewed as a morally unacceptable extreme to which we are being pushed by desperate necessity. And because the moral trumps the practical, the likely consequence will be increased pressure to do "whatever is necessary" to allow the government to meet its alleged moral obligations to the poor and needy. Expect a never-ending stream of media sob stories about the awful consequences of the budget cuts, and another tax hike attempt sometime next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whYNOT Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Well argued Kyle --- every silver lining has a cloud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-Mac Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Not to mention private charities, which could be helping these people instead, are suffering right now also, due to the economy. Damn government. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-Mac Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 (edited) EDIT: double post Edited June 8, 2009 by K-Mac Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheEgoist Posted June 8, 2009 Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 Allow me to be the first to call shenanigans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Grathwohl Posted June 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2009 My guess is that the effects will be bad. (Hear me out.) When welfare benefits are removed, the former recipients will need to get jobs. But the government has screwed up the economy so badly that for many of these people moving into the job market will be virtually impossible. It's all very well to say "get a job, you lousy bum" -- but what happens when the government has hogtied all the employers to the point where they can't hire anyone? The most likely short-to-medium term effect will be that the cut-off of their benefits will motivate the moochers to actually go to the polls to support the next attempt to raise taxes -- which will pass as a result. And it's all downhill from there. The real problem here is that government has entwined itself so thoroughly with the private sector that disentangling it without provoking the social equivalent of a heart attack is going to be a delicate and lengthy process. That isn't what's going on here; the public support for repealing welfare on moral grounds doesn't exist. These cuts are viewed as a morally unacceptable extreme to which we are being pushed by desperate necessity. And because the moral trumps the practical, the likely consequence will be increased pressure to do "whatever is necessary" to allow the government to meet its alleged moral obligations to the poor and needy. Expect a never-ending stream of media sob stories about the awful consequences of the budget cuts, and another tax hike attempt sometime next year. Probably! When an economy needs a recession, it needs a recession. As witnessed by our overall economic crisis, the longer we hold out on a recession by abandoning free market principles, the worse the inevitable recession will be when it finally rears its ugly head. If California were to eliminate all welfare, it would likely be a miserable 5-10 years. But eventually they'd get over it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thales Posted June 9, 2009 Report Share Posted June 9, 2009 My guess is that the effects will be bad. (Hear me out.) When welfare benefits are removed, the former recipients will need to get jobs. But the government has screwed up the economy so badly that for many of these people moving into the job market will be virtually impossible. It's all very well to say "get a job, you lousy bum" -- but what happens when the government has hogtied all the employers to the point where they can't hire anyone? The most likely short-to-medium term effect will be that the cut-off of their benefits will motivate the moochers to actually go to the polls to support the next attempt to raise taxes -- which will pass as a result. And it's all downhill from there. The real problem here is that government has entwined itself so thoroughly with the private sector that disentangling it without provoking the social equivalent of a heart attack is going to be a delicate and lengthy process. That isn't what's going on here; the public support for repealing welfare on moral grounds doesn't exist. These cuts are viewed as a morally unacceptable extreme to which we are being pushed by desperate necessity. And because the moral trumps the practical, the likely consequence will be increased pressure to do "whatever is necessary" to allow the government to meet its alleged moral obligations to the poor and needy. Expect a never-ending stream of media sob stories about the awful consequences of the budget cuts, and another tax hike attempt sometime next year. Excellent application of principles to a concrete situation! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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