We've been walking a lot here.
We first noticed it at the "Wendy's" we walked to-
"Help wanted. All positions."
The next day we walked to "Del Taco". On the front door was a sign- "Now Hiring".
A little later we ate at "Golden Corral".
Wait... don't get ahead of me now!
But you're right.
And it's not just the fast food joints.
The Home Depot just down the block is also begging for help.
So guess how we handle the "Homeless. Two kids. Will work for food." folks standing on the corner near the "San Tan Village" mall?
We ignore them. Then we wonder if it would do any good to inform them of the MANY employment opportunities available if they'd just open their eyes.
No. Of course not.
They're too happy getting the equivalent of $61,000 in government benefits while adding to that any money they can mooch while standing on the corner with a sign.
What have we become?
5 comments:
A few years ago, when I was starting as an independent contractor I started wondering about this. I did some math and I found out that I could make more than twice as much if I quit my job and filed for welfare, instead of working 80+ hour weeks.
I decided to ignore the math. It was too depressing.
These days, I am breaking the poverty line, but there are some days that a 9-5 sounds like a much better idea.
HAVING SAID THAT:
There needs to be a strong social safety net. If there weren't, innovators would be dis-incentivized to take risks. A single failure, mistake, or miscalculation could ruin a person forever.
HAVING SAID THAT:
There does need to be a strong incentive for people to get off those programs.
HAVING SAID THAT:
I have many acquaintances who cannot work in a normal job environment through no fault of their own. They would like to hold a job, but almost no job could take them, with the requirements and risks that hiring them would entail. How can we balance the needs of these people with the wants of others? What becomes the cutoff point?
HAVING SAID THAT:
I'm rambling now.
Anyway, I agree with you. Something needs to change. But in the minds of politicians, this is the logic:
We must do something.
This is something.
Therefore, we must do this.
Alternatively,
To improve things, things must change.
We are changing things.
Therefore, we are improving things.
A cultural shift must occur. But this cannot happen overnight. It did not become this way overnight. It will not fix itself overnight.
What is the solution? I don't know. I wish I did.
We may need to take the Band-Aid approach to the solution, as the Band-Aid approach was used to fix/create the issue in the first place.
No, don't institute little changes here and there.
Rip it off, all at once, and quickly. Yes, it will be painful, but the healing starts almost immediately and the results are positive after a very short time.
I can relate to UA's comment.
How do you build a safety net that won't be gamed?
"I have many acquaintances who cannot work in a normal job environment through no fault of their own. They would like to hold a job, but almost no job could take them, with the requirements and risks that hiring them would entail. How can we balance the needs of these people with the wants of others? What becomes the cutoff point?"
They "cannot"? Are they hooked on drugs? Psychotic? I'm not grasping the "cannot" portion of this. I started working at 9 throwing papers, and starting investing in the stock market at 10, a dollar at a time. No one told me I "could not" do that.
I fail to grasp the "cannot" concept.
BZ
48 years of Demorats ruling Baltimore. THIS is what we get for that. Riots. Now more money is demanded by politicians. DEMORAT politicians. Imagine that.
BZ
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