Welfare

End the Welfare State!

Since the inception of welfare which can be largely attributed to Presidents Roosevelt and Hoover the US tax payer has given more than $5 Trillion to ease the plight of the impoverished. For all this we have received... more poverty.

The American welfare system has failed. We all know it, but no one wants to do anything about it. Both parties’ proposals which include reform, grants and job training merely tweak the current system. Simply stated we must replace the existing program today with a program that works – one based on individual and social responsibility, opportunity and labor.

The first issue at hand is making jobs available. Almost everyone agrees that a job is better than a welfare check. Given the current economic climate we can not simply stop paying a needed benefit to the increasing amount of people who truly do require assistance in this economic climate. We must take steps to stimulate growth at all levels of the economy, incent investment in new business and keep American jobs here. We must create more opportunity. Please see my thoughts on job stimulus for details and options on how to do this.

When we have made jobs available we must then eliminate the welfare system as we know it. This will require a gradual decrease in benefits over a few years, but the welfare system must be dismantled. Through education and targeted initiatives, individuals who have relied on the system for years must learn to support themselves and their families through the job market. In addition, they may rely on churches, their extended family, community organizations or private charities for assistance and support.

Next we should provide incentive for people to give to such charities by giving dollar-for-dollar tax credits for contributions. Allowing tax payers to move money in the direction they want at face value increases our ability to promote our individual causes and desires. Getting about thirty-three cents on the dollar for charitable contributions, as we do today, is not incentive enough for people to give significantly to charity. As we do this we must also provide certain classifications and limits to prevent individuals from giving 100% of their money to a single organization (Example: the school their child happens to attend).

Lastly, in creating change, we need to look at our educational process and change our schools. American schools are segregated by income. It's time to break the current education system that benefits wealthier families who live in prosperous neighborhoods. We know many options which would allow for more choice in our school systems, but until we break our current patterns we will be unable to realize and take advantage of those choices. Please see my thoughts on education for more information on this topic.