Baron von Annabella wrote:
I think we get too hung up on how poor people on welfare are undeserving.
Whether we're talking about a CEO begging for billions by flying to Washington in a private jet or a mother of 3 forcing her children to live on Ramen noodles and government cheese while she buys two packs of cigarettes a day, the issue is the same - improper use of other peoples' money. I care more about the people who deserve it and don't get it and less about the people that get it and don't deserve it, but the two are not exclusive.
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I think we need to focus on how we have become an increasingly stratified society where the richest 1% are now in possession of over 50% of the wealth in the country--creating an antidemocratic environment where everyone in the middle are squeezed.
Your contention that we need to spend more time worrying about the wealthy is unwarranted, if not invalid, because your statement assumes that those of us arguing in this thread have never commented on the problem of the consolidation of wealth just as vigorously, which is entirely untrue, at least in my case.
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By focusing on the poor and making moral arguments about wealth in this way, everyone is kept down.
Why can we not examine both ends of the spectrum equally? I'd argue (and if necessary, post evidence) that the primary focus of economic discussion in the past 3-6 months here has been exactly that - a focus on the wealthy and their abuse of power / money. This one thread happens to target welfare recipients. Get over it.
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There are small policy changes to help the working poor that would have a much more profound effect on the economy-- but instead, are never pursued because it would interfere with the bottom line of the top 1%. Most obvious are the continued fights to keep minimum wage low (it should be at least 10$ an hour) and the lack of universal health care and free childcare.
I've never directly discussed minimum wage here, but I can guarantee you that I've argued for universal health care. We share the same opinion here, but again, the original topic was the abuse of welfare, not the oppression of the poor by the rich. You can argue the latter all you want, but I'm not sure why you expect your argument to suddenly override my ability to discuss the former.