Comments on: Self-Reliance: Better Than Government Dependence http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/ Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:16:50 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: cjohnson, Wilkes-Bar http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-215056 cjohnson, Wilkes-Bar Thu, 30 Sep 2010 09:51:41 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-215056 Social safety nets are important and we must have them in place because there are always cases where they are dearly needed. However, people seem to believe that it is their "right" to have a house with more bedrooms than people, to have a car and drive it liberally, to keep their house chilled with air conditioning 24/7 and the lights on when no one is home. And I've heard of a case where the choice came up to pay either the cable bill or electric bill, and they paid the cable. Good luck watching the giant paperweight, a.k.a. TV, with no electricity. If people want to work less kissing butt at dead-end jobs, they ought to reconsider what they spend/waste their money on and what they think is valuable. Social safety nets are important and we must have them in place because there are always cases where they are dearly needed.

However, people seem to believe that it is their "right" to have a house with more bedrooms than people, to have a car and drive it liberally, to keep their house chilled with air conditioning 24/7 and the lights on when no one is home. And I've heard of a case where the choice came up to pay either the cable bill or electric bill, and they paid the cable. Good luck watching the giant paperweight, a.k.a. TV, with no electricity.

If people want to work less kissing butt at dead-end jobs, they ought to reconsider what they spend/waste their money on and what they think is valuable.

]]> By: Billie http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-153780 Billie Tue, 27 Jul 2010 01:59:32 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-153780 The more government, the more incompetent and corrupt leadership and the weaker the people are seen to be. That's right. Self reliance is being in charge and in control of your decisions, choices and actions.Taking life at your own pace. Setting your own goals. Challenging yourself to meet those goals, Enduring all personal challenges along the way. Seeing what you, as an individual can become at your own will. Under government dependency it would read: taking life at government pace. government setting goals for you. No need to endure personal challenges, government won't allow them. Government seeing what you can become, at government's will. Welfare recipients will never have potential to reach, as they will always be limited by having their hands held by government. Self reliance is freedom. Government dependency is not! The more government, the more incompetent and corrupt leadership and the weaker the people are seen to be.

That's right. Self reliance is being in charge and in control of your decisions, choices and actions.Taking life at your own pace. Setting your own goals. Challenging yourself to meet those goals, Enduring all personal challenges along the way. Seeing what you, as an individual can become at your own will.

Under government dependency it would read: taking life at government pace. government setting goals for you. No need to endure personal challenges, government won't allow them. Government seeing what you can become, at government's will.

Welfare recipients will never have potential to reach, as they will always be limited by having their hands held by government. Self reliance is freedom. Government dependency is not!

]]> By: Different Types Of Grants For Starting A Business – How Can It Helps You http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-153208 Different Types Of Grants For Starting A Business – How Can It Helps You Mon, 26 Jul 2010 19:36:15 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-153208 [...] Self-Reliance: Better Than Government Dependence | The Foundry … [...] [...] Self-Reliance: Better Than Government Dependence | The Foundry … [...]

]]> By: George Colgrove, VA http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-153160 George Colgrove, VA Mon, 26 Jul 2010 14:54:52 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-153160 One way to eliminate government dependence is to start with the federal employee. The objective should always be to reduce government. Start this process by instituting a BYOB Benefits plan. Eliminate all government supplied benefits (life, health/medical, FERS, Thrift, etc). Give federal employees a short time to convert their government plans to private sector plans (enhances competition) on everything. Once implemented, the federal government will provide funding to match the private company average benefit contribution amount (from $32,000 current down to $9,700). The federal government will simply pay for a portion of the employees self-made benefit package up to a maximum amount. This will save the government more than $20,000 per employee (there are over 3 million of them) with a savings of up to 60 billion annually. This goes back into the nation through cutting taxes. This also spawns competition in the private sector and if accompanied by repealing healthcare will provide a new shot in the arm to several healthcare insurance companies other than BCBS that owns the monopoly of that industry through deals with the federal government. With this plan functioning in the federal employee ranks, the private sector can then follow suit. Image no company or organization making these choices for us. We will have the power to craft our own benefit package that we can take from job to job. New jobs will be created in the field of benefits brokering. There will be open competition for all things insurance. Price will go down as a result. Profit and competition become the leading regulators and we the people win. Then as the economy in general picks up the need for unemployed dependency will go down. One way to eliminate government dependence is to start with the federal employee. The objective should always be to reduce government. Start this process by instituting a BYOB Benefits plan. Eliminate all government supplied benefits (life, health/medical, FERS, Thrift, etc). Give federal employees a short time to convert their government plans to private sector plans (enhances competition) on everything. Once implemented, the federal government will provide funding to match the private company average benefit contribution amount (from $32,000 current down to $9,700). The federal government will simply pay for a portion of the employees self-made benefit package up to a maximum amount. This will save the government more than $20,000 per employee (there are over 3 million of them) with a savings of up to 60 billion annually. This goes back into the nation through cutting taxes.

This also spawns competition in the private sector and if accompanied by repealing healthcare will provide a new shot in the arm to several healthcare insurance companies other than BCBS that owns the monopoly of that industry through deals with the federal government.

With this plan functioning in the federal employee ranks, the private sector can then follow suit. Image no company or organization making these choices for us. We will have the power to craft our own benefit package that we can take from job to job. New jobs will be created in the field of benefits brokering. There will be open competition for all things insurance. Price will go down as a result. Profit and competition become the leading regulators and we the people win.

Then as the economy in general picks up the need for unemployed dependency will go down.

]]> By: lynn, Richmond, VA http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-153100 lynn, Richmond, VA Mon, 26 Jul 2010 13:51:06 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-153100 You have summed this problem up very succinctly. Not only does welfare damage the character of the recipients, it promotes the idea that the government owes the benefits it confers on the individual. When private charity or family is the giver, the receiver fully understands that the gift comes from a humanitarian impulse and is not his due. True freedom and equality come through economic freedom. The current welfare state enslaves individuals to the government to which they have ceded the responsibility for their own welfare and that of their family. You have summed this problem up very succinctly. Not only does welfare damage the character of the recipients, it promotes the idea that the government owes the benefits it confers on the individual. When private charity or family is the giver, the receiver fully understands that the gift comes from a humanitarian impulse and is not his due. True freedom and equality come through economic freedom. The current welfare state enslaves individuals to the government to which they have ceded the responsibility for their own welfare and that of their family.

]]> By: DonInAtlanta http://blog.heritage.org/2010/07/26/self-reliance-better-than-government-dependence/#comment-153072 DonInAtlanta Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:57:21 +0000 http://www.foundry.org/?p=39687#comment-153072 Might call this a report by the "Self Righteous Indexers" Might call this a report by the "Self Righteous Indexers"

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