Posted: 8/10/2010 3:35:20 PM EDT
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I keep hearing how "millions have LEFT THE WORKFORCE".
How? Are they living in cardboard boxes? Are they living in their Mom's basement? Really, unemployment is not enough to live on, and you have to be looking for work to get it. Is this now finally a nation of bums? 
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Quoted: Section 8 housing. Welfare. AFDC. Food stamp programs. School lunch programs, even IN THE SUMMER. Subsidized daycare. And get this, SUBSIDIZED CELL PHONES. Yes, people are living like this. I saw an ad on TV about the free cell phones for low income people the other day. |
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Quoted:
My accountant told me that 46% of the population are receiving some form of guv assistance.
An accurate estimate? I don't know...wouldn't be shocked if the numbers were actually higher.  Based on the guys with families I work with I'd say that is a close estimate. Especially the younger guys with multiple kids all seem to be on welfare. Some of the better paid guys have children that get state medical insurance. And these are all people that will actually get out of bed at 6am to go make a dollar. Some of the guys actually need it, but most are scamming the system as best they can. We had one guy that worked less and less the more his pay went up. They finally fired him for laying out but he didn't care his "wife" still got her welfare and he could do odd jobs for cash. 
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My 42 yo SIL doesn't work, lives in public housing, food stamps, wic. she has a cell phone, Att Uverse cable tv and internet. My niece is about to get braces courtesy of medicaid.
In fact she just graduated this summer from a well known technical school, only took her 6 years to get thru a 2-3 year program. She owes around 70K now, plus she got a few grants all because she is a divorced mother. The school is well known for their job placement program. but she cant seem to follow up on any job leads. funny how she always has money for cigarettes and drugs. |
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If you are collecting unemployment checks, you are still "in the workforce". You are column U-3. [~9.5%]
When your unemployment runs out, or you simply stop looking, and you still don't have a job, now you are "out of the workforce". You're now column U-6. [~17%] I forget the congressional panel that complied the information, but regarding federal personal income taxes.... the median tax liability is around $750 [per 1040] the average tax liabilty is around $7500 [I forget whether this was the total average, or just the average with a net-positive liability] the average zero-liability 1040 filing received a check for $750 from the govt. [this is the 47% to which one of the above-posters referred] I believe the "47% pays no taxes" is only valid up to 2008. I suspect the 2009 numbers are worse. Truth be told, the "pays no taxes" label is somewhat misleading, as these people do pay payroll taxes. However, the people in this category receive a larger Social Security check [compared to what they paid in] than a higher earner. Edit: U-6 unemployment includes U-3, so U-6 minus U-3 equals the total number "out of the workforce" [~7.5%] Sorry about my math, but the government doesn't pay me to do their job, so I have a license to be sloppy. |