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12-31-2010

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Wyatt Emmerich
Subject: Working Is For Suckers

This is a follow up to my previous article Money For Nothin' and Your Chicks For Free, where, among other things, I discussed the erosion of the American work ethic as a consequence of government welfare programs.

Wyatt Emmerich, the editor of the Weekly Mississippi publications, the Northside Sun and The Cleveland Current, recently published an interesting article titled, With welfare it makes sense to work less, in which he wondered why new manufacturing plants were no longer opening in his state. Here is what he learned:
    "If you ask business leaders, the problem is a lack of skilled labor. People don't want to work. Especially in the Delta, people just won't show up on time and often fail drug tests."

    "'How can this be?' you may ask. You have to work to eat. Well, that's really not true anymore. In fact, our welfare state rewards not working. You can do as well working one week a month at minimum wage as you can working a $60,000-a-year, full-time, high-stress job."

Emmerich then produced the following chart, using public data available from government websites, to illustrate his point. These numbers are based upon a one-parent family with two children under 12 years of age, living in Mississippi.

The second column shows the taxes taken and welfare benefits received by someone earning minimum wage ($14,500/year), while the forth column shows the taxes/benefits for a family working a job which earns $60,000/year. The minimum wage earner actually ends up with $3,411 in additional disposable income!

Even more shocking is the first column, which shows what happens if one were to work the minimum wage job only one week each month rather than full time. While the earned income would be cut by 75%, taxes would fall by $8,763 while benefits would increase by $4,035, for a net gain of $12,798. This means that working only 25% of the time at a minimum wage job, will yield 92% of the disposable income available to the full time worker earning $60,000, leaving three weeks each month to either lounge around, or possibly work an illegal black-market job that would put you far ahead of the full-time worker.

What's the message: Only chumps work for a living.

This relatively simple example demonstrates everything that is wrong with the U.S. economy. Each time the government interferes with natural market forces, they incentivize parasitic behavior while penalizing productivity, further impeding the economic engine. There is only one solution: eliminate all of these government programs and return to a system of private charity and investment to aid those truly in need. No one who was responsible for spending their own funds would ever consider freely participating in a system as corrupt as this. It is only when an impersonal government is allowed to become a third party in wealth redistribution, that results of this type becomes possible. The time has come to just say no to public welfare of every type. If you agree, let your voice be heard.

Addendum: (From the newsgroup rec.humor.funny)

    Jesus recently walked into a bar somewhere in the Western World. He approached three sad-faced gentlemen at a table, and greeted the first one: "What's troubling you, brother?" he said.

    "My eyes. I keep getting stronger and stronger glasses, and I still can't see."

    Jesus touched the man, who ran outside to tell the world about his now 20-20 vision.

    The next gentleman couldn't hear Jesus' questions, so The Lord just touched his ears, restoring his hearing to perfection. This man, too, ran out the door, probably on his way to the audiologist to get a hearing-aid refund.

    The third man leapt from his chair and backed up against the wall, even before Jesus could greet him.

    "Don't you come near me, man! Don't touch me!" he screamed. "I'm on disability!"
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