I know a gentleman who came from a very poor background to become a very very insanely wealthy man. About 15 years ago he was sitting around with a group of men thinking back to the days he would show up to school in ratty clothes and no school supplies. He was self conscious and a loner. One year a teacher spotted his embarrassment and gave him a new sweater, shoes, a backpack, a couple notebooks, and some pencils without drawing attention to the gift. He still draws on that day as one of the defining moments in his life.

He asked one of the other guys at the table how difficult it would be to identify all of the children in a school who might be in the same type of situation he was as a child. The other man who was a school superintendent let him know it wasn't hard. The gentleman announced that while he understood it wouldn't solve all the problems in life, he wanted every child within reach to start the school year with a two new sweaters, shoes, and a backpack filled with supplies. He stood up, told the school superintendent he wanted the number of children within 24 hours. Not just for his school, but for every school in the area. The men all laughed because they knew he was rich but to provide those items to the thousands and thousands of kids in the system would come out to a huge number. He nodded and left.

The next day the superintendent stopped at his office and gave him a list that was even larger than expected. He told the gentleman that while it was a worthy idea the cost was just too high to make it workable. Maybe just some shoes? Just school supplies? The gentleman laughed, told the school superintendent to sit down, and picked up his phone. He made five phone two minute phone calls. Every year since then the gentleman and five friends have made sure that every single child in that region starts school with two new sweaters, new shoes, and a backpack full of supplies. Does it solve all their problems? Hell no. But it does possibly lessen the embarrassment for one or two kids who might someday go on to help others.

Only a very small number of people know that story because he didn't set up a charity, run a news story, or accept any awards. It is a private act by private citizens. When I asked him about it he simply pointed out that not everyone with money is a greedy bastard. Most people just need to know a need exists and they'll do what they can to help.

This is the same guy who was disheartened to find out school scholarships were either ethnic or achievement oriented. He promptly started a new scholarship open to anyone involved in any community service of any sort. But that's another story.

Ty Webb: You know who that guy was, Danny?

Danny Noonan: Bob Hope?

Ty Webb: Ha ha... No, that guy was Mitch Comstein, my roommate. He was a good guy.

Once they realize the government doesn't provide for everyone's needs, and the poor aren't getting rich on welfare.

For the people that Shawnee is always worried about. Not the people with no means, but not enough means.

Link

It's still Bush's fault right? We are just now paying the tab for he party that was.

Comparing Obama "welfare" spending to Bush war spending = apple and oranges.

A more relevant comparison would be Obama's spending on these social programs compared to Bush's spending on the same programs...and then also factor in that they may have increased as a result of the 07-08 recession.

FTFY.

Just let them and their children starve.:yelgreedy

Genetically? I know you didn't mean genetically.:smack:

I hope.

The Heritage Foundation characterization of "welfare" spending is really appalling.

The actual numbers for welfare/income security programs is around $400B (est) and if you add Medicaid..another $250B (est).

So I'm assuming Heritage is including unemployment compensation, the self-funded SCHIP program, and I have no clue what else, in order to come up with their fear mongering number of $888B

They're probably also including defense-related spending going to Boeing, too. </snark>

Corporate welfare is a different slice of the pie.

But then when/if they enact legislation to de-fund or prohibit future funding to ACORN, they might just have to include grants/contracts to companies like Haliburton, Blackwater Security, and nearly every defense contractor that "cheated" on their contract or had employees who broke the law or engaged in questionably activities while on the job.

Sheesh...

Americans are hard working. Americans hate welfare and would not take advantage of it in droves if the government offered better welfare. Europe doesn't. We are all of the same race. We are not genetically, generally or otherwise a lazy nation. It's a very small percent of people who abuse a system as it is in every good hard working country.


I don't know wtf she means.

I can't believe I picked out one word to focus on when the whole post is a horribly biased.

Americans are not genetically or any other way inclined to take advantage of welfare.

Americans broke from Britain which would make the genetically inclined laziness statement ironic at best.

Our founding fathers are probably rolling over in their graves.

@ Sky: Sundae wasn't actually suggesting that Americans are genetically lazy.

And there's the clincher. It's that damned irony again. You've used the word 'ironic' without in any way taking on board the ironic nature of the post. 'At best'? Which means you actually consider the idea that she really does think Americans are genetically lazy? Wouldn't that kind of fly in the face of everything we all know about Sundae? Somewhat out of character maybe? Colloquially (and i realise this may be different for you than for me, and I suppose that's kind of the point)...colloquially that phrase, unless accompanied by the sister statement 'at worst....etc' generally denotes that the 'at best' is either unlikely, or barely less negative than the 'worst' in nature.

It wasn't 'ironic..at best' it was just plain old irony.


I am feeling most irritable. One too many episodes of House.

well ya Dana C. Of course.


One does get irritable when confronted with the ridiculous and the bizarre.