The Line Between Jobless Benefits, and Welfare

[EmilyHemingway]

I am not making this up. It is actual news.

Millions of Americans have been forced to rely on unemployment payments for extended periods as the nation struggles through its longest period of high joblessness in a generation, and critics are taking aim, saying that the Depression-era program created as a temporary bridge for laid-off workers is turning into an expensive entitlement.

About 11.4 million out-of-work people now collect unemployment compensation, at a cost of $10 billion a month. Half of them have been receiving payments for more than six months, the usual insurance limit. But under multiple extensions enacted by the federal government in response to the downturn, workers can collect the payments for as long as 99 weeks in states with the highest unemployment rates — the longest period since the program's inception.

(Excerpt)

Discuss!


I smell "unemployment reform" coming soon, as strapped states find ways to bail out their budgets. Someone tell me how to post a chart, I've got a great one.

[EmilyHemingway]

Brought to you by DG and the letter "E".

[pjorourke]

You know, if we had taken the $800 billion spendulus bill and put it into unemployment benefits there wouldnt have been any recession. But then again there wouldnt have been any graft for the politicians either.

[WTF]

Helping people is one thing... institutionalizing them is another thing all together

[guest041110]

I am guessing then institutionalized helping is not on your plate WTF...

[Guest050715-1]

I don’t see why we don’t do some of FDR type workers’ programs. Unemployment benefits puts money only in the beneficiary’s pocket. If we institute workers’ programs, then the money spent on the project pays workers a compensation, pays suppliers, pays taxes, pays non-direct labor – it would feed the economic machine as a whole. But that’ll never happen.

[atlcomedy]

@OH - what do you think the stimulus program was supposed to be????

[WTF]

I can't answer you LD, I'm on a short leash!

[Guest050715-1]

Originally Posted by atlcomedy

@OH - what do you think the stimulus program was supposed to be????

Oh, I don’t know pork, unemployment benefits and other vague disbursements beyond the ubiquitous pork for and with purposes known only to various bureaucrats and committees perhaps. I’m sure you’ll tell me though.

[EmilyHemingway]

Originally Posted by atlcomedy

@OH - what do you think the stimulus program was supposed to be????

A free-for-all rummage through the taxpayer wallet?

A boondoggle of historic proportions?

A quick way to win a few votes from useful idiots?

A demonstration that our current crop of congresscritters wouldn't know real economic stimulators if they jumped up and bit them on the arse?

Not that I'm bitter.

[atlcomedy]

Originally Posted by EmilyHemingway

A free-for-all rummage through the taxpayer wallet?

A boondoggle of historic proportions?

A quick way to win a few votes from useful idiots?

A demonstration that our current crop of congresscritters wouldn't know real economic stimulators if they jumped up and bit them on the arse?

Not that I'm bitter.

I'm not saying I agreed with it or thought the execution was competent, I'm just sayin' Mr Hope & Change already tried to channel his FDR..

[guest041110]

Originally Posted by WTF

I can't answer you LD, I'm on a short leash!

Ohhhh wellllll... guess running to the end of your chain and barking is all you can do.

Jeff Dunham on Marriage and running to the end of your chain

[guest041110]

Originally Posted by atlcomedy

I'm not saying I agreed with it or thought the execution was competent, I'm just sayin' Mr Hope & Change already tried to channel his FDR..

And we got an epic failure on that farce.

Attachment 3306

[npita]

Originally Posted by EmilyHemingway

I smell "unemployment reform" coming soon, as strapped states find ways to bail out their budgets.

Unlikely. 11.4 million unhappy people includes a lot of voters who might get in the way of more than a few aspirations for re-election, especially since $10 billion/month pales in comparison to the money provided to bail out industries which were fiscally irresponsible.

[atlcomedy]

Listen folks -- there ain't shit happening between now and November.......