Is it our civic responsibility to pay taxes to provide funding for welfare, disability for the homeless?

Question

Every year, average americans, pay at least 25% of their income in taxes (total). A very large part of that goes to welfare, disability, medicaid, and medicare. While leavng out the small portion of seniors who receive social security entitlements, and those with physical disability, is it our responsibility to pay for housing programs, welfare, food stamps for those "less fortunate" who cannot fnd a job. Also is it a civic duty to gve social security entitlements to people who have received mental health diagnoses, with a minimum payment of 650? plus better healthcare than any of us have ever seen? Is providing all of these things to "less fortunate" and "mentally ill" people out civic responsibility. Or, should we, as a culture have pride as one of our values?

Answer 1

Many homeless people are mentally ill and/or disabled. Not all disabilities are visible to the eye. I have a child with a permanent mental disability in addition to epilepsy. I am trying my hardest to make sure I die and leave her what money I can when i am no longer able to care for her myself. She is a really good person, kind and compassionate. She surely would not be able to get a job when she is older.

I do understand what you are trying to say. There is a lot of abuse of a system that intended well. Here is an interesting piece on the steps of the disintegration of any society you might find interesting:

At about the time our original 13 states adopted their new constitution
in
1787, a Scottish history professor by the name of Professor Alexander
Tyler
had this to say about "The Fall of the Athenian Republic" over 2,000
years
previous to that date.

The Fall of the Athenian Republic.

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only

exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse
(generous gifts) from the public treasury. From that moment on, the
majority
always votes for the candidates promising the most benefits from the
public
treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose
fiscal policy, (which is) always followed by a dictatorship."

"The average age of the world's greatest civilizations has been two
hundred

years. These nations have progressed through this sequence. From bondage

to spiritual faith; from spiritual faith to great courage; from courage
to
liberty; from liberty to abundance, from abundance to complacency; from
complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependence, from dependence back
into bondage."

Professor Joseph Olson of Hamline University School of Law, St.Paul,

Minnesota, wrote this about the 2000 election:

Population of counties won by Gore 127 million, won by Bush 143 million.


Square miles of country won by Gore 580,000, won by Bush 2,427,000.

States won by Gore 19, by Bush 29.

Murder per 100,000 residents in counties won by Gore 13.2,
by Bush 2.1 (not a typo).

Professor Olson adds, "The map of the territory Bush won was (mostly)
the

land owned by the people of this great country. Not the citizens living
in
cities in tenements owned by the government and living off the
government.

Professor Olson thinks the US is now between the apathy and complacency
phase of democracy although he believes that 40 percent of the nation's
population has already reached the dependency phase.



I do believe there are abuses in the system. I would prefer to see only AMERICANS receive American services.

Answer 2

Just don't think welfare is for people who won't work. you need to work if you are on welfare now, its a part of the program, least in nj. But as for food stamps, which is a federal program, and Medicaid, a lot of people who recieve those benefits are working people who just aren't making enough to make ends meet somewhere. And in a country that doesnt offer free healthcare, Medicaid helps a lot of families take care of their children because it is hard to get the working parents on it. You also never know when life gets hard for you and you need to apply, even if it is for a short time. Everyone needs help sometime even if they work.

Answer 3

Well instead of using taxes, let's all get together and go give these people a personal hand instead....right, that's going to happen.....no one in the United States of America should be without proper medical care whether they have insurance or not, come on people...this is America....plenty of money to go around....your taxes are rebuilding Iraq-are you writing the president?

Answer 4

its called being a human being. The first people Hitler gassed was the Downs syndrome etc people in his country. Its a measure of the humanity of a given society. Of course it gets abused because its administered by the government. The government is a terrible provider of any kind of service.

Answer 5

How does Israel help our military? Let's see. Thanks to Israel, US forces did not face nuclear weapons when invading Iraq. Israel bombed the reactor site that was supposed to produce weapons grade plutonium. Thanks to Israel, the US stopped losing planes to North Vietnamese anti-aircraft missiles when Israel captured a missile complex from Egypt and turned over information on its operating system to the US. Thanks to Israel, all those jihadists are headed there instead of blowing themselves up in US shopping centers, restaurants, etc. They aren't paying taxes to help support our military. They are paying with information and with their lives.

Answer 6

Do you think you have a choice not to? You say 25% goes to taxes. Lol Seems low.

Answer 7

Don't you really mean,"Shouldn't we have greed, stinginess, and cold-heartedness as some of our values?"

If you believe what you wrote, you are a bitter person. Seek healing in your life, for the sake of your family. Best of luck.

Answer 8

do dont have to do anything you dont want to do. But the Bush Administration is in essence raping your paycheck to fund a war, so if your money dont go to paying for welfare, homeless, and education, its fighting a war

Answer 9

Yes...we should take 'pride' in helping our unfortunate!
God 'values' cultures/peoples who help others!

Answer 10

Isn't that the Christian thing to do? Aren't most conservatives Christians? Well then........That is what Jesus preached.