Friday, June 5, 2009

One-Sixth of EVERY Income Dollar?

According to this report I read in the USA Today online, and rapidly circulating elsewhere, one out of every six dollars of American income comes in the form of a federal or state check or voucher of one sort or another—more specifically, 16.2%. This is a stunning amount of money. Let's see how it breaks down:

According to the article, the total amount of money exceeds $2 trillion, or about $17,000 per household. Broken down further, $2 trillion+ amounts to approximately $6700 for every living person in this country.

If my family got our share of that (me, wife, 4 kids), that would be just over $40,000. We could live a modest middle-class existence on that much money!

Jon & Kate's clan would see $67,000. The Duggars of Arkansas: About $134,000.

Much of this federal and state largess is Social Security and unemployment benefits. Then there's food stamps, Medicaid and other health programs, prescription drug benefits, and a host of other things that, quite simply, put money in the pockets of those whom the government has selected to receive those benefits.

We should be outraged. I am outraged...until the government sends me my $40,000, that is.

5 comments:

Peter Matesevac said...

Maybe you could try to emulate the Jim Bob & Michelle Duggar. This would surely force you into accepting assistance.

Jason Gillman said...

put money in the pockets of those whom the government has selected to receive those benefits.

exactly.. thus garnering more support for more of the same, all the while making it worse for the next generation of recipients.

Ken said...

Jason: I phrased it that way on purpose...and you're exactly right.

Wendy said...

Pete- The Duggar's are debt free and own successful business they built from scratch! If likeing the Duggar family is wrong, I don't want to be right :)

Peter Matesevac said...

I know the Duggars are debt free. But imagining my brother with a brood of 18 is just funny.