Jobs and Welfare ~ All Things Being Unequal

Obama's Tax Plan

In 1979 45.4% of the national income went to the richest 20% in America. That percentage of national income has increased to 53.5% as of 2004. In those same years the bottom 20% has seen their share of the national income decrease from 5.8% to 4.1%. Even today the economic gap seems to be growing, making the rich richer and the poor poorer. In the past the government has attempted to solve or at least ease this problem. They implemented such things as Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security during the Great Depression. More recently a Federal Minimum Wage has been established as well as a welfare program. Those who agree that the wealth needs to be more evenly distributed say that the government should impose trade and outsourcing restrictions to protect domestic job and maintain salary levels. They also say that those who are defined as belonging to the wealthy bracket need to take on a tax increase and those in the poverty level should take on a tax decrease. Thirdly they advocate a job retraining program, wage insurance,and unemployment benefits. Of course there are those who oppose the idea of welfare and all that is related to it. Directly challenging the advocate of government involvement, the opposition says that government interventions would have a negative effect on workers and tax increases would stifle economic growth. They propose that supply and demand should be left alone to its own momentum and eventually things wil even themselves out.

In my opinion the wealth does not need to be more evenly distributed. The proponents of the even distribution of wealth say that we need to tax the wealthy considerably more. Yet if America is the land of opportunity then why are the wealthy being punished for their success? People's income is directly related to their hard work and their skill. (And sometimes luck.) Therefore it is unfair to take away their rightful earnings. They already get a percentage of their income taken away for state and federal taxes as well as for the pool of money set aside for the SS benefits for the aged. It can also be pointed out that some of the people who qualify for the welfare benefits and Medicaid, ect are unemployed but not even looking for a job. So why should the middle class or even the rich have to foot their bill? Even distribution of wealth would be a sign that our country is veering toward a Socialist or even Communist government. Either of those types of governments signify that too much control is being placed at the federal level. With the central government having so much control over its people the recipients of the laws will have little decisions to make regarding their own lives--the government will have decided it all for them! Individuals won't get to make any of their own choices.

David A. Hartman of the Institute for Policy Innovation also takes this stand.

Boosting the Minimum
Putting Welfare to Work