How to get money from rich people. : funny

I didn't say that it's a right, but expanding unemployment benefits and food stamps didn't "[wreck] our already in the toilet economy." This is why you obviously don't understand economics.

I'd also point out that a) most people on food stamps work full-time b) you can only get unemployment benefits if you were laid off from a job you had, not if you were fired, and certainly not if you were too lazy to get a job c) there are 5 unemployed people out there for every job; "getting off their ass and getting a job" is really fucking hard these days, and d) food stamps and unemployment benefits are actually good for the economy, because they encourage spending by people who wouldn't be able to spend otherwise; yes, it could theoretically damage our fiscal outlook, but in many ways it's an investment: the deficit that really matters is the long-term deficit (investors aren't concerned about US budget woes, as 10-year Treasury yield effective yield rates are negative, meaning that investors are willing to give the US government $100 and only expect $97 back in payment after adjusting for inflation). To fix the long-term deficit, we need economic growth and cheaper health care. Social welfare like expanding food stamps during a recession contribute to economic growth, and (according to many economists) will eventually pay for itself in increased tax revenues.

So basically you don't know what you're talking about.

[–][deleted] 1 day ago

[–]KindMoTheGreat -1 points0 points1 point 1 day ago

[–]schizodepressed 0 points1 point2 points 1 day ago

It's actually fairly standard economics: you give a dollar to someone who needs it (e.g., people applying for food stamps), and it gets spent in the economy. In fact, the so-called Keynesian multiplier for food stamps is about 1.5, meaning that for every dollar the US government spends on food stamps, $1.50 is added to GDP (because not only does that dollar go directly into the economy, it also frees up an additional $0.50 of the recipient's money to be spent in the economy).

As to where the money comes from: well, we're in a recession and running huge deficits, so we're borrowing/printing it, and hence actually expanding the amount of money in the economy. But the idea is that we'll pay it back from a larger economy in the future; it's an investment, not just a case of throwing the money away.

Anyway, like I said, this is standard economics, well-borne out according to the latest data. Your ignorance of economics and your personal skepticism do not constitute a counterargument.

[–][deleted] 1 day ago

[–]schizodepressed 1 point2 points3 points 1 day ago

Oh for fuck's sake.

"Inflation is going through the roof." No, it isn't. Inflation is at 1.4%, way lower than it normally is. It's bounced up and down a bit due to food/oil supply shocks, but it's way, way low. Try looking at some fucking data: http://bpp.mit.edu/

"The banks kept lending money and thought the thought process was that the value of houses/everything else was keep going to going up, so it would be able to work out in the future."

We're not fucking talking about houses, you dolt - this is the entire economy and yeah, we're banking on it growing more-or-less indefinitely in the long term. Seemed to work pretty well for the last 250 years.

"Unemployment went up 1% after his shitty stimulus"

...so because the stimulus didn't immediately stop the damage from the worst economic crisis in 80 years, it failed? Right. In Realityland, the stimulus actually kept unemployment from rising an additional 3% and ended GDP contraction 6-9 months earlier than the baseline predicted; the problem is that it was too small to close the output gap, it should have been more like $2tr (and yeah, there's a risk of high inflation, but the Fed has interest rates as low as they can possibly go and hence possess sufficient latitude to raise rates to stave off inflation).

"And you are yet to provide one single source about from this "latest data"."

"The Great Recession," edited by David Grusky, Bruce Western, and Christopher Wimer is a good place to start, particularly Chapter 9: "Federal Stimulus Programs and Their Effects."

"Reddit is fuckin becoming overun by hippies who think they know two shits about anything about economics."

I'm actually by training a physicist and applied mathematician. Everything I believe about economics is backed up by quantitative argument and data, and I'm at heart a social capitalist, not a socialist. You might disagree with my views, but I'm definitely not a "let's give out money to errbody" hippie. It just happens to be good economics to give money to poor people during a recession.

[–]Paintballer6960 1 point2 points3 points 1 day ago

[–]KindMoTheGreat -1 points0 points1 point 1 day ago*

Food stamps and unemployment benefits are a great idea, but they also encourage laziness. Why get a job when you can live on 30,000 a year on unemployment, with food stamps and housing?

My friend works for the housing authority in Utah, and about two thirds of the people on the program are taking advantage of the system. They also get kicked off the system for not paying their 40 dollar rent because they had to have a flat screen.

I'm just trying to point out that most unemployed people should not be given money. You have to make people miserable in their poverty, and they will try to get out of it. And the people that got laid off, most likely are really struggling to get work already, they won't be in poverty for long.

I'm sorry for freaking out, it's just infuriating that Obama doesn't notice that his program isn't working the way he intended it to.

EDIT: I also wanted to point out that people will also be able to ride the economy as it heals itself, using food stamps, to work into a good position and not have to work. I'll compare it to call of duty. When the newest game comes out, it's very easy to ride the n00b train to get good. You take advantage of a weak moment to work yourself into a good position. it's not right, to do that, because all the other good players worked to get to where they are, whereas you just took advantage of the system.

EDIT EDIT: I wanted to thank everyone who commented in this thread, especially those with differing opinions from me. Arguing is good, and I learned new things. Upvotes for all!

[–]borgros 1 point2 points3 points 1 day ago

[–]KindMoTheGreat 0 points1 point2 points 1 day ago

[–]schizodepressed 0 points1 point2 points 1 day ago

[–]KindMoTheGreat 0 points1 point2 points 1 day ago

[–]schizodepressed 0 points1 point2 points 1 day ago

continue this thread

[–]Knight-Solaire 1 point2 points3 points 1 day ago

[–]ashthetall -2 points-1 points0 points 1 day ago

permalink

funny

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