From: dlv@bwalk.dm.com (Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM)
Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1996 07:07:28 -0800 (PST)
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Culling the proles with crypto anarchy
In-Reply-To: <v03007800aec99ea1af30@[207.167.93.63]>
Message-ID: <uL8cyD48w165w@bwalk.dm.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


"Timothy C. May" <tcmay@got.net> writes:
> The interesting thing was that New York had an effective welfare pay rate
> of $14 an hour, and New York City was more than that (due to higher
> benefits and higher taxes dragging down the income of actual workers). By
> "effective" the idea is to add up direct welfare benefits, food stamps, WIC
> payments, AFDC payments, and then correct for the various tax treatments
> (e.g., some or all of these benefits are untaxed). A worker would have to
> be earning $14 an hour, or about $30 K a year, to get the same amount of
> effective take home pay that a welfare recipient with two children receives.

I wonder if the study took medical insurance into account? I used to pay $8K/
year for a pretty skimpy family medical insurance plan. (They cost so much
in NYC because of AIDS.) People on welfare get Medicaid.

> Given that the worker has to get up at, say, 6 a.m., get on a bus or train
> or in a car to get to work, put up with hassles, and, basically, _work_,
> the welfare alternative looks pretty good. Which is of course the problem
> so-called democratic societies are having--increasing numbers of layabouts,
> slackers, and leeches.

Can you blame people like Igor Chudov? I happen to think that I can obtain
more wordly goods by working hard; but if someone prefers to subsist on
my taxes, more power to them. If you don't like the present system, don't
blame the people who take advantage of it, change it.

Of course Tim May is incapable of doing anything to help bring about his
beloved "crypto anarchy" except whining.

---

Dr.Dimitri Vulis KOTM
Brighton Beach Boardwalk BBS, Forest Hills, N.Y.: +1-718-261-2013, 14.4Kbps