Quoted from Spyderturbo007:I'm all for using my tax dollars to help people that are legitimately disabled or otherwise need assistance. What I'm not a fan of is the egregious waste and fraud associated with the public assistance programs.
There are way to many people on the wagon and not enough people pushing it. It's an unsustainable system.
It is worrisome how polarized our nation has become, particularly with the eastward shift of the global economy toward Asia. It was easier for everyone to feel like part of the system and give a little back when it was “Miller Time” for most working folks. However, endowments, grants, and charitable giving is drying up even in the face of new stock market highs... which further indicates the Dow Jones is not “the whole economy”.
It is possible that if America can no longer afford to buy reasonable middle class stability and the promise of a better life than our parents, then it may fracture into two Americas -> the upper 20% behind firewalls of high insurance and privileged access and everyone else treading water. Which is already becoming apparent.
We still have some fat to trim before the s**t really hits the fan (wasteful programs, bureaucracies, excessive surveillance, the “Space Force”). I’m still betting the next “new normal” will be urban gardens and multigenerational households. Keep your eyes on those canaries in the coal mine.
Overall, America will still be OK. But we haven’t really returned to the everyday exuberance before the Great Recession even after taking on loads of debt. Better work on repaying that while we still can before it turns into a long, slow slog for our grandchildren to churn through. And you better believe they aren’t going to be so keen on paying for our entitlements under the load we’ve given them... let alone “come together”.