Too many people depend on pay-outs from the government

A friend who I have known most of his life is about to retire and he asked me the question that millions must be thinking, “Why should someone work all throughout their life when they can make almost as much be being dependent on our government?”

I told him that I felt strongly that a persons pride and self-satisfaction were important to those whose parents had taught them values. Unfortunately, we have too many potential workers who do not have pride. This is why we have 11 states that have more residents dependent on the government than they have people with jobs in the private sector.

Last month, the Senate Budget Committee reported that in 2011, the average U.S. household below the poverty line received $168 a day in government support. To put this in perspective, the median household income is just over $50,000, which averages out to $137.13 a day. Welfare now pays the equivalent of $30 an hour for a 40-hour week, while the average job pays $25 per hour.

Anyone who has studied history knows that we cannot continue to follow this path!

Gerald W. Ray, Spokane