Needy Americans don't get financial aid, as US spend it on less poor people

[webfact]

Needy Americans don't get financial aid, as US spend it on less poor people

(US) According to the recent studies, despite the fact that the amount of programs to help people in need in the US increases, the people who need it the most still don’t get their assistance.

Robert A. Moffitt, a professor of economics at Johns Hopkins University, confirmed that although spending on the 15 largest social safety net programs has increased on 74 percent between 1975 and 2007, much of that money shifted from the poorest to the less poor.

The majority of people receiving the aid are those who are making 200 percent of the poverty line instead of those whose incomes are at 50 percent of the poverty line.

That means that today a family of four with combined income of $12,000 has less chance to get assistance than the same family with the income of $47,700.

At the same time, single parents have less chance of getting aid than married families. In 2004 single parents got less aid than back in 1983. Exception covers only those single parents who are disabled or who are under the age of 62.

There is also an issue with the whole idea of whom Americans tend to see as the "deserving" poor. Moffitt claims that nowadays the government prefers to allocate aid to those who work, who are married and have children instead of those who are single and without a job.

Full story: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2014_05_16/Needy-Americans-dont-get-fainancial-aid-as-US-spend-it-on-less-poor-people-4626/


-- Voice of Russia 2014-05-16

[khwaibah]

If your an illegal no problem..

[Frank James]

This article is complete dung, with no factual backup. Voice of Putin.

[jayjayjayjay]

Stupid news piece! Why should we be bombarded by American internal policy news! Ill happily walk if TV decides it's another American new organisation! Thai related!

[slipperylobster]

Lots of dung eaters on this forum.

I do not understand why TV would be so interested in spewing up stories on the USA either.

Only serves to feed the dung eaters who spew insults.

[gchurch259]

Here is the piece I do not understand, I am a natural born USA Citizen, 79 years of age. Went to work when I was 15 years old and still do consulting work today. Never drew one cent in welfare or unemployment, what the Hell gives with these people ??

I would open up the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) Camps again, If you want "Uncle Sugar" to give you money work on projects that are for the benefit of the Country.

If you want a welfare check bring 100 lbs of thrash off the streets/roads, take a drug test and get your check.

What a sorry SOB I am !! P.S. When I was ten years old my Grandfather told me, "Son if you want to eat tomorrow, then work today". What a concept !!

Jerry the Grouchy Ole Man

[Jingthing]

Actually there was sentiment behind starting a depression style government works and JOBS program to rebuild crumbing infrastructure during the worse part of the recent U.S. economic crisis. The republicans would never go for that. Too socialistic. But I also blame Obama and his party for pushing it when it was needed the most. It's too bad because now there are many millions of working age Americans who have been unemployed for years and of course nobody will even look at their resume, no matter how qualified they might be. They have been thrown in the trash ... most will never find work again, and no, this is not their fault mostly. Really there was a time for aggressive government action and it was not taken.

There is probably some truth to the report in the OP. For example the poorest of the poor are either homeless or semi-homeless. Have fun applying for benefits without an address, good I.D., etc.

[joshstiles]

Here is the piece I do not understand, I am a natural born USA Citizen, 79 years of age. Went to work when I was 15 years old and still do consulting work today. Never drew one cent in welfare or unemployment, what the Hell gives with these people ??

I would open up the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) Camps again, If you want "Uncle Sugar" to give you money work on projects that are for the benefit of the Country.

If you want a welfare check bring 100 lbs of thrash off the streets/roads, take a drug test and get your check.

What a sorry SOB I am !! P.S. When I was ten years old my Grandfather told me, "Son if you want to eat tomorrow, then work today". What a concept !!

Jerry the Grouchy Ole Man

....i'd be happy if they'd just give me back all the SS i paid ....but I am too young for that and old enough for retirement in Thailand....Just want what I paid, but I have to wait until I am your age to get it ....if it is still there?

[rotary]

What is even more interesting is the "news" source of this article: The Voice of Russia.

Which is a much more reliable source of info than CNN or VOA.

[atyclb]

Perhaps if america did not have military in xxx number of countries (more than 100?) and send billions to influence many countries there'd be more than enough to provide canada like health care to all and also rebuild the economy and viable industries.

What is very interesting is how it seems roles have reversed. During the cold war the VOA tried to get some valid information/news to the iron curtain and nowadays it may be www.rt.com is doing for the west what VOA did for the USSR. interesting to look at but to be taken with a grain of salt.

[Javabear]

This is hilarious! A Russian article in a Thai forum being commented on mostly by non-Americans. Surely the problems of the world will be solved here in the next few minutes.

[Andre0720]

This is hilarious! A Russian article in a Thai forum being commented on mostly by non-Americans. Surely the problems of the world will be solved here in the next few minutes.

Nah,

Just waiting for the americans to tell us the truth about this.....

[Ulysses G.]

There is probably some truth to the report in the OP. For example the poorest of the poor are either homeless or semi-homeless. Have fun applying for benefits without an address, good I.D., etc.

I hate to say it, but there is more than a little truth to the article. A single man or a single woman without children is not eligible for welfare. The only thing that they can get is a small amount of food stamps. The UK is the place to be if you go completely broke.

[hawker9000]

Public assistance in the U.S. has never been about public assistance. It is now and always has been about votes. Some are helped. The vast majority are simply rendered dependent for life. For a politician, that's career insurance.

[wwest5829]

Here is the piece I do not understand, I am a natural born USA Citizen, 79 years of age. Went to work when I was 15 years old and still do consulting work today. Never drew one cent in welfare or unemployment, what the Hell gives with these people ??

I would open up the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) Camps again, If you want "Uncle Sugar" to give you money work on projects that are for the benefit of the Country.

If you want a welfare check bring 100 lbs of thrash off the streets/roads, take a drug test and get your check.

What a sorry SOB I am !! P.S. When I was ten years old my Grandfather told me, "Son if you want to eat tomorrow, then work today". What a concept !!

Jerry the Grouchy Ole Man

....i'd be happy if they'd just give me back all the SS i paid ....but I am too young for that and old enough for retirement in Thailand....Just want what I paid, but I have to wait until I am your age to get it ....if it is still there?

My S.S. Statement showing what I and my employers paid in over the years of work from college age through age 64 1/2 would be depleted long before my total S.S. benefits. Sorry, but in my case investing the same amount is not my desire. The Bush proposal to privatize showed its weakness in 1987 and with all economic market downturns. For my money, the FDR concept of underwriting the common welfare so we do not have folks starving in old age is still very valid. Ironic the Germany led the way in the late 1800's and we are still debating this social program.

[wwest5829]

Public assistance in the U.S. has never been about public assistance. It is now and always has been about votes. Some are helped. The vast majority are simply rendered dependent for life. For a politician, that's career insurance.

You seem to be in good company here in Thailand with those think that any social spending is only motivated by " buying votes". You can denounce me as naive but I believe that demands for programs that benefit the public evolve from a need unmet by the private sector. I have a more John Locke idea versus a Thomas Hobbes idea for the role of government.

[Scott]

There are a lot of factors that lead to the poorest of the poor being deprived of benefits. One of the factors is that for many services you need a permanent address. If you do not have a home, you cannot get any type of welfare benefits. There were homeless mothers with children, living in their cars who could not get welfare. Their children couldn't go to school because they could not prove residency in the district.

Meanwhile the next level up, those with a place to live and an address could receive benefits.

The next level, the working class poor often have trouble accessing services. They are struggling, can't afford health insurance, for example, they are simply not eligible for many services.

[Benmart]

Here is the piece I do not understand, I am a natural born USA Citizen, 79 years of age. Went to work when I was 15 years old and still do consulting work today. Never drew one cent in welfare or unemployment, what the Hell gives with these people ??

I would open up the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) Camps again, If you want "Uncle Sugar" to give you money work on projects that are for the benefit of the Country.

If you want a welfare check bring 100 lbs of thrash off the streets/roads, take a drug test and get your check.

F

What a sorry SOB I am !! P.S. When I was ten years old my Grandfather told me, "Son if you want to eat tomorrow, then work today". What a concept !!

.

Jerry the Grouchy Ole Man

Jerry, we are in agreement.

I am for doing good to the poor, but...I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. I observed...that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.

― Benjamin Franklin

[Benmart]

This is hilarious! A Russian article in a Thai forum being commented on mostly by non-Americans. Surely the problems of the world will be solved here in the next few minutes.

Nah,

Just waiting for the americans to tell us the truth about this.....

I'm an American and am still searching for the truth. If you find it, please share it.

[Benmart]

Perhaps if america did not have military in xxx number of countries (more than 100?) and send billions to influence many countries there'd be more than enough to provide canada like health care to all and also rebuild the economy and viable industries.

What is very interesting is how it seems roles have reversed. During the cold war the VOA tried to get some valid information/news to the iron curtain and nowadays it may be www.rt.com is doing for the west what VOA did for the USSR. interesting to look at but to be taken with a grain of salt.

Salt, as with any unconfirmed information, should not be taken in excess and relied on as a basis for knowledge.

[ggt]

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Here is the piece I do not understand, I am a natural born USA Citizen, 79 years of age. Went to work when I was 15 years old and still do consulting work today. Never drew one cent in welfare or unemployment, what the Hell gives with these people ??

I would open up the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps.) Camps again, If you want "Uncle Sugar" to give you money work on projects that are for the benefit of the Country.

If you want a welfare check bring 100 lbs of thrash off the streets/roads, take a drug test and get your check.

What a sorry SOB I am !! P.S. When I was ten years old my Grandfather told me, "Son if you want to eat tomorrow, then work today". What a concept !!

Jerry the Grouchy Ole Man

....i'd be happy if they'd just give me back all the SS i paid ....but I am too young for that and old enough for retirement in Thailand....Just want what I paid, but I have to wait until I am your age to get it ....if it is still there?

Good luck with drawing SS...even though you have invested heavily in the program...your gov't has spent the money on other people...SS has been earmarked, by your elected gov't...as an entitlement which needs to be restricted...if not abandoned...the future does not look bright for SS recipients...the unrestricted printing of US dollars by the Fed...the nations debt being so high as to be impossible to ever pay back now...does not bode well for SS...

[joshstiles]

Yeah...no shit

Sent from my GT-S7270 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[NeverSure]

Figures don't lie, but liars figure, as they say. Putin's voice being posted here as fact?

"The majority of people receiving the aid are those who are making 200 percent of the poverty line instead of those whose incomes are at 50 percent of the poverty line.

That means that today a family of four with combined income of $12,000 has less chance to get assistance than the same family with the income of $47,700."

No shit, Sherlock. There are far more families making $47k than there are making $12K, so the majority of recipients will be in that $47k range. Duh. $12K is far less than minimum wage for one person, so someone needs to get his asz down to McDonald's.

"At the same time, single parents have less chance of getting aid than married families. In 2004 single parents got less aid than back in 1983."

They have instituted the barbarian idea that someone has to prove he has been looking for work to receive benefits. In some places recipients have to pass a drug test. How shameful.

"Exception covers only those single parents who are disabled or who are under the age of 62."

Re-worded, those who are disabled can get SSI cash benefits, housing assistance and food stamps. At age 62 the others are eligible for Social Security and Medicare if they made it a habit to work.

All low income people are eligible for Medicaid, soon to be known also as free Obamacare, which is free health insurance.

Those who can't get a permanent address have burned all of their bridges with friends and family. Over the years I've made so many friends that I can't count the number of places I could go to get a permanent address so that argument only tells us about the person's life long habits.

Shame on TV for running the voice of Putin as fact about the US.

[slipperylobster]

This is hilarious! A Russian article in a Thai forum being commented on mostly by non-Americans. Surely the problems of the world will be solved here in the next few minutes.

Sad to say, this is representative of the quality of people and level of education here on ThaiVisa.

When Russian propaganda becomes the feedbag for idiots...then we have a problem.

[joshstiles]

Figures don't lie, but liars figure, as they say. Putin's voice being posted here as fact?

"The majority of people receiving the aid are those who are making 200 percent of the poverty line instead of those whose incomes are at 50 percent of the poverty line.

That means that today a family of four with combined income of $12,000 has less chance to get assistance than the same family with the income of $47,700."

No shit, Sherlock. There are far more families making $47k than there are making $12K, so the majority of recipients will be in that $47k range. Duh. $12K is far less than minimum wage for one person, so someone needs to get his asz down to McDonald's.

"At the same time, single parents have less chance of getting aid than married families. In 2004 single parents got less aid than back in 1983."

They have instituted the barbarian idea that someone has to prove he has been looking for work to receive benefits. In some places recipients have to pass a drug test. How shameful.

"Exception covers only those single parents who are disabled or who are under the age of 62."

Re-worded, those who are disabled can get SSI cash benefits, housing assistance and food stamps. At age 62 the others are eligible for Social Security and Medicare if they made it a habit to work.

All low income people are eligible for Medicaid, soon to be known also as free Obamacare, which is free health insurance.

Those who can't get a permanent address have burned all of their bridges with friends and family. Over the years I've made so many friends that I can't count the number of places I could go to get a permanent address so that argument only tells us about the person's life long habits.

Shame on TV for running the voice of Putin as fact about the US.

....sorry that you apparently missed my point of reference.....I agree with you.....I already know the facts, but thank you for all the rhetoric....you remind me of my friend in Yasothon...you write just like him.

[atyclb]

This is hilarious! A Russian article in a Thai forum being commented on mostly by non-Americans. Surely the problems of the world will be solved here in the next few minutes.

Nah,

Just waiting for the americans to tell us the truth about this.....

Perhaps an american quote like "you dont need a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing" is applicable? Bob Dylan is american, isn't he?

[impulse]

....i'd be happy if they'd just give me back all the SS i paid ....but I am too young for that and old enough for retirement in Thailand....Just want what I paid, but I have to wait until I am your age to get it ....if it is still there?

If you ain't old enough to retire to Thailand, but living here anyway- you'd better get an accountant if you want your SS back. What you get back depends a lot on what you put in the last 10 years.

Retire to Thailand at or before age 50, don't put any more in ('cause you don't have any income, right?) and you won't be happy when you're old enough to draw on it.

But get an accountant to 'splain it to you. The rules when working or retired abroad befuddle my little pinhead.

[boomerangutang]

I've known what the OP states, for awhile. It's the middle income and rich who can milk the system so effectively.

The article is relevant to world news, not least because it's a factor of why the US is in such severe and chronic debt.

The US is going from being a 'welfare state' to a 'hyper welfare state.' If you're an American and not getting federal money (usually double and triple dipping), you're not playing the game well enough.

A list of the abuses would fill a thick book, small font. Just one of thousands or ridiculous programs: PIK (Payment in Kind). It pays already rich landowners tens of millions of dollars FOR NOT GROWING CROPS. There are so many Americans milking the system, ok, I'm repeating myself, sorry. I'll take a deep breath and a walk in the park. Money is not my God (indeed, I don't have any Gods), so I can fully appreciate nature.

[impulse]

I've known what the OP states, for awhile. It's the middle income and rich who can milk the system so effectively.

The US is going from being a 'welfare state' to a 'hyper welfare state.' If you're an American and not getting federal money (usually double and triple dipping), you're not playing the game well enough.

A list of the abuses would fill a thick book, small font. Just one of thousands or ridiculous programs

The problem with being in the middle class, is the amount we can milk out of the system doesn't pay for the lawyers and accountants required to help us to do it.

Only the wealthy can milk it enough to afford that kind of team working for them.

Sure, some of us stumble upon some giveaways if they smack us in the face, but it takes a full time effort to get maximum benefit. And we're too busy working.

The best explanation I've ever heard of the American economic crisis is by a guy named Richard Wolff, in an audio lecture "Capitalism Hits the Fan". Well worth stealing off the interweb.

Edit: It's available on Youtube in video. Google "Capitalism Hits the Fan"

[MrY]

Never understood why we need these international news tidbits on TV. Alerting readers to something significant is OK, but no articles about the price of bananas in Belize. Please.