CHRIS SEGAL
Director of Strategic Planning
In an ideal world, the government would not be handing out money and food in the form of federal support. That is a job for nonprofit organizations and churches. Look at the most successful charitable organizations in the world — they are not governments with high overhead costs.
The most efficient groups are private and religious groups that depend on the giving and caring nature of their congregations and supporters to aid the needy. The manner in which the government supports the needy should be examined after the release of new data on poverty.
The nation’s poverty rate dropped slightly for the first time in a decade according to a census report released Aug. 28. In 2006, the rate dropped to 12.3 percent from 12.6 the previous year. The poverty level is important because it is a measuring tool used by the government to decide eligibility for federal aid in the form of housing, health care and child care benefits.
Annual income is not a good indicator of poverty, mainly because the arbitrary number helps millions of Americans who qualify while other families on the line receive no support.
In the meantime, the median household income increased slightly to a grand total of $48,201 a year. The housing market has slowed down and more Americans than ever before have no medical insurance.
There are 47 million uninsured Americans, with Texas having the most uninsured residents in 2006.
Another troubling part of the report is the rise in uninsured Americans. The largest rise in uninsured people comes from a surprising category, families making $75,000 a year. The report said many of the middle class workers who have good jobs lost their insurance provided by their companies due to the economic climate.
So work really hard to get into the middle class, lose federal aid and then lose health insurance. The middle class is the backbone of this country paying a large tax burden to support others, while the poor and the wealthy get out of paying taxes in various ways.
Families that received the increase in income this past year got bumped above the poverty line and excluded from federal aid, but those struggling are still struggling while others that maintained their income low enough to qualify for federal support can wait in line for their handouts.
Economists from both sides of the political spectrum are drawing conclusions on why the decrease in poverty and increase in household income is great for the country while other economists are pointing out the rise in uninsured citizens.
Partisan politics aside, the report should. According to the official measure, a family of four with two children with an annual income of $20,444 is considered at the poverty level.
An ABC special, “Freeloaders” available on DVD, focuses on how giving federal aid through the system stifles motivation and creates incentives to remain in poverty. Stossel has stood in food stamp lines asking people waiting what kind of electronics they had in their homes. Every person interviewed had a television, most had microwaves, cable and computers.
The poverty line is not nearly the same as the number of homeless people. Families that live at the poverty line face huge struggles, but many also have creature comforts like televisions and cable.
The decrease in the number of people living at the poverty line isn’t as great as it might sound. People need to take responsibility for their own actions and choices. Those that have true disabilities and are unable to function in their own best interest need to be supported at the local level by the community and not a talking head in Washington.
09-06-2007