welfare the anti-partisans solution

question posed: why are we always hearing about social security running out of money but not welfare?

A:

social security is a stand alone fund that is dependent on increasing contributions from a growing population that is in danger of running out because of the large number of baby boomers retiring, living longer, fewer people behind them who make less money. Welfare is not a fund and therefore the term run out of money is not applicable, it is funded by appropriations from congress with money collected via taxes paid by all of us, including anyone who has ever worked which includes nearly every welfare recipient, if your household income and your ability to make it went to zero tomorrow, how long would you survive? even at my tidy salary i wouldn't make it a month, if i was a more responsible person i bet i could make it six, i know people who worked their asses off and got shafted in the downturn who took over 2 years to finally get something that paid much less, i don't personally know any lazy people who have even collected unemployment (which we pay for directly but can't ever get back fully) let alone welfare, the alternative is that we just need to start shooting people for the crime of being poor thats how lions handle the weak and sick among them, guess thats what a lot of humans want as well

welfare should look a lot more like education, childcare, government internship jobs, things that require effort but give you something in return and ultimately lead you and your children down a path that ends with both paying more in taxes than you would have, but we are cheap, we go for the minimum, here give them some food and rental assistance, let them figure it out, in a lot of cases (economic downturn aside) clearly they weren't able to figure it out in the first place, they need more than food and a roof, they need guidance and training. I think the key is that the hand up should be the availability of opportunity if you'd like some help, we need that park cleaned up we can pay you x a day to do that and as a benefit teach you how to become a welder at night and all the while we will make sure your kid is healthy and cared for. think about that, your image of a welfare bum, 2 years of that kind of help would pick almost anyone up to the point that they would be paying back into the system for many decades to come.

this is a notion i have pitched for as long as i can remember but most of the time people think its unrealistic, they want change but they don't really want change if its going to cost them anything.