ComingTogether Plan

I really, really like proposals like this. They’re compassionate, efficient, and remove all the perverse incentives that come with cutting off benefits at certain thresholds. The rising popularity of UBI is an indication that there’s some appetite for this. My only worry is if a one-size fits all approach is realistic for a nation as diverse as ours. The cost of living in San Francisco is obviously very different from rural Oklahoma. Perhaps if states and cities could contribute to the benefits residents, that would help.

Submitted by wng.org user FIMIKI.

Comment: The whole situation on trying to reform welfare is unnecessary and a waste of time if you ask me.
The country is not going to fix itself if  people who work hard for a living are forced to give some of their paycheck to the sluggards of our country who get paid to do NOTHING.  I agree that it was a system that was created to help people through hard areas of their lives (and I’m sorry for the people out there who actually do need welfare support to get back on their feet), but throughout time people have figured out how to take advantage of the system and how to keep receiving “FREE” money without having to do anything… (more…)

Comment: I also read that those countries with Socialized Medicine have much smaller populations than we do. Switzerland 8 mil, UK 62 mil, Canada 34 mil, U.S.A. 307 million. Just think of the bureaucratic nightmare and the opportunity for fraud. Even those small countries have problems with their care. I shudder to think what would happen here. (more…)

Comment:Am I the only one who thinks that there are too many people on Welfare?
Why not rule that if anyone in a Welfare household, gets pregnant or gets someone pregnant, then the Welfare household should lose Welfare.
Why not rule that if anyone in a Welfare household is arrested or charged with a crime, then the household should lose Welfare. (more…)

Comment: Lazy mothers that depend on a check once a month is the worst woman in the world. What do they do all day? On their cell phones, getting their nails and hair done and their kids look a dirty mess. It’s so easy to get dependent on a check that comes once a month. It make them LAZY. (more…)

Comment: I’m in need for help! It’s not fair for me to banded for life from foodstamps because i receive a drug charge under the act of addiction. I’ve serve my country and I’ve serve my time for my crime. I shouldn’t be punish for ever in the state of South Carolina for poss. of cocaine. I only had one little piece and got 18 mos. in prison. It’s been 7 or 8 yrs. and I’m still not eligible for benefits. I’m ASKing for help and fairness. Only a drug charge band you for life from benefits. Other charges like murder, robbery, and etc. your still eligible for food stamps. (more…)

Comment: Whatever happened to helping United State Citizens! Our Social Services Department is a Joke. Believe me people in order to receive help you can be a ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT and receive any and all services no questions of legal status. You can own a $500,000.00 home and receive any and all services. But (more…)

Comment: This plan is called “Socialism.”  Programs should not encourage sloth or entitlement attitudes – getting “something for nothing.”  It should reward those who work hard.  If everyone received basic needs automatically, many people would choose not to work, and eventually there would not be enough tax to pay for basic needs for everyone.  There are more poor (more…)

Comment: I think that supporting a drug addicts habit is not beneficial to the whole public. If there were to be a welfare system that encompasses all Americans, we would have to regulate the monies distributed to the drug addicts. (more…)

Comment: I am trying to figure out why the system is geared to help the people who have no interest in getting up and working for themselves and their families? I am tired of trying to make it day by day on a slightly above minimum wage, no housing assistance (2-1/2 year waiting list), no child care assistance (I make $60.00 over the allotted limit), cannot get any bill assistance if an emergency arises (ex. car repairs), because I am not receiving TANF… there are no programs for those that are trying to succeed. (more…)

Comment: Your “Coming Together” program is an innovative proposal for streamlining social support in America, and very worthy of serious discussion. (more…)

Comment: I think this is a well-thought out plan, but it is too liberal in many aspects. I do not believe that certain people should have to pay for other peoples’ mistakes (such as the single mother). The mother decided on her own free will to have a child, even if that meant she was going to have to work harder. People become dependent on the government too often and that is a shame because government assistance should not become a crutch to people who mess up. I do, however, like that income tax idea because I think income tax brackets are unfair. (more…)

Comment: One question regarding this income is at what age would it become mandated. Would a 16 year old who wants to leave the authority of his or her parents be given the money? (more…)

Comment: Why should we give a few thousand dollars to Bill Gates? He does not need the money! (more…)

Comment: [This proposal] might concern those who argue the biblical mandate given by Paul that those not willing to work should not eat. A guaranteed income, even at minimal levels, might be a disincentive to a productive lifestyle. I would have to do more thinking about how a biblical view of human nature would square with a guaranteed income. (more…)

Comment: This plan would be quite a tax increase for me. I earn a six-figure income, but I have so arranged my affairs so that I legally pay well under 10% of that in taxes (including income tax and both the employee and employer payroll taxes [Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment]). (more…)

Comment: I read the page and came away from it with one prevailing thought. Conservatives will not buy it. Although it appears to be a more up-front and efficient way to manage the redistribution of wealth that already occurs in our society, most conservatives prefer a reduction of that redistribution, not a more efficient way of accomplishing it. (more…)

Comment: Awesome idea! Do you have this in a WORD document that we can send to President Bush and all the senators and reps? (more…)