According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 49.2% of Americans received some form of government benefits during the last three months of 2011. That’s 151,014,000 Americans out of a total population of 306,804,000. This figure includes Social Security, food stamps, Medicare, the Women, Infants and Children program, the Supplemental Security Income program, etc. It also includes 26.9% or 82,457,000 people on Medicaid.
Because of the economic crisis caused by the banks and the U.S. Federal Reserve, inflation has eaten away at the buying power of the dollar. As a result it has become increasingly difficult for millions of Americans to survive without some form of government aid, which in turn, increases the inflation through the Federal Reserve adding billions more dollars into the economy.
In spite of a few thousand jobs added to the economy in recent reports, there is still little hope of an improving situation.
And dependency on the government is only going to get worse. Once the Obamacare law is fully implemented in 2014, many of these people will qualify for federal subsidy to buy health insurance.
Many people think that the government should supply aid to the poor suggesting that this is what Christ taught. But that is far from the truth. A welfare state is a formula for economic collapse and national disaster. Look at Greece, Cyprus, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. These welfare states, all went bankrupt and had to have enormous bailouts.
God’s plan for helping the poor was through the church in the context of responsible capitalism with no bailout mechanism. But once government began to subsidize the poor, the church became less motivated to help. A welfare state always places downward pressure on its economy by sapping its strength through wealth redistribution. This, in turn, means that jobs disappear as demand declines, which increases dependency on the government for aid. Incidentally, the vast majority of church aid agencies do their charity work with funds provided by governments, who provide funds with taxpayer money or by creating more fiat currency, which increases the poverty as inflation continues to destroy more and more value of the currency.
Where there is inflation, the poor are the ones that are hit the hardest. Government welfare programs actually increase inflation by deflating the value of the currency. It is a vicious cycle from which there is no hope of escape in a welfare state.
“There are not many, even among educators and statesmen, who comprehend the causes that underlie the present state of society. Those who hold the reins of government are not able to solve the problem of moral corruption, poverty, pauperism, and increasing crime. They are struggling in vain to place business operations on a more secure basis. If men would give more heed to the teaching of God’s word, they would find a solution of the problems that perplex them. Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 9, page 13