When bills pile up, young people turn to strangers on Venmo

Post by gowld » Tue, Jul 09, 2019, 9:01 PM UTC

0815test wrote: post #16

komali2 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, yea, this is why implementing social welfare and safety nets is far better done at the government level, where you have accountability and a justice system. An attractive person holding a clever, written-in-English sign, at a football game that cost them 100$ (or whatever) to attend, garners 3000$ for beer. The ugly, dirty, illiterate homeless person that stands outside of a train station gets 5$ for food. Unfa…

These issues aren't solved with "social welfare and safety nets", that's just throwing good money after bad. I'm totally fine with a kick-ass safety net for people who are actually in poverty , aka have trouble funding their basic needs despite very serious, sometimes strenuous efforts. But someone who is advertising their Venmo ID online is almost certainly not poor in this legitimate sense. Spending more money than…

Post by ses1984 » Tue, Jul 09, 2019, 9:08 PM UTC

jedmeyers wrote: post #30

phil248 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similarly why a robust welfare state is preferable to charity. Charitable giving is free to discriminate and there's no mechanism to try and move it towards those who most need it.

Do you think welfare state actually distributes funds to whoever needs them? They are giving funds away to everyone who can check x boxes on a form, no one in the government ever verifies if the person actually needs the money, like a charity would do.

Post by eanzenberg » Tue, Jul 09, 2019, 9:12 PM UTC

gowld wrote: post #29

sp332 wrote: post #15

"millennial culture is just passing around the same $20 to whoever needs it at the time forever." I see this a lot on my Twitter feed. Recently, a guy with metabolic issues and chronic pain (whose own GoFundMe was "trending" for a while) is setting up a charity livestream for someone else's surgery. https://twitter.com/docsquiddy/status/1148022827917938695

That's what Social Security / safety net / charity is -- sharing with people in need.

Post by pjc50 » Tue, Jul 09, 2019, 9:16 PM UTC

jedmeyers wrote: post #30

phil248 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similarly why a robust welfare state is preferable to charity. Charitable giving is free to discriminate and there's no mechanism to try and move it towards those who most need it.

Do you think welfare state actually distributes funds to whoever needs them? They are giving funds away to everyone who can check x boxes on a form, no one in the government ever verifies if the person actually needs the money, like a charity would do.

Post by standardUser » Tue, Jul 09, 2019, 9:21 PM UTC

jedmeyers wrote: post #30

phil248 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Similarly why a robust welfare state is preferable to charity. Charitable giving is free to discriminate and there's no mechanism to try and move it towards those who most need it.

Do you think welfare state actually distributes funds to whoever needs them? They are giving funds away to everyone who can check x boxes on a form, no one in the government ever verifies if the person actually needs the money, like a charity would do.