Please lend me 200 bucks......

[barnesfoto]

http://www.adbusters.org/magazine/83/microloans.html

[ccbatson]

Not a bad concept by design. Getting some return on investment raises it above the level of charity. Why is that a good thing? Dignity for the beneficiaries... very, very important.

[ccbatson]

Give a man a fish, or teach a man to fish...therein lies the issue of dignity in poverty [[or lack thereof).

[ccbatson]

Actually, you make a good point...It should not be the responsibility of government, or anyone other than the individual themselves, to teach a person to fish...they must take it upon themselves to better themselves.

[Detroitej72]

Actually, you make a good point...It should not be the responsibility of government, or anyone other than the individual themselves, to teach a person to fish...they must take it upon themselves to better themselves.

Or you could be a man for others, and take the self-less approach and help someone who is disadvantaged. But I guess that is not the conservative mantra... they feel anyone who is unemployed must be lazy and a bum. Thats compassionate conservatism for you.

[rb336]

Or in your case, neither teach them to fish nor give them a fish - and then castigate them for their poverty.

but before you do that, be sure to arrest them because all the rivers and lakes and streams are now privately owned, but if they do manage to catch fish, deny them medical treatment for heavy metal poisoning which they incurred because there are no restrictions on the crap the private owners can pump into their private lakes, rivers, etc.

[ccbatson]

Correction...legally catch fish...not steal them. Happy now?

[ronaldj]

Don't forget to tax the fish even if you bought a license. On the other hand, the fish probably isn't carrying cash.

[Flanders]

Actually, you make a good point...It should not be the responsibility of government, or anyone other than the individual themselves, to teach a person to fish...they must take it upon themselves to better themselves.

Of course there are those individuals who are born with or acquire physical and/or mental disabilities/illnesses that limit, inhibit or prevent their ability to better themselves, and fortunately there are many less selfish people in the US who are willing to ensure that these people receive assistance from our government through their votes and from themselves without expecting to personally gain anything [[money) in return for doing so, unlike you.

[ccbatson]

Yes, that is true, less than .01% [[35K) of the population of working age are truly disabled and need support [[government support). Now, what about the other 20-30 million?

[Detroitej72]

Some are working.

Some are desperately seeking work.

Some are just lazy.

[rb336]

waiting for some convoluted excuse from bats for denying the facts...

[East Detroit]

"The rational thing would be to euthanize your dear Mother, instead of wasting money on keeping her alive. That is my professional opinion. Please pay your bill in full on the way out, thank you."

[Flanders]

Yes, that is true, less than .01% [[35K) of the population of working age are truly disabled and need support [[government support). Now, what about the other 20-30 million?

Link?

Oh wait, how could I forget, only liberal socialists have to back their shit up with links to reputable and unbiased sources...

In Batsonia. only objectivists are permitted to post using only compelling arguments and rational thought, in this instance, making links to statistical references unnecessary.

Based on your complete lack of empathy for anyone that could be considered less fortunate that you are, I would venture a guess that only those that have been diagnosed with terminal illnesses AND have become completely incapacitated as a result, [[35K) would qualify in your opinion as being sufficiently disabled for government support.

[ccbatson]

Real numbers Flanders. Difficult to find because of the high number of illegitimate claims. Those in the industry will confirm this as the real number. Notice the very specific language I used in describing it also.

[jams]

...yet, no documentation other than "Those in the industry", yeppers, that proves it must be true.

[mjs]

I might need to copy that into my profile as my favorite quote.

[Flanders]

Real numbers Flanders. Difficult to find because of the high number of illegitimate claims. Those in the industry will confirm this as the real number. Notice the very specific language I used in describing it also.

"Those in the industry" [[compelling argument)

"Very specific language" [[rational thought)

So in conclusion, you are stating that over 99% of those who applied for disability and were approved, who had to not only meet the strict criteria and definitions required by the SS administration but ALSO had to supply all copies of medical documentation, fill out a 50+ page application, [[online or in paper form) and include their complete treatment history and all of their medications/prescriptions, along with their physician[[s) providing statement[[s) that fully supported their claim, were FRAUDULENTLY applying for benefits that they were NOT entitled to??

So what would YOU suggest could be done by our government to recover the funds that have already been distributed to these guilty criminals, [[including their complicit physicians) and what type[[s) of punishment[[s) would you recommend?

[rb336]

Flanders gets the QED award

[ccbatson]

Easy...privatize the industry putting it in the hands of a private enterprise with an incentive to root out fraud.

[gibran]

cc where did you get those numbers ...when most of the Journals of Rehabilitation indentify 40-50 million people as having a disability..and thier unemployment rate ranges almost two to three times as high as their co-inhabitants of our nation... these numbers are confirmed in the 911 [[not taht one) data base...

Many of these people want o work but in tough economic times it is even more difficult fo rthem to get an opportunity due to many variables...

I guess it is hard to pull yourself up by your bootstsraps as most eurocentric conservatives would like to see when a) you have no boots and in some cases b) you dont have the physical or cognitive ability to do so...but yet these people would love to follow the American Dream, with the right accommodations...

[gibran]

The percentage of American adults reporting disabilities increased during the 1990s -- a trend likely to continue at even higher rates. Here are some findings from the Institute of Medicine's recent report:

An estimated one in seven Americans is now considered disabled.
In the next 30 years, this number will increase significantly as baby boomers enter late life.
Obesity rates among younger Americans and children likely will lead to further disability because of downstream illnesses.


here is a qoute from your AMA.... 1/7 ummm care to do the math

[ccbatson]

I know the system very well...my number represents the truly disabled, not those that are "granted" SSI.

[ccbatson]

Ohh...about 10 percent of the official number. Ever see a surveillance video for some of these sham disabled people? Ever review the cases of a plaintiff attorney and know first hand the coaching and cherry picking of "medical experts" that they use [[and pay a fortune too for the privilege of using their credentials fraudulently)? It will curl your hair, I promise you.

[gibran]

"trully disabled"...ahhh spoken with what criteria?

Persons with disabilities are entitled to exercise their civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights on an equal basis with others. Disability "summarizes a great number of different functional limitations occurring in any population in any country of the world. People may be disabled by physical, intellectual or sensory impairment, medical conditions or mental illness. Such impairments, conditions or illnesses may be permanent or transitory in nature." [[Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities). Different expressions are used when referring to persons with disabilities. For example, the term "differently-abled persons" indicates that disability is not perceived as a deviation from the norm. The term "disabled persons" might be misinterpreted to imply that the ability of the individual to function as a person has been disabled. This guide uses the term "persons with disabilities", which is consistent with the language used by the United Nations [[UN).

The UN estimates that there are 500 million persons with disabilities in the world today. This number is increasing every year due to factors such as war and destruction, unhealthy living conditions, or the absence of knowledge about disability, its causes, prevention and treatment.

The majority of persons with disabilities live in less developed countries where people lack access to essential services such as health care. Moreover, there exists a clear relationship between poverty and disability. The risk of impairment is greater for a family that lives in poverty, while and at the same time, a disabled family member places higher demands on the family's resources.

Among persons with disabilities, the following form particularly vulnerable groups that face discrimination based on two grounds: women, children, elders, victims of torture, refugees and displaced persons, and migrant workers. For instance, women with a disability are discriminated against because of their gender and also because of their disability. UN and WHO