Professor Elam

Sunday Jan 3, 2009 San Antonio Express News

governments can keep Ponzi schemes going for a very long time so long as nobody demands his dime back

T R Fehrenbach P 9b Other Views

Fehrenbach notes that only Norway can afford the socialist welfare state the European nations have created. Norway has only a few million people and the oil income, like the mid East to support it This is hardly the case for other countries like Greece. 

Now let's jump to page 1a and the headline, 

Millions of American report income of zero

Gee really?

Six million Americans receiving food stamps report they have no other cash income. 

This is probably an oversight on their part, claiming some income would likely make them eligible for the Earned Income Credit, the negative income tax which pays one cash, if you qualify by earning a little, but not much. the article goes on to cite three apparently healthy able bodied men and women who claim they simply cannot find any job, hard to believe as I saw two or three help wanted signs just yesterday. Okay so they are in Miami, but one woman claims to have been selling homes, making six figures and living in such a house herself, gee do you suppose she put anything down on the house? But with more and more folks piling onto the food stamp, read Lone Star Card in Texas, rolls, does anyone think they will willingly give the perk up should they find a job?  No, as Fehrenbach explains,  barter and cash underground economy will provide the needed income to make things work, it just will not be reported. 

Over half of America now pays no income tax.  And a very small portion, less than 10%, pay over half of the total in come tax. Will that work?