If Americans Are Stupid Enough To Fall For This - They Deserve Whatever They Get.

[Heywood]

At least this part sounds good.

Many collecting food stamps ARE working full time. A lot of retail outlets and fast food places pay so little, that workers still need food stamps to survive. There's no excuse for that. We as tax payers are subsidizing Walmart and other corporations, allowing them to squeeze their labor costs on the government's dime. No one will work just to starve so without Food Stamps, Walmart et al couldn't get away with paying so little.

This is another example of "corporate welfare", only instead of direct subsidies, this one is indirect. Any full time worker that needs food stamps to survive should have the costs of food stamps plus administrative fees billed to the employing corporation. Or raise the minimum wage. Whichever.

Where does the government get the money to pay for the food stamps? Well, 7 billion dollars came from Walmart. If Walmart is going to be forced to pay their employees a wage sufficient to keep them off food stamps, then the payment they are forced to make to subsidize the government should be reduced because the government won't need as much.

[Chad32]

I'm sure fewer people will require food stamps if they're actually paid a living wage. Hike the minimum wage up, and the lower income people will spend more.

[Heywood]

I'm sure fewer people will require food stamps if they're actually paid a living wage. Hike the minimum wage up, and the lower income people will spend more.

If Walmart paid an employee $500 dollars more so the government no longer needed to give that employee $500 in welfare and thus ceased making the payment......the poor persons spending power hasn't changed.

[Jaysyn]

I was really talking about career welfare recipients.

The myth of the welfare queen is just that, a myth.

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/arch...en/282452/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welfare_queen

The majority of adult welfare recipients are single white females that are on welfare for 3 years or less. They have children & are usually leaving an abusive relationship.

http://salt.claretianpubs.org/issues/wel...avids.html

http://www.yourblackworld.net/2013/03/bl...-benefits/

http://charlotte.cbslocal.com/2013/07/02...ecipients/

So how about you quit spreading misinformation?

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If Walmart paid an employee $500 dollars more so the government no longer needed to give that employee $500 in welfare and thus ceased making the payment......the poor persons spending power hasn't changed.

But the taxpayer isn't footing the bill, which is the entire point. Why are we subsidizing Wal-Mart's labor pool again?

[Chad32]

I'm sure fewer people will require food stamps if they're actually paid a living wage. Hike the minimum wage up, and the lower income people will spend more.

If Walmart paid an employee $500 dollars more so the government no longer needed to give that employee $500 in welfare and thus ceased making the payment......the poor persons spending power hasn't changed.

Then pay them more than that. Don't just give them 7.50 an hour + 500 dollars (200 in my case). Give them 15 dollars an hour, which I've heard is a living wage according to inflation.

[Heywood]

But the taxpayer isn't footing the bill, which is the entire point. Why are we subsidizing Wal-Mart's labor pool again?

Walmart is a tax payer so they are footing the bill either way. The only ones getting subsidized are the government workers paid to administer programs that should not exist.

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[quote='Heywood' pid='644264' dateline='1396617121']

Then pay them more than that. Don't just give them 7.50 an hour + 500 dollars (200 in my case). Give them 15 dollars an hour, which I've heard is a living wage according to inflation.

If a $15 dollar an hour minimum wage is better than $7.50, then surely a $30 minimum wage is better than $15. Hell lets just raise the minimum wage to $100 an hour...or better yet...$1000. People would surely spend more and the economy would boom like its never boomed before.....right?

What makes you think the government is going to be any good at deciding what the optimal minimum wage should be?

[DeistPaladin]

Where does the government get the money to pay for the food stamps? Well, 7 billion dollars came from Walmart. If Walmart is going to be forced to pay their employees a wage sufficient to keep them off food stamps, then the payment they are forced to make to subsidize the government should be reduced because the government won't need as much.

The 7 billion that you refer to are the same kinds of taxes we all pay for maintaining our society. Their current tax burden has nothing to do with this issue. Unlike Walmart, I don't receive a government subsidy from those taxes. Consequently, some of MY tax money is going to Walmart, indirectly subsidizing their labor costs.

The two solutions to this inequity in tax burden are:
1. Raise the minimum wage so Walmart pays for their own labor costs with no government subsidy, direct or indirect.
2. The government bills Walmart for the cost of feeding their employees PLUS government administrative fees to issue the food stamps to their employees. All this would be in addition to their current tax burden.

All forms of corporate welfare should be abolished! For-profit businesses need to foot their own bills.

[Jaysyn]

But the taxpayer isn't footing the bill, which is the entire point. Why are we subsidizing Wal-Mart's labor pool again?

Walmart is a tax payer so they are footing the bill either way. The only ones getting subsidized are the government workers paid to administer programs that should not exist.

Regardless of the 7 billion they paid in taxes last year, they are still getting *us* to subsidize their labor pool. 7 billion may seem like a lot to you, but it is a drop in the bucket compared to their net profits as well as compared to the taxes paid out by private citizens. Do keep in mind that Wal-Mart utilizes the federal highway system & local law enforcement extensively as well having a ton of land that require property taxes paid. As far as I am concerned, that is what their taxes are paying for while we subsidize their labor pool. I'm actually shocked that Wal-Mart paid any taxes at all last year when you compare them to companies like GE which basically get away with not paying any taxes at all aside from payroll taxes.

[DeistPaladin]

If a $15 dollar an hour minimum wage is better than $7.50, then surely a $30 minimum wage is better than $15. Hell lets just raise the minimum wage to $100 an hour...or better yet...$1000. People would surely spend more and the economy would boom like its never boomed before.....right?

How about we set the minimum wage to where you could work 40 hours and the salary you make would be above the line at which point you are eligible for food stamps? That way, there's no government subsidy for a corporation's labor.

Think of it this way: let's say food stamps were abolished completely. Walmart couldn't pay as low as it pays because nobody is going to work 40 hours a week just to starve anyway, right?

The market forces have a natural "minimum wage" below which no one will work, grim as that bottom may be. It's the existence of food stamps that makes it possible for Walmart to pay so low, below the natural bottom under which no one will work.

So an alternative to abolishing food stamps would be to bill Walmart for the subsidy it receives plus administrative costs OR raise the minimum wage to a point where Walmart's employees wouldn't be eligible for food stamps.

I don't mind my tax dollars going to feed the hungry. I DO mind my tax dollars subsidizing a for-profit corporation's expenses.

[KUSA]

If Walmart paid an employee $500 dollars more so the government no longer needed to give that employee $500 in welfare and thus ceased making the payment......the poor persons spending power hasn't changed.

Then pay them more than that. Don't just give them 7.50 an hour + 500 dollars (200 in my case). Give them 15 dollars an hour, which I've heard is a living wage according to inflation.

I think the government should just print a million dollars and give it to everyone. Then there would be no more poverty.