Jon writes:
An alternative would be to pay people fairly for the work they do, and teach people how to live within their means ...
Define "fairly."
One mans idea of fair is another mans idea of famine. Who should determine what is fair? Is the concept of fairness applied to the population -at-large and then divided by that same number to arrive at my fairness quotient?
You cant get blood out of a turnip, nor can you get taxes out of a family on food stamps.