i make good money. why do i feel that others think they are entitled to it?

[Hacp]

Where do you live? Up here in "Liberal Paradise" the public schools are some of the best in the nation, definitely in the top 5%, and housing prices show it.

Or, did you mean that where you live you have a cheap house and cheap taxes and want stellar schools?

It's like my (staunchly republican) boss. He is the sole bread winner in his family. He lives 25+ miles from me, in an area where the schools are merely average (at best), but housing costs half what it costs in my area. He was bitching because he wanted a voucher system so he could send his kids to a good school in my area. I asked him: "Why don't you just move here, then you'd be covered?" His response: "I can't afford that." Indeed.

And how much does the government spend per child on the public system with its overbloated union pensions? Do you seriously think any normal school would require 15k a child?

 

[ebaycj]

Restrictive? They're getting free money. FOR FREE! They don't need it. If they really needed to put food on the table, they'd be willing to work a hard day's labor for 3 meals. Bottom line, if you're making 14,000 a year, you shouldn't be getting ANY assistance from the government. You can put food on the table perfectly fine.

I hope you graduate with debt, are unable to find a job immediately, and your parents kick your ass onto the street. Unfortunately it's likely your parents would continue to support your lazy ass.

 

[Hacp]

I hope you graduate with debt, are unable to find a job immediately, and your parents kick your ass onto the street. Unfortunately it's likely your parents would continue to support your lazy ass.

First place I will apply is for government work. Then I can work minimal effort for maximum reward. Best job would be at the sanitation department. I heard they make 80k a year . No shame in cleaning up other people's mess when you make more than them!

 

[ebaycj]

And how much does the government spend per child on the public system with its overbloated union pensions? Do you seriously think any normal school would require 15k a child?

I don't care about that. I care that my kids will go to good schools, period.

For the record our annual costs are about $9k per child, and LOTS of it goes to the students, it is obvious based on success rates, and everyone knows it (hence my boss' jealousy).

 

[Hacp]

I don't care about that. I care that my kids will go to good schools, period.

For the record our annual costs are about $9k per child, and LOTS of it goes to the students, it is obvious based on success rates, and everyone knows it (hence my boss' jealousy).

So its ok to waste other people's money? Would you spend 9k of your own money to send your child to that school? 9k a year, thats almost college tuition!

 

[ShawnD1]

So its ok to waste other people's money? Would you spend 9k of your own money to send your child to that school? 9k a year, thats almost college tuition!

Actually college tuition without any tax subsidies is about $30,000 per year. My internet buddy goes to Lehigh and his tuition is something like $34,000 per year.
http://www4.lehigh.edu/default.aspx (can't get the exact link because i'm in a hurry)

Even if you round down a bunch, we're still looking at about 20k per year for university without any subsidies.

 

[CycloWizard]

You paid 30k to patent that thing so that you could lock in your (potential future) profits / ability to sell it exclusively. That's the profit motive. It comes second.

You thought up the thing to solve a problem that you didn't have a better way to solve. That's where the necessity comes in. It comes first, before the profit motive kicks in, as you need to have something pretty much all the way invented to apply for patents on it's uniqueness.

I'll go out on a limb and speculate: you don't have any patents with your name on them, do you? Otherwise, you would know that most inventors have plenty of ideas floating around that they will never work on because there is no money to be made on them. I will never work on a project simply to fulfill someone else's need because I need to put food on my table. I will work to fulfill someone else's need if they can reciprocate by paying me to do it. Indeed, marketability is (supposed to be) one of the requirements for patentability.

 

[k3n]

i come from a lower middle income family that preached the value of education and hard work. i didn't live in the inner city ghettos, but i was not exactly privileged.
i studied my ass off and worked throughout HS and college to contribute to my family's expenses as well as funding a splurge here or there (computer components, my first used car, ipod, gadgets, etc.).

fast forward to today where i have a cushy job that pays fairly well, but i believe i earned it. the hard work from previous years paid off.

however, when i come into p&n and read threads, i can't help but feel that many think i should be penalized for my work ethic. that somehow the rewards that i am now reaping should be distributed to the less fortunate.

when i look back and think, what were they doing when i was taking the bus that takes me to the store where i worked after a full day of school? hanging out, maybe playing ball, at the pool hall, possibly up to no good. who knows...
all i question is why i have to fork out more money to support them and their bad behavior?

while i'm paying a sh*t ton of taxes, they're not just being unproductive, they're being the opposite by leeching off gov't funds that i contribute to.
yet the gov't feels this is fine, and not only that, they want to take even more from me now?
something is not right here...

and don't paint me as someone who wants to hoard all my money, not wanting to help others out. i have donated to my alma mater and to the hospital whose services i've used and am grateful for.
i'd rather choose where my money goes, rather than having it go to someone who's on welfare for life but perfectly able to work and provide for themselves.

Yeah, lets focus all that money on building more prisons for potential prisoners, instead of using it to maximize the possibilitied of having an educated and skillful workforce that won't resolve to gang crimes to survive.