Anti-Poverty Program Outcomes

Anti-poverty programs developed by the U.S. government have unfortunately not been very successful. With the amount of money being spent on fighting poverty it is surprising to see how the actual poverty rates have risen since anti-poverty programs have been instilled. In 1965 federal welfare spending for anti-poverty programs was at $178 billion (in constant dollars [today (or 2011’s) dollar amount with inflation]). In 2011 the welfare spending had increased to $668.19 billion, yet the poverty percentage has actually increased.

(Here is my source for the information I have stated above: The American Welfare State: How we spend nearly $1 Trillion a Year Fighting Poverty- and Fail by Michael Tanner)

Once people realize that someone- the government- is giving out stuff they decide that they need to get in on the action too! Therefore, the number of people in welfare programs increases and then the amount spent in those programs increases too. That results in more people in “poverty;” people who don’t necessarily want to get off of their government couches to earn a living by themselves because the government has got them covered! Ha! What would happen if all tax payers decided to get in on welfare? Who would provide money for the welfare programs if everyone who used to be taxed to pay for welfare wasn’t there to be taxed? I have a vague idea of what would happen: chaos. People were (and are) dependent on the government and didn’t have to work hard to live and when reality hits, oh dear, there are going to be some unprepared people. What happened to empowering people?