Originally Posted by rubicon

notlongnow" You are spot on. My wife and i also started from humble beginnings. we have been together since age 13. We have always been fiscal conservatives. We avoided paying interest and so were slower than others to get some things. We never owned a new car until we were both working good jobs and then we drove them to the ground. We carried our lunches to work and put away as much money as we could. At age 46 I lost my job and was able to care for my family for a very long time until I gained employment. My goal was not to be forced to collect unemployment.

I have a silling and her husband earned more than my wife and i together yet they spent reckless and hence didn't save for a rainy day. Sad situation indeed.

So while I believe some hardship are not entirely a person's fault many are because of poor financial planning and all of us have a legal, moral social responsbility to accept the responsbility of our acts.

A European style welfare state is simply not acceptable nor is it beneficial to our democratic way of life.