[t-3]

If you're on food stamps or other government benefits, you're economically dependent. Maybe your vision of self-determination is different than mine, but I wouldn't say that you have achieved it. (Parasitic dependence could certainly be a strategy for change, though I don't know that I would call it radical either)

[crawfordcomeaux]

I'm economically dependent if I can't do without that source of funneding. I can do without it and it would take a little extra work to set up our lives in such a way. That's what I'm working toward and I'm in no rush because there are more pressing issues at hand, like housing.

Also, CLEARLY it's radical to accept government funds to many people on this site who believe it shouldn't be done if one doesn't fit their idea of who or what government assistance is for.

[t-3]

> Also, CLEARLY it's radical to accept government funds to many people on this site who believe it shouldn't be done if one doesn't fit their idea of who or what government assistance is for.

People disagreeing doesn't make something radical. "Welfare is a social good" is a very mainstream position. "Welfare is a social evil" is also mainstream. Universal welfare is nearly mainstream, I wouldn't call that particularly radical either.

[crawfordcomeaux]

I think choosing to cut back on expenses and income to the point of living below the poverty line is radical and using government assistance to that end doesn't seem like something also commonly considered to be an option for doing so.

Radical or not, it's what I'm doing and I know very few people who do this. It sure seems radical to me because people seeking to stop using money is something I see something noted in the mainstream as radical. If what I'm describing is mainstream living and mainstream usage of government assistance, would you point me to where to find the rest of the people doing this? I could really benefit from more community support around such endeavors.