[imtringued]

>It isn't easier or fairer to write everyone a check, because quite a lot of people don't need any help

Is this some kind of joke? You pay taxes on that check, which means you effectively get less money as you earn more. Do people really not understand how negative income taxes work? The system is the same in terms of net payouts compared to any means tested scheme, because you can turn the knobs any way you like.

[maxrecursion]

Exactly this. A check to the wealthy is basically a tax refund. The wealthy get a check every month already in social security, so it's literally already happening.

[wakawaka28]

Wow what an attitude... dO YoU nOt UnDERsTaND brO?

Whether you pay taxes on the check itself that 100% comes from taxes is kind of a separate issue. Unemployment benefits are like that and it's stupid. In some situations, Social Security gets taxed or reduced too.

It would not make sense to send a check to a middle class family because they don't need it. People of means who don't have kids and never set foot in a college also should not have to pay extra so that families that don't need help can get kickbacks on college expenses.

>The system is the same in terms of net payouts compared to any means tested scheme, because you can turn the knobs any way you like.

Ok, if you're proposing a means-tested scheme that's different from what I responded to. The other comment suggested sending a check to everyone. These are two entirely different plans. If you pay people who don't need it, you also have to tax them more. And those extra taxes would be unfair to some people. The right thing is to make people pay more for their own expenses when they can afford more, but on a sliding scale.