[rubenflamshep]

> Without work people devolve into playing video games and smoking pot in their mom's basement.

I have no problem finding fulfilling and meaningful projects outside of my work! There are many people like me :)

[WalterBright]

> There are many people like me

I'm sure there are. Doesn't mean most people are like that. Consider retirees. Some find meaningful activities, many just rot away out of not having a purpose.

What percentage of people currently living off of welfare are doing meaningful work?

[danparsonson]

> What percentage of people currently living off of welfare are doing meaningful work?

Do you have that number? Do you have any numbers to back up your claims or are you just talking about what works for you?

[WalterBright]

According to google: "Some reports indicate that 26.8% to 28.6% of households on welfare have earned income, which sometimes reflects a focus on households with no work-eligible adults (elderly, disabled)."

[danparsonson]

So no, then. Got it.

[mlrtime]

This is human nature, most of humans will revert to a baseline of doing the bare minimum to survive. The rest cannot support that system.

[direwolf20]

Do you do the bare minimum to survive, or do you have excess money left after paying rent and groceries?

[WalterBright]

According to google, "approximately 57% to 67% of American adults are living paycheck to paycheck."

This doesn't mean they are poor. As their income goes up, so does their spending.

Also according to google, "Approximately 60% to 80% of professional athletes face severe financial distress or go broke within a few years of retirement, particularly in the NFL and NBA. Data suggests 78% of NFL players experience financial hardship within two years of retirement, while about 60% of NBA players are broke within five years."

and:

"though often debated, statistic suggests that up to 70% of lottery winners go broke or face financial distress within three to five years, more conservative estimates indicate about one-third (roughly 33%) declare bankruptcy."

Personally, I think that high schools should have a required course in finance and accounting.

[danparsonson]

The only thing your first statistic says is that those people are poor. It says nothing at all about why.

[eli_gottlieb]

> What percentage of people currently living off of welfare are doing meaningful work?

Most of them, since the vast majority of "welfare" programs exclusively assist people who are in work.