A Handup and a Handout - Knowing the Difference Makes a Difference
When a person comes from a place of privilege, it's easy to say that the answer to a problem like poverty is to just implement a universal basic income. Just give them enough money to make ends meet, and like magic you'll be able to solve homelessness. Like magic you'll be able to solve the problem of people going into debt for education. Like magic, things will be okay.
Anyone who has had to work to get to where they are, is rightfully skeptical of that proposition. This is because they know that without having a reason to work hard, most people don't. Without having a reason to solve a problem, most people won't solve the problem. After all, why work when you can float? Anyone who has put in the effort, and particularly those that have put in the effort because they had no other choice, knows that part of what has made them a better and more compassionate person, is the struggle.
This is not to say that those unable to engage in the struggle should be left behind. There are people who rightfully cannot - however, this population should be a stunning minority of Canadians. This population absolutely needs the help of government in meaningful ways - however, a blanket approach to those very specific incidences means that resources are wasted. Further, a blindly compassionate approach is open to abuse - an abuse that has become reality in many North American cities.
That said, anyone who has had to work to get where they are, is rightfully thankful for any handups they may have benefitted from along the way. The genuine actions of others that have smoothed the road and enabled what might not have been otherwise possible. The help to resolve true problems they faced in their lives - whether it was providing assistance with a place to live, providing mentorship, providing work experience, teaching people how to do things, or how to think about things. These handups rarely involved being given something, outright, without expectation of anything on the part of the beneficiary. The person helping the person with the job search can coach and mentor, but ultimately the job applicant must do the interview, and must do the work to succeed. The person helping the person with budgeting coaches and mentors, but ultimately for a budget to work a person must change their behaviour.
So how do we move towards a more just society that limits the true handouts to those who really need it (and perhaps makes those handouts far more fair in the process)? How do we move towards a society that provides far more handups that facilitate upward mobility and improved contribution from everyone? How do we move away from the freeride - that is exhausting those who contribute the most to our communities, to a fair ride that enables more Candians to contribute what they can?
Anyone who has had to work to get to where they are, is rightfully skeptical of that proposition. This is because they know that without having a reason to work hard, most people don't. Without having a reason to solve a problem, most people won't solve the problem. After all, why work when you can float? Anyone who has put in the effort, and particularly those that have put in the effort because they had no other choice, knows that part of what has made them a better and more compassionate person, is the struggle.
This is not to say that those unable to engage in the struggle should be left behind. There are people who rightfully cannot - however, this population should be a stunning minority of Canadians. This population absolutely needs the help of government in meaningful ways - however, a blanket approach to those very specific incidences means that resources are wasted. Further, a blindly compassionate approach is open to abuse - an abuse that has become reality in many North American cities.
That said, anyone who has had to work to get where they are, is rightfully thankful for any handups they may have benefitted from along the way. The genuine actions of others that have smoothed the road and enabled what might not have been otherwise possible. The help to resolve true problems they faced in their lives - whether it was providing assistance with a place to live, providing mentorship, providing work experience, teaching people how to do things, or how to think about things. These handups rarely involved being given something, outright, without expectation of anything on the part of the beneficiary. The person helping the person with the job search can coach and mentor, but ultimately the job applicant must do the interview, and must do the work to succeed. The person helping the person with budgeting coaches and mentors, but ultimately for a budget to work a person must change their behaviour.
So how do we move towards a more just society that limits the true handouts to those who really need it (and perhaps makes those handouts far more fair in the process)? How do we move towards a society that provides far more handups that facilitate upward mobility and improved contribution from everyone? How do we move away from the freeride - that is exhausting those who contribute the most to our communities, to a fair ride that enables more Candians to contribute what they can?
There are plenty of reasons to work hard other than to earn money, and every one of them is a better reason; that just happens to be the only one you care about.
ReplyDeleteI agree - many people have hobbies that they do because they enjoy it, not because there is any financial reward for doing so. As an example, I enjoy writing, but at this time I'm not going to quit my day job for it. We shouldn't be enabling people to quit their day jobs to live on the money provided to them by those who didn't. We need to live in a real world, one that doesn't just give, but motivates people to contribute as well.
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