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Comment by jlgreco | Hacker News Reader

Sounds almost like a modern homesteading act. Interesting idea.

I wonder what fraction of the (let's call it) hopelessly unemployed would take up such an option if it's offered to everyone who wants it. As a whole our society has become much more entitled than back in those days, and the way in which we've been brought up, I wonder if some would see it as patronizing and reject the offer, even if it really would have meant a better future for them.

Then again I have been incredible throughout my life, winning the birth lottery pretty big and probably can't hope to truly understand the psychology and desires of much of my own very diverse country. Maybe I am wrong. Hopefully I am wrong. After all I can only really see this world through my own biased bullshit perspective.

I suspect it would not do much to help the people who are homeless because they are struggling with mental illness or addiction (which I understand account for the majority of homeless people). Those are problems that need a more targeted program.

I don't see it getting used by a majority- but 10, 20% maybe? Sure. There's a lot of shame that comes with being jobless, and as much as you think we're more entitled as a culture, people who go years without work, while living in poverty or just above it, don't feel entitled for much.

However, many of them are incredibly close to their family or friends- after all, what's the point of life if you don't have anything you love in yours? I was a bit fortunate that my family had effectively written me off as a failure, which left me little guilt to feel when I left.

Then, my entire life turned around. In the span of 14 months, I go from unemployed, to auto parts delivery, to paid-for-shit web developer, to absolutely amazing webdev/product development job. All without college, and thusly, with no debt.

I got stupendously lucky, once the bad luck ran out. But I don't imagine as many had the pure hopelessness that I had before, where you have no moral support from friends/family, and no hope for work, which gives you no reason to not leave.

There's no shame in being jobless - Not for these people, it's a societal norm. There's no shame in asking for government handouts, blowing it on booze and drugs and gold chains and other luxuries, then complaining that you can't make rent and can't buy food. There is no shame whatsoever - just a continuing resentment that they are owed something by society that is not being provided, like everything else they have ever had.

Setting aside the blatant and overt racism inherent in your statement, the studies on this topic are quite clear and directly contradict what you're saying.

I wish I could point you to full text articles, but they're all behind paywalls. Try googling 'joblessness black youth depression' to read some relevant abstracts.

I've seen my fair share of white people that have the same attitude described above. It isn't necessarily a racial divide, and not everyone is motivated to do/be better.

I'm sorry, but this rings of such blatant ignorance that I couldn't help but respond.

Have you ever even been to a poor neighborhood, in your life? I've lived there. Everyone I knew growing up lived there. Poverty doesn't work that way. Blowing your money on booze and drugs and gold chains and other luxuries? Christ, you barely have enough money for food, let alone all of that. I don't mean "barely enough money to buy food after all of the other things", I mean that tonight you're having a can of chicken noodle soup, just like the last three nights in a row, so that on Friday you can go to McDonalds for two or three items off the dollar menu as a treat. The people you're talking about are dozens of steps above the people I'm talking about.

I'm talking about the people for whom if they made even $10k a year they'd be some of the happiest people on earth. There are millions of them, in America. And Christ, no shame in asking for government handouts? WHAT government handouts? Are you at all, even one iota, familiar with the welfare system of the United States? It's incredibly hard to get much of anything beyond for a few months unless you have some kind of job. A few years if you're a pregnant woman. And when you're jobless for this many years, well, too bad.

I'm sorry, but you couldn't possibly know less about what you're talking about. Your statement smacks of overt racism, and if you seriously claim "Well hey white people get gold chains too", I just hope you realize that you're not fooling a soul.

>As a whole our society has become much more entitled than back in those days

You should recall that less than a century ago people felt they were entitled to own other people, perhaps you mean that as a whole our society has grown averse to letting people starve in ghettos.

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