Word!

I have a real problem with the entitlement mindset that is metastasizing in our Nation. Niki calls it as she sees it and she knows from experience. From The Liberty Zone:

No, I Have No Sympathy
I�m often accused of being heartless when I read media stories meant to tug at the heartstrings � stories about the nation�s poor, about hungry children, about stinking, miserable poverty that are meant to make me feel better about government spending yet more of my hard-earned tax dollars ostensibly to �help the poor.�

Why?

Because I have no sympathy. None. Sure, there are real stories of hardship out there, but frankly, I�ve been there and done that, so while I can empathize, what I usually see in these stories is parental FAIL, government FAIL and, to an extent, society FAIL. But I don�t see society FAIL in our failure to spend more money to provide more food for the destitute. I see society FAIL in preventing generational dependence on handouts, rather than fostering self-reliance and ingenuity.

When I first came to this country with my parents, we were destitute in a very real sense of the word. We had a couple of suitcases, $300 in cash, and a $3000 debt we owed various organizations that helped us escape the Soviet Union. For the first few months, we lived in a one-bedroom apartment with my aunt and grandfather. My parents and I used the living room for a bedroom for the three of us. My aunt and grandpa slept in the �bedroom.� There was one bathroom for the five of us. I remember being so thrilled that it actually had toilet paper, because back in the USSR we used old newspaper to wipe. Toilet paper was cool!

Those first few weeks, I joined my grandfather on his excursions through Brooklyn, NY. He would walk the streets and look through people�s garbage to see if there was anything he could pick up. You�d be surprised what people threw out! I got toys, some books that helped me learn English and even some clothes!

Yeah� from other people�s trash.

Niki then segues into a story that beggars belief. Read the whole thing and you will see why she has no sympathy and why I agree with her -- entitlement is cheap candy. It makes people feel warm and fuzzy for a little while but it is ultimately toxic to everyone it touches.