Cut safety net programs because economy has forced too many people into them?

No wonder the people are protesting across the country over inequality. Things are bad, and if the Republicans had their way, it will only get worse. Conservatism flourishes with a desperate public. It's hold on to what you've got, survive. But we're barely doing that: 

WSJ: Families were more dependent on government programs than ever last year. Nearly half of the population lives in a household that has at least one member who receives some kind of government benefit in the first quarter of 2010, according to Census data. Those numbers have risen since the middle of the recession when 44.4% lived households receiving benefits in the third quarter of 2008.

Again, it happened when the recession hit.

The share of people relying on government benefits has reached a historic high, in large part from the deep recession and meager recovery, but also because of the expansion of government programs over the years. High unemployment and increased reliance on government programs has also shrunk the nation’s share of taxpayers. Some 46.4% of households will pay no federal income tax this year, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. That’s up from 39.9% in 2007, the year the recession began.

Benefits programs have come under closer scrutiny as policymakers attempt to tame the federal government’s budget deficit. Cuts to such programs could emerge again .. Republican presidential hopefuls, meanwhile, have latched onto the fact that nearly half of households pay no federal income tax, saying too many Americans aren’t paying their fair share.