Republicans have a big problem; instead of treating the disease, they want to simply kill the victim.

We can solve malpractice litigation if on the front end, we reduce medical errors. But Republicans want to penalize the victims instead. Without litigation, they’ll just go away, disappear magically or die.

The same is true of social safety nets, like unemployment, food stamps, Medicaid and other forms of assistance. All we have to do is create a strong well paid middle class…problem solved. But because of the global economy and cheap labor elsewhere, the problem is harder to fix, so throw everybody-the “takers”-off assistance…problem solved?

Check out this incredibly bizarre wrongheaded take on poverty. It’s easy to call it “projection,” because freeloading and not working is the first thing conservatives think of. It also disrespectful of everyone else. But really “IT DOESN’T PAY TO WORK?” Powerline Blog:

IT DOESN’T PAY TO WORK: In the wake of President Obama’s re-election victory, there has been a lot of discussion about makers and takers. Mitt Romney said on a conference call with supporters, among many other things, that Obama bought a lot of votes with “gifts” to various constituencies, an evidently true observation for which he mysteriously was maligned by Bobby Jindal and others. The truth is much worse than Romney suggested or than most people imagine: the middle class is right to feel bitter and betrayed. Those who work for a living have been sold out by federal and state governments that have created a welfare system gone mad.

So instead of solving the problem that causes dependence, just get rid of assistance:

In today’s America, it is reasonable to conclude that unless you make a great deal of money, you are a sucker if you work hard. And, in fact, a great many Americans have concluded exactly that. Each 1.25 Americans working in the private sector is supporting 1.0 welfare recipients and government employees–mostly welfare recipients … We are constantly told that it is difficult to find any state or federal spending that can possibly be cut. This suggestion is, I think, ludicrous. Let’s start by cutting welfare, and cutting it deeply. Not only because it is wasteful, but because by devaluing work it threatens to cripple not merely our economy, but our culture. An America where you are better off cashing welfare checks than working is an America that cannot long survive.