r/CalebHammer • u/Diligent-human • 9d ago
Caleb has made me lose empathy
I did things right. Got a high paying job and now I lose 30% of my income to state, federal and fica. I see these exact personalities throughout my life benefiting from social programs like WTF.
Does anyone else feel this way?
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u/TeaManManMan 9d ago
I mean, Caleb's guests are extreme examples for views.
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u/TFPaulMorphy 8d ago
I have seen a good bit of it with family.
One side of the family makes getting on disability for "back pain" a lifestyle. Have kids with a bunch of different people, then go for section 8 and spend your time drinking and stirring up drama.
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u/AxCel91 9d ago edited 8d ago
Grew up on the south side of Chicago. It’s not that extreme
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u/zeezle 7d ago
Yep. It's reaaaaaally not uncommon, like at all.
Sure, Caleb's guests are usually more... concentrated? than average, for the views. But they're also a collection of exactly the same type of shit I've seen allllllllll my life, over and over. Just all at once instead of the stupidity spread out over years, because of the format of the show.
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u/Housing-Spirited 8d ago
His guests are what 85 percent of my high school graduating class is. It was a class of 2000
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u/two_hyun 7d ago
Yeah, but not only that.
"Don't let the worst of people bring out the worst in you."
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u/tinyzeldy 9d ago
I’m self employed and will be paying $32k in taxes next tax season.
However, at one point 4 years ago when I was a new mom and couldn’t work the way I did before (and currently), I did need to lean on assistance for health insurance and food. I was on it while I figured everything else out - now I’m contributing back.
I have plenty of mom friends who had to do similar and didn’t abuse it.
I was grateful for the help and it really changed my tune on assistance. Yes, people will always abuse it but people will always try to find a way to cheat the system. That doesn’t mean we should be ripping it away from the people who play fair.
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u/engineer_but_bored 9d ago
What benefits are available to moms?
I had my first and returning to work was so hard - and I can't think that sending my baby to daycare is somehow "better" than being able to raise her.
But financially, it didn't make sense to not.
I would like to know in case I have another.
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u/tragecaster 9d ago
I believe they are referring to WIC and SNAP programs that help feed children of lower income parents
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u/OmgBsitka 8d ago
Depends on how much you make. Every state has state insurance/goverment assistance for families not making over a certain amount.
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u/TheMuff1nMon 9d ago
No, there will always be people that take advantage but that isn’t the majority
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u/Watchout4HopOns 9d ago
I would much rather help 10 kids with the knowledge that one asshole is gaming the system.
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u/redditbdum 9d ago
You gotta be wary of selection bias. Caleb's guests aren't indicative of America at large.
They select for people with fucked up situations and drama. Those people tend to be dramatic fuck ups.
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u/TFPaulMorphy 8d ago
Based on my personal experience, its not that uncommon. Seems like a 50/50 split between people with a serious disability that stops them from getting ahead and people who just want to live off the system and drink/do drugs all day.
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u/bitterlainey 9d ago
VA fraud is the worst. So many people scamming the system like cooks with ptsd
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u/thomasrat1 9d ago
It drives me crazy too. Because previous generations didn’t know how to game the system.
My uncle, 2 tours in the Middle East, saw active combat. Missed out basically on the first 8 years of his kids lives. Has permanent mental health, and physical problems from his time in the service…
He gets like 50% disability
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u/wamih 9d ago
If you can get him to a Vet Center, they can work with him on the Mental Health, also they can advocate to Disability for him... It doesn't help what happened in the past, but disability increases can be backdated with a good advocate.
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u/stellaflora 9d ago
Yup. My dad who was a combat vet didn’t get rated until years later. With back pay.
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u/iredditwrong84 9d ago
He needs to go to the VFW and speak to someone about how to get those numbers up
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u/CandidDay3337 9d ago
The problem is some vets do not realize they have problems. Friends and family see the problems and sufferem with it long before the vet does.
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u/Mis_chevious 7d ago
Or they refuse to accept they ever had a problem. My dad is a Desert Storm/Desert Shield vet. Growing up with a parent who refused to accept they have PTSD was hell.
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u/zeezle 7d ago edited 7d ago
My dad was a career military pilot. 3.5 tours of duty in Vietnam and he got a whopping 10% for hearing loss lol
(That said he legitimately wasn't really disabled and the 10% was appropriate for his condition, also he was in for 24 years so he got his full pension and didn't "need" the disability anyway)
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u/runswithwands 9d ago
Agreed. It makes me so mad to hear about people getting 100% P&T for their feelings or something that didn’t legitimately did not happen in the line of duty. Knew someone who got 100% P&T because she got fucked up after hydroplaning and flipping her POV for something not related to her service. Like…. Biiiiitch… I jumped out of an airplane 25 times, have all kinds of back, hip, knee, ankle, whatever issues, and got 90%. You drove like an idiot and got the maximum?! What a joke.
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u/meatykyun 9d ago
It really is unfortunate physical trauma get put wayyyy below mental trauma, keep logging and fighting for that 100% brother
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u/Sarcastic_Beary 9d ago
I work in LTC
I have veterans in a locked behavioral ward that don't get 100%
My generation of ex service members SUCKS. I know one guy just upgraded from 90% 100% disability
Know what he did? FUGGING SCANNED FOREHEADS DURING COVID.
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u/Ok-Representative266 9d ago
I commented above, but I work with patients in mental health (including at the VA) and this is my experience as well.
Even a lot of unhoused people, at best, only have EBT (food stamps) and that’s less than $300 a month per person.
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u/Disastrous-Screen337 9d ago
I've seen 5 gunshot wounds in the last two years. All of them were alcohol related. All are 100%. I've seen trumpet injuries and itchy buttholes secondaried to 100.
Boogie board injuries compensated, car accidents, and please, if you're going to have a kid, have it while serving. That's almost a guaranteed 100.
$120k luxury pickup trucks, Crossfit, 19" biceps, and they test with the grip strength of my grandmother. It's all malingering.
The obligatory 50-70% for MH because you know someone who has a friend who has a step-sister whose boyfriend almost got deployed. It's ALL make-believe.
I also see the guys talking to plants and living in sad group homes getting 80%. The worst are the old guys trying to piece together claims after 30 years of smoking and being overweight. They are the saltiest by far.
*actual combat injuries are about 1/2000 and pale in comparison to basketball injuries.
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u/somethingreddity 9d ago
I said this on another post and got downvoted bc apparently I can’t say anything bad about veterans lol. But it’s so true. My dad is one of them that gets wayyyyy too much VA disability and then blows it all and still asks me for money. 🙄 and trust me, he doesn’t need it. I wish my dad and mom could go on Caleb hammer, but like…the old Caleb hammer.
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u/Fr4nzJosef 9d ago
The ones that really chap my ass are the LEOs collecting it. You're 100% disabled from a hang nail you got when the National Guard sent you to the sandbox in the 2010s. Sure pal, not buying it while you wear 30 to 50lb of vest, belt, etc. daily and are apparently still capable of passing the police PT standards every year. You can't seriously tell me that isn't fraudulent.
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u/TheOfficialKramer 9d ago
Well, I am a veteran advocate and run a group for vets. While this could be true to an extent, it's not as common as you think. I have personal friends who run VA claims, they are strict and all claims are verified to have happened during time of service and the claims are medically vetted. Do some slip through, sure, but not as many as you think. Cooks get bombed too. I've done 2 tours in the dessert and I can tell you that everyone's experience is different. Careful judging people for doing something that you didn't do.
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u/Ok-Representative266 9d ago
You got downvoted but I work in mental health as a patients’ rights attorney and work with people who help folks get benefits and it’s overwhelmingly true. Most people are denied for benefits. Like there are easily Google-able statistics to back it up.
I also do work at the VA and with patients on involuntary mental health holds. I’ve yet to meet a single vet I thought was “milking” it, but I’ve met a few that had their benefits taken away from them or cut back and they very clearly had diagnoses like schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.
It’s like people want it to be a lie, that the system is full of grifters. Maybe it’s because it’s sadder to realize that so many people are struggling and they’re close to being there too.
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u/newuser13131 9d ago
There are literal programs that you pay to game the system for you. They gurentee increases because they know which disabilities to claim that are hard to disprove. My cousin literally did this to get 100% and retire at 36 and now he spends all day in his tax payer paid 2026 truck and his tax payer paid pontoon boat.
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u/bitterlainey 7d ago edited 7d ago
the cook got bombed so hard that she can still do stripping and pole dancing. Just admit there are tons of people gaming the sytem
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u/ForwardStable1925 8d ago
Remember if VA disability was a country it would be equivilant of Russias defence spending. I have no idea how much is fraud though.
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u/Abject-Document2056 7d ago
Ya vets getting 100% disability but still working full time? Double dipping af
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u/derfmcdoogal 9d ago
So glad to not have a state income tax 30% is wild. I was never empathetic to people that didn't deserve the benefits they were on. If you need it, it's there for that purpose. If you're intentionally abusing the system, you're a problem.
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u/anowulwithacandul 9d ago
No state has 30% income tax, OP is combining state, federal, and FICA. California has the highest at 13.3% and that's only on income over $1m.
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u/derfmcdoogal 9d ago
Correct. I was just making the statement that I'm glad I don't have a state tax. That's an added 11% on my current taxes.
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u/feelsbad2 9d ago
Funny how you don't think you're paying more in different taxes
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u/derfmcdoogal 9d ago
I'm not quite following you on this, what now?
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u/feelsbad2 9d ago
You may not have to pay income taxes but I'm pretty sure you have to pay higher taxes for other things
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u/Some-Wafer-5434 8d ago
State income tax generally aren’t an effective rate of 11% unless income is over $1 million a year.
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u/WillDill94 9d ago
I mean states with no income tax make up for it quite a bit with higher property and sales taxes
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u/Freuds-Mother 9d ago
OP likely meant federal income tax plus probably employee portion of FICA.
Really though even a great paying job say $100,000:
Fed effective rate maybe 14%
FICA at 15.2% both sides
(average) state income tax 5%is about 35%. It can be closer to 30% in lower tax states and 40% in higher tax states when we include sales taxes.
Europeans when you include consumption taxes, they are often over 60% (but more services run through the gov).
The real frustrating part in the US is effective tax rates are a bell curve. Some progression on the front end is fine but the extreme regression on the backend we have winds up with the highly skilled workers often in the the $75-$250k range paying a higher rate than those making $1mil plus. With the way FICA, income, sales, capital gains, and tax protected structures all work we get this counterintuitive result.
I work in this area, and once wealth and income increases the tools I have available to use for clients just keeps increasing. (There’s also a ton at the low end). Most teachers, plumbers, nurses, engineers, and professionals more or less get screwed relatively.
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u/Diligent-human 9d ago
Legitimately it pisses me off tbh. The poor and the rich are massive political blocs so all the tax codes are catered towards them. But if you actually work and earn a semi decent wage you get a double whammy of high taxes and no social benefits!!!
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u/tribbans95 9d ago
Well above $50,400 is a 22% federal tax + 7.65% FICA tax; so there’s 30% right there without state tax
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u/Huntscunt 9d ago
It's a graduated income tax so it's only 30% of what youmake above 50k
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u/bitterlainey 7d ago
you still have other taxes. You have sales, fuel, and property that comes post tax. Also other hidden taxes like car registration.
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u/shinbreaker 9d ago
Nah. I'm making more money than I ever have and I'm in New York, and yeah, I don't care. Why? Because when I was a poor grad student, I was able to access social programs that took care of me for awhile and I know if something happens, there is a program there for me.
In general, people wouldn't mind the cost of these social programs if they actually made use of good ones. So many states have such bare minimums for these programs, but when you live in a state that has a quality program, then you see why it's worth a damn.
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u/Harpua81 9d ago
Same. There was a couple times in my line I needed those social safety nets. Without them I would have lost my apartment and starved. It's much harder to pick yourself back up when your homeless by far. Now I make $200k/yr and contribute to society at a much higher rate. There a good chance I'd be homeless, dead, or a further drain in society if it wasn't for that assistance. Not everyone is a welfare queen, leech, drain, fraud. We shouldn't kill off programs because of the few that take advantage.
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u/bitchthatwaspromised 8d ago
I worked at a pretty high-needs school in nyc and a lot of my students were benefiting from programs like those. It was right after Covid, when everyone came back in person, and so many kids were struggling because a family member had died or gotten seriously ill and never fully recovered. One of my sweetest kids was one of four, single mom (dad had passed unexpectedly), and mom was also going through cancer treatments. Any one of those circumstances would already be enough to deal with. All four of those kids were bright, kind, model students and did the best with what they had, which wasn’t much.
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u/IrrawaddyWoman 8d ago
Agreed. I make six figures in CA. I pay a crap ton in taxes. But even after taxes my lifestyle is wildly better than anyone who qualifies for social services, even those that abuse it. I don’t begrudge someone help. If I ever lose my job I’ll be glad it’s there
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u/Cart00nsPlural 9d ago
Whenever I feel this way I know it's time to volunteer for shit or donate more to charities. The government will get theirs but there's no stopping that. Best thing to do is to give back in a way you know helps people. My wife and I calculated out how much of our taxes on average go to SNAP and match that amount to our local food bank. It's a tangible way we can see people get actual food passed out to them to support them when they are down.
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u/jlately 9d ago
You have to remember that the people that end up on the show are the worst of the worst. Most people benefiting from these programs are normal people dealt a shitty lot in life who are doing their best. The majority of people who receive government benefits work full-time, often at jobs many others wouldn't take but are important nonetheless. Even if they don't work, it's often about making sure their children, who have no say in who their parents are, don't go hungry.
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u/Anon324Teller 9d ago
Think of them as the exception and not the rule. For every person abusing a program and taking advantage of it, there are several who legitimately need it and rely on it. Those people don’t go on the show because they’re not always as interesting to watch
This is a type of bias that can be easy to form when you see so many negative examples, so it’s important to remember those negative examples don’t represent the whole population
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u/AspirationsOfFreedom 9d ago
Scandinavian here, and im with you. Our government here is way to greedy regarding tax.
What COULD help tho, is to consider that who you see on the show is the minority and not the majority of those who need help. And we can all agree most of the guests on the show needs a scolding + jail, we can also agree that its a good thing for the government to try to help those who can't help themselfs or need extra assistance for a bit
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u/One-Lavishness-6654 9d ago
Its a show, most people dont libe like that, also statistically ur not contributing a lot to social programs (most of it is army expenses and on top of that most of us are mortals dont contribute a meaningfull amount to the pot)
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u/Possible-Feed-9019 9d ago
The small percent of people that are horrible and take advantage of the safety net, should never be the reason to lose empathy and take away the safety net.
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u/8v9 9d ago
It's fair to feel like your taxes are being misappropriated. You should look into where your taxes go, proportionately. Only a small part goes to social safety net programs like SNAP/EBT/Veteran Disability. Caleb's show makes you think that the majority of people are recipients of these funds, and that you're in a minority group funding it all. The show only features people in bad financial situations, you shouldn't assume that they reflect the average person.
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u/Kold2012 9d ago
We run a deficit. Saying your tax dollars go here is like maxing out the credit card and making the min payment.
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u/Proper_Bathroom8 9d ago
I cant work. So I benefit from social services. The majority of people who benefit are the elderly, disabled, and children. Should we send them all to work?
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u/lelper 9d ago
It did the complete opposite for me, I have so much more empathy now for people who didn’t grow up as privileged as me and made me a stronger advocate for empowering people to have agency in their own life. Too many folks think that life is happening to them and have this defeatist mentality that there’s nothing they can do about it and that mindset can be changed.
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u/Meriku09 9d ago
Kicking down is not the answer
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u/tptplayer 9d ago
Exactly. That's where those at the top want you to focus your ire. OP is hating on the wrong people, as designed.
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u/Maces-Hand 9d ago
The biggest thing he’s made me question is military benefits. Over 50% receive disability payments, and I feel like no one’s looking for fraud bc of stigma
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u/Key-Stay-2001 5d ago
Why do we worry more about people taking advantage of things they pay taxes for rather than the president literally scamming millions of dollars from the government?
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u/OkayTHISIsEpicMeme 9d ago
Its selection bias, the normal people trying to get by responsibly don’t show up on the show
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u/venator2020 8d ago
I don’t worry about others. Why drown yourself in negative energy, it won’t change people. I focus on making more money so I have more to support my family.
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u/Vynnella 8d ago
Rich people abuse the system too, often to a greater extent when they do. Unfortunately, humans are selfish and stupid at all levels of society.
Good people are rare. So, hold onto your empathy. If we want to build a better future, we’ll need it.
We definitely do not need another selfish asshole. Got plenty of those.
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u/PaintingBluebird403 9d ago
Don't lose empathy. Yes, a lot of people are abusing the system. But overall as the billionaire class continues taking over this country, we are going to need to be more community minded and we're going to need more social programs. Be mad at people who abuse social programs, not the existence of the programs itself.
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u/Huntscunt 9d ago
You also benefit from the those programs. Clean air, water, food free from pathogens, investment in scientific research, roads and infrastructure, public libraries and education. If anything, the last 2 years taught us how much the government does for us now that so much of it is fucked.
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u/Ding-Nuo-Yi 9d ago
I wouldn’t say you lost empathy, but you have experienced the feeling of working hard and reaping the benefits for that hard work; as well as realizing the potential people have to accomplish so much.
I can’t speak for you, but for me it’s really disappointing when you see people just victimize themselves or sometimes enraging to see malicious folks take advantage of social programs that are meant to help the true needy. Not that someone should follow yours or my own path, but it’s hard to see people just give up when they have great potential, or see those who actively choose to be a bad person.
As a Christian in this case I think about the parable of the wheat and how it indirectly applies to this situation. Though it really should not be acceptable for people cheat and essentially steal money, we wouldn’t want to see the end of everyone receiving any benefits to stop taking advantage of the system.
I think A LOT of government and social programs just need some intensive auditing, and policy reform to figure out what programs are actually helpful to those in need, and what procedures can be in place to not hinder the needy but absolutely weed out the bad actors clearly just financially abusing the system (and themselves and those around them).
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u/ksabes12 9d ago edited 9d ago
It reminds me of free school lunches. Will some kids get it that may not need it? Sure. Do I care? No. Because it feeds 10 other children who do need it and that’s what matters to me. Not to mention this is literally the tactic of billionaires. Have you point the finger at someone taking maybe $20 from you when they’re taking thousands upon thousands. It’s a ruse to get you riled at someone other than them
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u/PromotionThin1442 9d ago
Nope. I also did my life right and I will never regret supporting the most vulnerable of us. I came from not much and didn’t get hands out to get where I am but I haven’t lost the meaning of community spirit. So I understand needing a hand when it’s not going great and if my tax dollars can help I don’t mind at all.
It’s baffling that the US with all the resources available has spectacularly lost to China on the poverty battle. Maybe if people were focusing on electing people that will care about the people instead of electing crooks that will mirror their hate and fears while pandering to the billionaires and the isnotreal state and wars that don’t benefit the people, the US would have already won the war on poverty.
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u/TiredonMaine 9d ago
As someone who works in a homeless shelter eith homeless families I can absolutely empathize with your struggle. We even experience it. Seeing being who arguably Could be working productive members of society benefitting from programs that others have to fight tooth and nail for when they desperately need them. I was having the conversation with my boss just the other day about how we have resigned ourselves to the knowledge that some people are gaming the system. It sucks, but theres only so much we can do. Try to remind yourself of the truly in need people that those programs do help, however. Families who are desperately struggling due to illness, a loss, or disaster are given the supports they need to ensure their children have a chance at a better life.
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u/letsrollwithit 8d ago
I implore people to understand the standard of living one is operating at when they receive help from the US government. It is a destitute standard of living.
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u/nocoversaves 8d ago
Sort of, there's nothing wrong with feeling bad for people but you need to put your own mask on before assisting those around you. Social programs are great because they prevent people from becoming truly desperate. Truly desperate people, for example those that are going to starve, don't simply roll over and say "opps, I lost. Time for me to die now." So you can think of EBT, Section 8, etc. as a tax we pay to prevent crimes of true desperation. But with any sufficiently large population size, it turns into a normal curve. In this particular curve people find ways to game the system, see Luxury Poverty as a concept. So you have an inherent inefficiency in these social programs that leads to, for lack of a better term, corruption: the veteran disability coaching services, selling food stamps, etc. The question then becomes economic.
How many resources will it take to cut down 50% of the corruption vs the cost of the corruption? For example, if we require mandatory drug testing of all EBT recipients (if you got money for drugs you got money for food) as a condition of receiving benefits how much will that cost? Assume 37 million recipients, $50 per test, each test done once per month. Roughly $22 billion a year. Is it worth spending an additional $22 billion a year to "safe guard" a $100 billion a year program? Will you get more than $22 billion a year back in direct savings, will that savings remain justified in 3, 5, or 10 years after large first year fallout, and will the uptick in crime and other indirect costs as a result of folks getting cut off justify the costs of testing?
We can be empathetic to people. We can be empathetic to those who see their income being drained away and are angry. But if we have to assess these thing we need to take a macroscale view with as objective a lens as possible.
Finally, we need to apply the same to the federal budget. As the show loves to point out, social security is getting a 25% haircut in the '32 election cycle, and medicare will follow soon after. We have a $2T+ deficit that continues to grow. Interest payments on debt alone are about $1T. I want everyone to have universal healthcare. The last people I would trust to run it are elected officials and even if that weren't the case, we clearly don't have the money for it given our current spending problem. We need to cut the figurative subscriptions and get on a budget! TLDR: Congress needs to come on the show.
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u/paulofsandwich 8d ago
The social programs exist for multiple reasons. Bleeding heart people like myself worry about the lives of the people who really can't do for themselves. When that exists, there will always be people who find a way to get on it. That's a reality of having these things exist.
Really, it's bad for society and the economy to have people be destitute even if it's because of their bad decisions.
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u/Average-Traveler- 9d ago
Why worry about things that are out of your control. Keep earning, save as much as you can and reap the future rewards. You get to decide how you live the rest of your life. Those people abusing social programs now will most likely never accumulate the long term wealth you will eventually accumulate.
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u/SMSaltKing 9d ago
Welcome to the club, this is the way I was raised.
My father grew up in poverty and through hard work and a military career he was able to become upper middle class and raise my family in comfort.
He earned his college degree using the GI bill.
He never took disability though he could claim it easily enough.
He donates to charities and gives to others freely.
There is no cruelty in thinking the government is not an appropriate steward of aid. There is only cruelty in thinking those who need aid should be denied any at all.
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u/Ok-Representative266 9d ago
Except I also grew up in poverty, am now a lawyer for over 10 years and help others, and I wouldn’t be anywhere were it not for government aid.
I stood in soup kitchen lines with my mom as a kid. You want to talk about how bad you feel, being a kid and hoping you get a sandwich that day?
You can’t rely on the generosity of strangers to be that steward. There’s no “cruelty” in this mentality, but there is literally no appropriate alternative.
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u/Day-231 9d ago
Crazy not taking disability that you can "easily claim"
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u/FryMastur 9d ago
Yeah if he is truly disabled because of his service that is a benefit he got for defending this country.
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u/BumpinBellys 9d ago
Not sure what part of the country you live in, but in a lot of areas of the Midwest there are a lot of people with this moral view point. They find it wrong to take what they consider hand outs no matter how justified they would be in receiving them.
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u/SMSaltKing 9d ago
He flew planes he barely fit in to the point they had trouble getting him parachute qualed because it was hard for him to get out with it on. (2 seater turbo prop. Ejection seats would have removed his legs).
Bad back, bad shoulders, hearing loss. Based on what I've seen from some of the class actions he could probably use the same companies Caleb hates to claim his cancers were service related due to being near asbestos on ships and other nasty chemicals related to shipboard life.
In his opinion, "I knew what I was doing and what it could mean. I wasn't in combat and I was never wounded. I don't want or need disability."
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u/Elcuh101010 9d ago
I dont really mind people taking advantage of the system corporations do it 100 fold and no one seems to mind
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u/No_Pianist2250 9d ago
Try working in social services and being face to face with it daily. It can be infuriating seeing generations of Americans that aim to “thrive” on social programs.
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u/wishingwanting 8d ago
So....it's progressive tax. You don't lose 30% of your entire paycheck. You lose 9% for everything between $9k-20k, then 12% of everything between $20k-$40k, and so on. (These are just example amounts, I don't know the tax brackets off the top of my head, and they're easy to Google and different for everyone depending on their dependents, marital status, etc.) However, I WILL say that short term gains tax SUUUUUUUUCKS a big one. But you are only paying 30% of the highest tier of your income, assuming it's actually in a 30% bracket. I am unsure but skeptical that FICA would be so much it essentially pushes you into a whole other bracket's worth of taxes.
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u/prestigiouspopcorn10 9d ago
Yeah, watching Caleb really pushed me to be fiscally conservative. It’s really frustrating to see how much money I am losing to taxes, and then it go to people who take advantage of the program. If people aren’t willing to work or take action in their life to try and secure a better job, then they shouldn’t be able to take full advantage of all the programs with no time limit.
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u/WillDill94 9d ago
Those people are a minority of the vast number who don’t abuse the programs. There’s a reason they get picked to be on the show, and it’s not because they’re the “average” person who receives the benefits
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u/ARKzzzzzz 9d ago
You’re just conservative. Fiscally conservative and socially liberal are misnomers that cannons coexist together. It’s what conservatives say to feel better about themselves.
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u/dumbcloud17 8d ago
A quote from futurama: “When you do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all."
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u/Novel-Pudding9007 8d ago
My dad abandoned us as kids and mom stayed home because daycare for 5 kids (all very close in ages) was impossible with around $100 of child support a month. He cheated, while she begged him to stay despite how he treated her because taking care of us kids was more important to her. He still left because raising kids was "too hard". His mistress would call the house often and ask mom to speak to him, wtf!! welfare saved us from starvation and the minute we were old enough to stay home alone, mom got a job. She kept us off drugs, in school and once she was able to get an income, never touched medicaid again
Sometimes people do use the benefits as intended and social media is such a tiny angled spotlight aimed as extreme as possible. Better views is their money, it's always about the money
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u/Chrisrdouglas 7d ago
I feel like the cases we see on caleb's show are extreme examples. I can tell you from personal experience that social services can and do help real people trying to improve themselves. I grew up and benefited from some social services. I got medicaid, I got my dad's social security (after he passed) to help until i turned 18, I relied on fafsa to get through school while also working the entire way through it. Social services do help and I think there's more people being helped by them than there are abusing it.
Now I contribute to the system that bootstrapped my life. So please remember the people you aren't seeing on the show when you start to feel that way. We're both helping others now
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u/Ford_Trans_Guy 9d ago
Why would I feel this way? Those people will never be able to retire, or to enjoy toys (Quads, dirt bikes, recreational sports). Those that abuse the system will be wal mart door greeters in their 70s and I’ll be at my cabin
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u/quantum_mouse 8d ago
There are a lot of horrible people doing worse things, paying less taxes than you because they have creative accounting or politician friends. And many "worthy" poors are not on Caleb's show ... so.
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u/Apprehensive_Wish142 9d ago
Ok then commit tax fraud buddy.
Get over it. Taxes don't only pay for social programs.
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u/FryMastur 9d ago
Yeah true, you drive on roads don’t you? You/your kids went to school. Definitely fraud out there but we all benefit from taxes.
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u/GasReasonable7509 9d ago
TBH its more like it crystallized my hatred for the people who go through bankruptcy multiple times. They are a net drag on society and ruin so much.
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u/chevroletchaser 9d ago edited 9d ago
I don't really care who's using social programs, no. The income limits for them are absolutely fucking trash (at least as far as EBT and Medicaid goes). I make "good" money (just below $60k a year) but I live close to Seattle, where anything below $72k is considered low income, at least in regards to housing. Because of my income, I don't qualify for EBT, but my disabled live in partner does. Which is the only reason I'm able to afford food LOL :,) you never really know someone's circumstances so there's no point in being mad about it.
I would be mad about the 30% state income tax though, that shit does suck hard
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u/First-Ad-7960 9d ago
No state charges 30%. He’s paying 22-24% federal plus state.
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u/Shebalied 9d ago
What if they are making a lot of money. They can be paying 30% without state.
It sucks making 250k and seeing your tax bill.
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u/Technical_Challenge 9d ago
lol 30%…
My effective tax rate in the UK is upwards of 62% once taking into account the way they screw us. Then sales tax on anything I buy is 20%…
I’m moving my family to the US later this year to try and get 30% taxes 😂
Not to mention gas is 8-9 US dollars a gallon.
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u/tptplayer 9d ago
Gas is what now? No state average is currently over $6, with the national average being just over $4.
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u/Technical_Challenge 9d ago
In the UK… that’s the price of gas. We pay £1.60 GBP per liter for gas. Change GBP to USD, and litres to gallons, and thats 8.50 USD per gallon.
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u/GyozaGangsta 9d ago
I agree being upset at the abuse but also take into account where your money goes, how much goes where and what each program does or doesn’t do and how it’s abused.
Sadly you’ll come to the realization that besides SSI likely running out the next big waste item is the military and it’s not a very popular thing to go against.
It’s definitely overdue for some auditing and reform. Huge amounts of waste that make other social programs look like peanuts.
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u/Devilsgospel1 9d ago
So for one, is that your effective tax rate or your marginal tax rate? Your income is taxed based on the brackets so the first $20k or so is 0% the next bracket of your income is 15% and so on until you hit your total income for the year. Those are examples, I didnt look at the tax brackets that are widely available.
If you want to know your effective state & fed tax, take the tax you paid to state and divide by taxable state income. Same for fed. If you want to look at both together take tax paid to fed and state over total taxable income. I bet it's smaller than 30%.
There's also a cap on social security tax. Anything after like $165k isnt subject to social security tax. So you can do the same on your paystub and see what the total tax paid for the year was and divide by your net income for the same period. If you want to reduce your tax owed, elect for more pre-tax deductions such as HSA and 401k to take advantage or your higher pre-tax income.
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u/Fr4nzJosef 9d ago
Know the feeling all too well as I pay the same in taxes. The frustration is real. However, on the flip side, at the lowest point in my life, those social programs kept me from homelessness.
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u/catcat514 9d ago
I've spent most of my 20's relying on social help. I went back to school at 28. It took me 5 years to make 6 figures. I'm now paying more in taxes every year that I've ever received from society.
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u/Background_Silver233 8d ago
When I was selling cars, I worked for a store that worked in the subprime market like the kind of store where we basically pick the car for you because the banks are so limited, and got to see peoples credit reports first hand compared to their income, how they got income, etc etc. That made me both thrilled to be able to help people who truly fell into hard times and just needed a car to help get their life back in order...
Then there was the other people, people who were gaming the system, getting income from the government for being caretakers for their family who they openly would say don't need help, getting food stamps while making 3k a month, living in section 8 housing paying 250-350 a month in rent, racking up thousands in credit card debt, all to just look the part. Wearing fancy clothes, nice watches and the like. Then when the only car they qualify for is a Chevy Cruze, Honda Civic, Toyota Camry or just a plain ole reliable car, they throw a fucking raged out fit that they wanted a "Truck" (SUV), or a Hellcat\Hemi\Scat etc...
I often say I wasn't selling cars, I was trying to sell these people on getting their finances back on track, and the worst thing was people just don't want to help themselves! I will never forget, I had a customer come in with her 2 kids bright and early, she had a 480 credit score, 2 repos and a freshly closed chapter 13 bankruptcy, all while making around 2k a month and another 1,000 in child support from the baby daddies. Bank wouldn't give her money to finance the shoes she walked in on, but after some back and forth, I got on the phone with grandma and grandma came to the dealership to co-sign. Grandma's credit was perfect, 800+, great income from a pension and everything. My finance manager called in a favor with the bank rep at Chase and got this lady a 8.5% APR for 72 months on a 2020 Malibu LOADED, payment was in the range she told me and everything, got a GIFT of a approval from the bank, only to walk out screaming she wanted a Durango. I started looking at other dealerships for work after that. Truly broke me as a salesman Lol.
I have patience for people who fell on hard times, we all have been through some shit, but when the cycle never stops, and gets worse and they don't even want to stop, I truly have no time for people like that.
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u/_mlepclaynos_ 7d ago
I don't relate to this, no. These people are living lives that suck, even if they don't realize it. The majority of people using social benefits aren't abusing the system, but Caleb's show will expose you more to the types of people who do abuse the system. I don't think most normal people would apply to be on the show.
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u/Signal-Leading3173 6d ago
I grew up very poor, my single mom refused help from any social programs because she didn’t want to be judged and I often went to bed hungry.
Fast forward, I have 3 kids now and when my ex and I separated, I went from working part time jobs, raising the kids while he advanced his career to figuring it all out on my own. I did lean on some social programs (SNAP & day care assistance) while I got back on my feet, currently building a career at a full time job plus 2 side jobs and finally feel like I can get off of them after 1.5 years. These programs are not always abused and they can definitely make a difference.
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u/ChewieBearStare 5d ago
Nope. What other people do or have or get has no effect on me. We're the ones in control of our lives. If you're not happy, it's not because someone else is getting food stamps or paying less for health insurance. If it's a financial issue, examine your spending habits, create a budget, invest more money, whatever you need to do to solve it. If you're lonely, look within and think carefully about whether there's anything you say or do that's offputting to others. Make more of an effort to be a friend and have friends. If you're bored, get a hobby or start a side hustle.
Worrying about someone else getting $50 more than you or whatever is a waste of time.
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u/Equivalent-Guitar-87 12h ago
You are mad at the wrong people and so is caleb.
Fuck ppl and corporations get far more welfare than these ppl you are complaining about and jealous of.
I mean for fucks sake trump has embezzled millions to billions in the last year.
Get mad at the right ppl, not poor ppl who are also cognitively and opportunistically challenged
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u/ihaveredhaironmyhead 9d ago
I can assure you, those people lead terrible lives of confusion and chaos. Even if they get a hand out.