re: Over $1 Trillion in welfare spending in 2011

Quoting The (super kinky) Master:" Every now and then something will change (like the women haven't to work/study when all their kids are ... [snip!] ... situation Centrelink would just have you on NewStart (the dole) and going to interviews and doing voluntary work asap. "

Seems like a smart system.

Quoting The Doctor:" Seems like a smart system."

It doesn't seem to be very popular outside of Australia, I think people are too interested in solving the end result (such as food stamps and WIC which are clearly there for those so far below the poverty line that providing basic necessities isn't possible) rather than dealing with the underlying issues and giving people the means to provide for themselves.

<blockquote><b>Quoting The (super kinky) Master:</b>" It doesn't seem to be very popular outside of Australia, I think people are too interested in solving ... [snip!] ... isn't possible) rather than dealing with the underlying issues and giving people the means to provide for themselves."</blockquote>




I believe in helping those who are truly in need. And, I believe that many of our safety net programs had that in mind. If they were shifted back to the states each state could decide where to put the "help" and how to get people back on their feet the fastest.
I don't know your system well, but one thing that is very different between Australia and the US is size and population. I think your population is similar to our population in our state of Texas. Texas could probably solve its problem better than the federal government.
Right now our system is incredibly broken and many have no incentive to do more than bump off of the bottom of society.