The 55 percent

Imagine a ship with 100 passengers and crew drifting down a river that eventually cascades over a 1,000 foot waterfall. It's easy to plot the ship's course and the waterfall ahead. You might think 100% of those onboard would agree that something drastic must be done to either reverse course or abandon ship, but before we jump to any conclusion we must first identify what each of the 100 people perceive as serving their self-interest.

If life onboard is good for 55 of the 100, they may well rationalize away the waterfall dead ahead. Indeed, they might vote to maintain the current course, thus dooming the 45 others who can hear the thundering cascade ahead but who are powerless to change course in a democracy. ...

If 55% of the voting public is dependent on government spending, then they will vote to continue that spending regardless of its unsustainability.

[Charles Hugh Smith at Financial Sense]

Some people will read "dependent on government spending" and think of the underclass: dole money, food stamps, pay-per-child programs, government-issued processed cheese slabs, etc. That's only part of the story, and maybe the smaller part. 

The social work Establishment that administers welfare is equally dependent on government spending. All the workers at government bureaus and agencies, including the minority that perform useful functions, are dependent on government spending. The "green" corporations with politically correct products -- or ideas for products -- are dependent on government spending. 

Farm industry welfare (crop subsidies, export subsidies, subsidized insurance) is another form of government dependence. Some military suppliers wouldn't make a dime without the government as customer.

Scratch the "free enterprise" system and you find government dependence right down to the ground. Not all government support is bad or unnecessary; it's just that it has become pervasive, the path of least resistance for everyone from job seekers to corporations to elected officials. The river is the path of least resistance through the jungle. 

Did anyone hear a sound in the distance?