Trust is often necessary to succeed

Nicole Gray is a single mother who had her child when she was only 17. Every time she asks the government for financial aid she feels like, in her words, “a beggar”. There was an idea that was proposed that would potentially help Canadians like Nicole: a grant of $20,000 a year for everyone in Canada. Seemingly ridiculous and impractical, such a large amount of money would surely go to waste if given to every single person in Canada that needed money. In theory, it seems like a good idea to allocate the money that the government would eventually spend on those in poverty to the individuals directly, for many reasons; people would be able to spend that money to improve their lives in a more relevant and efficient way. However, that is only pure theory because I don’t believe that most of the people will use that money wisely. There are many way these people can waste the $20,000 such as on drugs and alcohol or other harmful substances. Most people in poverty haven’t had a large amount of disposable income and as a result, if they were suddenly given a large amount of money, they will not know what to do with the money. This policy seems like an idea that could benefit people in poverty but is unrealistic because of human nature and the characteristics of people in general.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/to-end-poverty-guarantee-everyone-in-canada-20000-a-year-but-are-you-willing-to-trust-the-poor/article560885/