Morality of the Bridge Card

"I have a best friend, he is the nicest person i know. He's been working since he was 16 and is now almost 27. A year and a half ago he gave away almost all of his possessions, including his car to me. He bought a bicycle, and has been riding around the country experiencing the epitome of what most of us call freedom. As living a life like this, i understand that it requires very little money to live. Wherever he goes he helps people, and he is never a burden. He stayed about 4 days with my girlfriend and I and we had an amazing time, he is one of the best people that i know.

But there is a problem i am trying to deal with, and im not sure if what he is doing is right, or wrong. He always does his best to make sure that he isn't taking advantage of anyone.. accept there is one thing, he has a bridge card. He filed for (homeless) and technically he is, but he gets 200 dollars a month for food. I understand that he contributed to this for 10 years when he worked a government job and paid taxes, but is this not still taking advantage of other people? He also has a government cell phone and gets 250 minutes a month.

I am having a hard time understanding, because he wants to base his life upon freedom, not taking advantage of anyone and helping everyone he meets. Yet, is he not taking advantage of millions of people because of the cell phone and food that he does not have to pay for?"

Any and all ideas are welcome here, and i appreciate all input. It would be nice if the name calling would be left at a minimal.

Zaehet Strife said:

"I have a best friend, he is the nicest person i know. He's been working since he was 16 and is now almost 27. A year and a half ago he gave away almost all of his possessions, including his car to me. He bought a bicycle, and has been riding around the country experiencing the epitome of what most of us call freedom. As living a life like this, i understand that it requires very little money to live. Wherever he goes he helps people, and he is never a burden. He stayed about 4 days with my girlfriend and I and we had an amazing time, he is one of the best people that i know. But there is a problem i am trying to deal with, and im not sure if what he is doing is right, or wrong. He always does his best to make sure that he isn't taking advantage of anyone.. accept there is one thing, he has a bridge card. He filed for (homeless) and technically he is, but he gets 200 dollars a month for food. I understand that he contributed to this for 10 years when he worked a government job and paid taxes, but is this not still taking advantage of other people? He also has a government cell phone and gets 250 minutes a month. I am having a hard time understanding, because he wants to base his life upon freedom, not taking advantage of anyone and helping everyone he meets. Yet, is he not taking advantage of millions of people because of the cell phone and food that he does not have to pay for?"Any and all ideas are welcome here, and i appreciate all input. It would be nice if the name calling would be left at a minimal.

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yeah he's clearly taking advantage. if he chooses to live off the grid he shouldn't expect the grid to provide for him

My brother if you are born into a system (product of the system) you have to exploit it there's no way around it, well there is one but then you have to live in the desert/jungle or some mountain and be a completely self 'sustainable' human being. When you possess, you exploit that was the idea when your friend got rid of his stuff. Your friend obviously also thought about what it is he truly needs in his life (bicycle, food,water, clothes etc), now think about it, is that really exploitation?? No, not at all. I will tell you this though that if all action is a product of love and intelligence, that is not constricted by mentalities and silly dogmas, then you will know freedom. Looked at a deeper level you might find that you actually feel bad for yourself rather than your friend. Its not about whats wrong or right or left, when you free yourself of this duality you will know Peace.

Peace, love and all of the above

ml07kaup said:

My brother if you are born into a system (product of the system) you have to exploit it there's no way around it, well there is one but then you have to live in the desert/jungle or some mountain and be a completely self 'sustainable' human being. When you possess, you exploit that was the idea when your friend got rid of his stuff. Your friend obviously also thought about what it is he truly needs in his life (bicycle, food,water, clothes etc), now think about it, is that really exploitation?? No, not at all. I will tell you this though that if all action is a product of love and intelligence, that is not constricted by mentalities and silly dogmas, then you will know freedom. Looked at a deeper level you might find that you actually feel bad for yourself rather than your friend. Its not about whats wrong or right or left, when you free yourself of this duality you will know Peace.

Peace, love and all of the above

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If your going to expect other to feed you then you can at least be honest to everyone and drop the bullshit " nobility" crap

It's hard to know where to draw the line i know. I do know, that there are millions of people who have bridge cards that use it for things that they do not need, like steaks and candy and the like. I know he uses his as responsibly as he can, and whenever he visits we do not have to provide any food for him, actually he provides it for everyone else and himself wherever he goes or stays at. Is accepting food that was baught from a food card right or wrong? (just another question that popped up in my mind, and does not need to be addressed because it is off topic)

Like i said, it's hard to draw the line. Dude is a good person, he is a hard worker, i know that he spent the winter and half of this summer helping someone rebuild and remodel their house for nothing. Just as he helps almost everyone he meets when he sees that they are in need. Is this enough to justify him feeling ok about having a bridge card, i don't know, i guess the more important question would be if i personally would feel ok about it if put in the same position. But it is hard, because i can't really imagine what it would be like to give all of my most precious material possessions away.

Knowing there are millions of others out there who abuse the help provided by the bridge card i can see may make it easier for the individual to feel "ok" about accepting help from the government and other people when used responsibly, especially if he is helping many others along his way on his journey.

I still have yet to make a decision on if i think this is morally correct or not, for me that is, not for him.

It would be nice to see some thoughts from some other people here on RIU.

I think there should always be a safety net for people even if it is abused by people.

As nice a person your friend might be he has by choice made himself dependent of the state and there's nothing good about that

in his case, if you are actually describing him accurately, i would say he is not being a burden to society. I would recommend he take donations for helping people to try and provide for himself.

the problem with any welfare program is that a lot us get up at 7am 5 days a week and go spend 8 hours a day earning the money we need/want its its us who have to give up 40% of what we work for. now i know only a tiny little part of that goes to supporting the bums but it still sux every morning when i have to get up knowing that a lot of people get mine and your money sent to them every month without ever lifting a finger. what if we all stopped working and there were no responsible people to carry the rest of the nation anymore?

the typical american who work for 30 years give up nearly 14 of them totally to work (awake time) - so that being said you think it is fair for him to get 14 years more life than you because you pay for the things he needs?

and i agree a safety net is a great thing but it should be temporary. and i am also a strong supporter of government created jobs to employ the disabled. jobs that are specifically designed to allow you to still preform it despite your disability. this would put a large amount of our population to doing something useful rather then moping around moaning about how they are not able to do any job. obviously there are some disabilities that render you completely worthless, but thoes are few and far between.

zaehet can I ask what reasons you have to support your freind

I don't know if i support it or not, i am still conflicted.

Zaehet Strife said:

I don't know if i support it or not, i am still conflicted.

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Ok the basic pro's and cons as you see it

if he really wanted to be free he would say fuck the system.

ginjawarrior said:

If your going to expect other to feed you then you can at least be honest to everyone and drop the bullshit " nobility" crap

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I'm sorry, I do not follow, what do you mean my friend?

ml07kaup said:

I'm sorry, I do not follow, what do you mean my friend?

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I'm sorry my post wasn't directed at you as such. It was meant as an overview "if anyone expected the state to feed them"

in-

before the trolling.

anyway zahet, how ya been.

your buddy is a typical hippie. the only reason he is able to live the lifestyle he does, is that others pave his way. it sounds as though he is easily able to provide for himself, but chooses to "donate" in order to feed his subconscious, unattainable elitist dream. he is in no position to donate to anyone as his own needs are not met.

did you try and convince him he doesn't need to eat if he stares at the sun?

that would be true donation as the photons beamed into his head could be translated directly in to pure remodeling energy?

hmmmm, a lot to think about. been good bro, thanks for asking.

I guess all in all, anyone can justify anything within their own minds in order to not feel bad about something that many others may see as wrong.

Regardless of his decision, he is the most honest, sincere and nicest person i have ever met... so i will not let this affect my perceptions about him.

I cannot imagine kicking up a fuss over a $200/month benefit. The simple fact that your friend has unburdened himself of so much materiality more than redeems his use of such a modest benefit. The card is food-specific ... not like it can be used to buy a night in Vegas.

If you were to select such a life path, and could choose from these two -

1) accept this benefit and know that, should you hit a dry spell, you will eat
2) reject it, and become entirely dependent on the kindness of strangers

...which would it be?

>.. I know which I would choose. In that situation, the card provides an element of freedom and self-reliance, a fact that might be unpalatably paradoxical to some of the more forceful libertarians in our little community. cn

Hmmmmm, well said Cn. I think i would definitely choose number one.

Some strangers aren't very kind at all...

I would choose the same, and count myself lucky. However I am too old and soft to ever seriously contemplate the choice. I experience a strange blend of admiration, envy ... and gratitude that I can continue to be old, and soft. cn

It's more the choice to put himself into the situation than it is his use of it while there that I feel is wrong.
Your card system is different to how we have it set up here it's cash to be spent how it's needed (still at subsistence level) but its still designed as a safety net. It's not so much the tax payers that he's taking advantage off than the people that really need that help

I've known a few homeless that were in real need of such a net. From really nice people who had very bad luck, to the mentally ill or drug addicts /alcoholics

I know quite a few who have by choice left the system and like your friend expect to benefit from it. They're perfectly capable Of working its just they think they're spiritually above the rest of us. Bunch of hypocrites to my mind

At what point would it be ok for all of us to do this?

Ginjawarrior it would be ok for everybody to do that the moment that you no longer wish to have a security net there for the people that need it...

I've got nothing against the guy that is doing it however, If he truly is going around and helping people than the positive effects that should in theory continue on because of it should in my mind surely pay off for the 200 a month in food and the mobile phone... If he was just living in a tent in a forest somewhere reading books or doing nothing then taking the benefits might seem wrong, but some people do need a break from the world and some of them more than others...