Why not also subsidize traders who lose on a stock?
If you want a society where people can't lose then you also get a society where no one wins.
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Poverty is the Lord's way of anointing the sinners for the righteous to cull.
Ephesians 1:11 “In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will.”
The parts of US culture I am familiar with blur the lines between godliness and wealth pretty far. It is a common belief that the poor are being justly punished for their sins, and that only good things happen to good people.
From the Today's English Version,
Paul's Letter to the Ephesians: Chapter 1, verses 1-11
From Paul, who by God's will is an apostle of Christ Jesus-- To God's people in Ephesus, who are faithfulin their life in union with Christ Jesus.
2-) May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
3-) Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! For in our union with Christ he has blessed us by giving us every spiritual blessing in the heavenly world.
4-) Even before the world was made, God had chosen us to be his through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before him, because of his love.
5-) God had already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children--this was his pleasure and purpose.
6-) Let us praise God for his glorious grace, for the free gift he gave us in his dear Son!
7-) For by the blood of Christ we are set free, that is, our sins are forgiven. How great is the grace of God,
8-) which he gave to us in such large measure! In all his wisdom and insight
9-) God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ.
10-) This plan,which God will complete when the time is right, is to bring all creation together, everything in heaven and on earth, with Christ as head.
11-) All things are done according to God's plan and decision; and God chose us to be his own people in Union with Christ because of his own purpose based on what he had decided from the very beginning.
Nothing in there screams "poverty is an affliction God amounts on the sinner."
You might get a hint of it around verse 14, but that verse is contingent on the Spirit granting complete freedom to the faithful.
The entire section is a call to praise God.
I don't know who this betterofchuck is, but he seems to have a penchant for cherrypicking verse to fit his argument. His interpretation is outright sickening, and bordering on the blasphemous.
Also, America DOES tend to see destitution as a self-inflicted condition, but the main way in which disgust is usually elicited is by the perception of those destitute who refuse to find a way to better themselves. A central American value is to FIGHT for one's own liberty, not to grovel at the feet of others to have it delivered. This disgust can be elicited just as easily by the wealthy as well.
Show me someone who makes an honest effort at lifting themselves up, and I'll show you someone living up to the American ideal.
It isn't pretty, but in my life, THAT is how America has worked.
I'd draw a distinction between those who risk their own capital for themselves, and those who risk capital through others (aka investors). It's not an easy distinction to codify, but it seems important.
Society needs people taking risks for themselves. To benefit themselves. And instead of paying after they've hit rock bottom, maybe it would be smarter to do a bit to keep that from happening.
Because change isn't slowing down...
Earning a livelihood is not gambling. The taxi drivers had entered the market for medallions under specific circumstances and IMHO should be compensated by government if government unilaterally breaks the deal.
Would it not be just that, if we're going to rewrite the economic rules in some areas, we give partial compensation towards those we just screwed over?
Presumably we're changing the rules because of progress (e.g. Uber and Lyft showing on-demand rideshare has a market), which is good for everyone.
But say the human lifespan is 85 years +/-. 25 years for education to post-secondary graduation (e.g. bachelor's degree in US). Probably another 2-5 years of accumulating working capital for your venture.
So there's a set number of "shots" a person gets in their life.
In this instance, what's wrong with saying "We're doing away with the medallion system. Existing medallions will be repurchased by the government at a price proportional to ownership time. Funding will be accomplished by a tax on rideshare companies, that decreases yearly, and ends 5 years from now"?
Otherwise, I see the following sequence of events: (1) people get screwed by technological upheaval -> (2) people become resentful against technological progress -> (3) people vote in politicians / laws that retard technological progress, to the detriment of all