Problem is, there are getting to be less taxpayers in both the UK and the USA. Jobs are being moved out of both countries by the big corporations to where they can pay peanuts for manufacturing and call centres etc. Investment in both countries is not happening - small businesses are faced with higher costs for everything and so reduce staff or go under altogether.

Somewhere along the line there are casualties - those who live in high unemployment areas (most of the UK falls into the category as far as I can see), those hit but health problems that prevent them from working, the older worker who is turned away on the basis of age. What do we do with those people? Let them starve? Let them end up out on the streets because they are unable to find work? Not all those on benefits are wastrels and may will have paid into the system for many years before losing their source of income.

As a UK pensioner I am in receipt of one of those benefits - should my small pension be taken away because the taxpayer is effectively paying it? For many years, while I was working, I paid for others to receive that benefit as well as contributing to the cost of education for the taxpayers on whose backs I now live off of.

None of us know what is waiting for us around the corner. For a self employed person a catastrophic illness could end their ability to pay their own way. We have all seen the number of companies that have gone to the wall in the last few years leaving many people out of work through no fault of their own. Too few jobs, too many people chasing them. Too few opportunities in today's financial setting to go out and start businesses (banks don't want to lend money!). At some time we could all end up 'living off the back of the taxpayer'. To think otherwise is not to learn the lessons of history and is, basically very naive.