quiet discomfort   (opinion, random re me)

I went to Chipotle for lunch. But starting this post out that way, with that title won't (at least not yet) lead to the obvious conclusion. I subscribed to The Sun recently (no, not The Baltimore Sun) and, by the way, I've been pleased with the content so far. To paraphrase a self-described "fatcat Republican" in the letters to the editor this month, even if I don't completely agree with the opinions as such, it's always a pleasure to read a well-written and intelligently presented point. Ah yes, on to my point; there is an article about welfare "reform" (pdf) in this month's issue.

While I am generally against welfare (fosters entitlement, see Saudi Arabia), especially "health care as a right," this article raises several important independent points. The upshot is that a welfare system implemented by an inefficient bureaucracy and steered by politicians with their own agendas can barely accomplish its stated purpose, even assuming that the theoretical causes driving the need for welfare to begin with are being ameliorated, let alone in an economic and social environment that in many cases encourages a downward spiral.

So I think the strangest part about that whole experience was that I was reading this article in a Chipotle in the middle of suburban Columbia, surrounded by other middle-class white-collar workers. I can't imagine McDonald's pays Chipotle crewmembers (ingenius labelling, isn't it?) much more than regular McD's employees...