Many people in developed countries rely on welfare to live their lives. The welfare state has been accepted as the only way for government to go - until now. Britain where the welfare state began is making major cutbacks in government payments. Even in the US, where government support is perceived as low by non-US citizens, middle class welfare is rife. The term middle class is a widely misused term. Everyone knows it means the rich. It seems everyone has the their hands in the government feed trough. In Australia the baby bonus was introduced by a right wing Howard government. It is ironic that it has been virtually abolished by a left wing government. It was available to all, rich and poor. No means testing was ever done. The problem is political parties keep giving in order to be elected. This happens until a major deficit occurs and cutbacks are forced onto prevailing government. If redistribution of income was not done the rich would get richer and the poor would be u...