A Nation of Moochers: America's Addiction to Getting Something for Nothing

Charles J. Sykes

Macmillan, Jan 17, 2012 - Political Science - 307 pages

Overview: Have we reached a tipping point where more Americans depend on the efforts of others than on their own? Are we becoming a nation of moochers? In A Nation of Moochers, Charles J. Sykes argues that we are already very close to that point, if we have not already crossed the line. From the corporate bailouts on Wall Street, to enormous pension, healthcare, and other entitlement costs, to questionable tax exemptions for businesses and individuals, to the alarming increases in personal default and dependency, the new moocher culture cuts across lines of class, race, and private and public sectors. A Nation of Moochers explores the shift in the American character as well as the economy. Much of the anger of the current political climate stems from the realization by millions of Americans that they are being forced to pay for the greed-driven problems of other people and corporations; increasingly, those who plan and behave sensibly are being asked to bail out the profligate. Sykes' argument is not against compassion or legitimate charity, but distinguishes between definable needs and the moocher culture, in which self-reliance and personal responsibility have given way to mass grasping after entitlements, tax breaks, benefits, bailouts, and other forms of feeding at the public trough. Persuasively argued and wryly entertaining, A Nation of Moochers is a rallying cry for Americans who are tired of playing by the rules and paying for those who don't.

What people are saying

A NATION OF MOOCHERS: America's Addiction to Getting Something for Nothing

User Review  - Kirkus

Curmudgeonly screed that simply echoes rhetoric all too familiar in today's political dialogue.Even those who wholeheartedly agree with radio talk-show host Sykes (50 Rules Kids Won't Learn in School ...

Contents

• A Nation of Moochers: 9
• A Moocher Checklist: 20
• Moochers Dilemma: 32
• The Joys of Dependency: 49
• Addicted to OPM Other Peoples Money: 67
• Want Need Right: 74
• At the Trough: 91
• Harvesting OPM: 97
• Moochers Dilemma II: 112
• The Two Americas: 131
• Bailout Madness: 155
• Lessons in Moral Hazard: 157
• Mortgage Madness: 159
• Bailouts for Idiots How to Make Out Big by Screwing Up: 171
• WalkAway from Your Mortgage: 185
• An Interactive Readers Exercise: 196
• No They Didnt Learn Anything: 199
• MiddleClass Suckers: 205
• The Bank ofMom and Dad: 207
• MiddleClass Suckers: 213
• Why Get a Job?: 225
• Mooching Off the Kids: 231
• Whats Fair?: 243
• An Abbreviated History ofMooching: 245
• Were All from Starnesville Now: 249
• Whats Fair?: 255
• Step Away from the Trough: 265
• Notes: 271
• Index: 294

About the author

CHARLES J. SYKES is senior fellow at the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute and a talk show host at WTMJ radio in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today and is the author of six previous books: A Nation of Victims, Dumbing Down Our Kids, Profscam, The Hollow Men, The End of Privacy, and 50 Rules Kids Won't Learn in School.

Bibliographic information

• Title: A Nation of Moochers: America's Addiction to Getting Something for Nothing
• Author: Charles J. Sykes
• Publisher: Macmillan, 2012
• ISBN: 0312547706, 9780312547707
• Length: 307 pages
• Subjects: Political Science / Political Economy; Political Science / Public Policy / Economic Policy