NYC's "pay for being good" program-what do you think?

United States
September 17, 2007 5:52pm CST
I just heard today that NYC has a pilot program for families in poverty promising to pay for actions that many consider simply the way you should be acting already, like getting a library card, taking kids to the doctor for checkups, attending parent teacher conferences in school and so forth. The discussion on NPR did a pretty balanced take on the pros and cons: Some people need immediate incentive to do these things to get the longer-term gains, many need the cash, and such programs seem to be working in other countries. On the con side, people worried that it would damage work ethic, cause people to expect financial reward for doing what most consider normal behavior, and so forth. What do you think? I'm undecided, but leaning toward the "hey, it's worth a try" side.
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