Why are so many men not even bothering to look for jobs in a country that is not exactly famous for the generosity of its welfare benefits? Eberstadt’s answer comes in two parts: first, the barriers to employment for felons leave many of this big pool of often young men as outcasts; second, government disability and means-tested benefit programmes are bigger and more useful to recipients than you would think, once you account for all the different schemes that are available.
