It&#x27;s indeed a problem. I&#x27;ve lived with flatmates who basically lounged around for 3+ years on Harz 4, and despite the fact that I am rather left-leaning (to put it mildly), there were moments where I thought &#x27;if I paid taxes in Germany, I&#x27;d be <i>really</i> pissed off about the fact that my flatmate is using my tax money to get high all the time and not improve his life in any way&#x27;.<p>Of course, when my rational mind took over I realized that 1) he had some serious psychological issues that he <i>was</i> trying to address, 2) he lives on practically nothing, to the point of collecting and returning empty bottles to get himself a beer, and 3) he&#x27;s a really warm, caring, awesome guy who shares what little he has whenever he can, even with a well-paid person like me.<p>But imagine the situation when 1) someone is not as left-leaning as I am, 2) someone is faced with &#x27;strangers&#x27; benefitting from their tax money, rather than people they can easily identify with, 3) this &#x27;stranger&#x27; is easily associated with crime and cultural practices and religious beliefs that baffle me, and, perhaps most importantly 4) I am not working in one of the few areas of business that still does well (IT) and I&#x27;m feeling the economic problems myself.<p>I suppose I could add 5) I have a partner and kids and a mortgage and a car that I cannot just &#x27;ditch&#x27; when times get lean.<p>None of what I&#x27;m saying should be taken as any kind of ethical judgment or opinion. I&#x27;m simply expressing my fear of what might happen because of these issues, and a desire to work toward solutions that benefit all parties involved, or at least prevent serious consequences.