Subsidizing unemployment

"To Get More of Something (e.g., Unemployment), Subsidize It" by Robert Higgs:

Ronald Reagan was no economist, but his economic logic was impeccable when he declared, “If you want more of something, subsidize it; if you want less of something, tax it.”

So, as the current recession deepens and the rate of unemployment rises, we might have confidently predicted that Congress, in its infinite compassion for the little guy, would extend the period during which the unemployed may collect unemployment-insurance benefits. President Bush signed a bill today that will provide as many as 13 weeks of additional benefits, on top of the additional 13 weeks of benefits approved last June, which was on top of the 26 weeks the basic program provides.

In any event, we may expect unemployment to increase as the recession grows worse, and we may confidently understand that a portion of the unemployment that exists at any particular time will be attributable to the availability of unemployment-insurance benefits. Congress will blame the market for the unemployment and take credit for, in effect, helping to increase and extend it.