Granted, there are those who have acquired a taste for the ersatz of "self-esteem" they've been fed all their parasitic lives, but for many, one taste of self-respect can be a game-changer.
That won't save all, probably not even half who get the chance, but it will get through to some.
They'll be the ones who help the following generation advance, if our 'caring' government quits lavishing them with the means to keep slacking.
OTOH, when we go broke because none in the Federal Government had the guts to dry up the teat and wean them, there will be Hell to pay for a while, and fewer to support afterward.
That may be true for a farmer, and it may be true for a "hard-working" thief too.
It's hard to predict, and I don't even think we all have a good idea of what the "average American" heart/character has left right now, much less predicting what he'll do when the going gets rough.
I'd like to think it will be more like 9/11 than OWS, but I'm not so sure...depends.
In 9/11 I think the first reaction was caring for each other, then the megaphone "they're gonna hear from all of us" fighting.
In OWS we see hating each other (classes) as the first reaction, then incoherence.
Interesting times, unfortunately.