system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How do modern socialist states deal with the 'free rider' problem?
gpt
There isn't really any measurable instance of the 'free rider' problem in any modern socialist state. The problem is purely theoretical. Really, there are only two types of people on welfare.

Rational and capable people will try to get a job, because the minimum wage is kept above the welfare rate. People like to have things and money, and will generally work to get it, even if they're able to survive on welfare.

People who are either not rational or are not capable of working don't get a job if you take away their benefits. They become homeless or criminals. Homeless people and criminals are actually more expensive to society than people on welfare. If you want to send two police officers to shuffle a homeless person from your storefront, society has to pay them both, say $20 each for an hour of work. You have to pay for their car and paperwork too, coming out to maybe $50 per shuffle off. By the time you realize that the homeless person sleeps every night, they're getting shuffled off a few times a week, and it comes out to more money than a one bedroom somewhere that they're allowed to sleep in.

Modern socialist states seek to minimize the cost of individuals who are not capable of getting and keeping a job in modern society while also providing a safety net that allows everyone else to move forward.