Welfare in America (U.S.)

[JDGameArt]

I like the idea of getting up in the morning at 6 A.M. and going off to work so that a part of my earnings can go to pay for perfectly healthy human beings that simply refuse to work. I like the idea of large government telling me "this is how it is", "this is the correct way to handle the poor", "and you better like it". I like the idea of a system that so corrupt; generation after generation of people teach their young how to "work the system". I like the idea of one political party using tax dollars to support a select group of people just to ensure their vote come election time.

 

No matter if you agree with our current system or not, never in the history of mankind has it been ok, acceptable, and shoved down our throat, for some to sit around on their dead backside and collect earnings.

 

In short...

 

I want want you have,

 

and I want it now.

 

No I'm not willing to work for it,

 

I said I wanted it now.

 

Not only I want it now,

 

but I completely ignore the sacrifice you,

 

and you're forefathers made to get here.

 

So my entitlement better be in the mail soon.

 

Sincerely-

 

Society 2011

[Vagrant0]

Come back when 1 out of 9 people you meet aren't unemployed, many of them simply because the government is too busy playing games with public opinion to pull its head out of its own ass. Sure, there are still many disgusting lumps of humanity who have 20 children and think they're entitled to having something they didn't earn. But many right now are skilled persons who are actively seeking employment, but can't get any because there simply isn't enough work. If there was an excess of work and a plethora of jobs needing to be filled... I might be right there with you. But there isn't.

[marharth]

What Vagrant said.

 

I find it disgusting for people to abuse the system, but a lot of people need it to help them live until they can find a job.

[bben46]

Once upon a time welfare was the province of local - typically non profit church or civic organizations. These were staffed mainly by volunteers and financed by donations. They filtered out those who were not actually in need and saw to it that those actually able to work got very little aid while those that could not work or those who were victims of a natural disaster (flood, fire etc) got more. Sure there were frauds, but they were often those that collected the cash for some non existent charity then disappeared (we still have those) and fewer of the refuse to work top support themselves variety.

 

Then the great depression completely overwhelmed these grassroots organizations that kept up with those truly in need. That's when big government stepped in and began using tax money to subsidize the poor. Now, without that local oversight, and the big, BIG! salaries to be made by government appointed administrators, some of the people saw the welfare as FREE money that they didn't have to work for and started milking the 'system'

 

Some of the politicians saw the advantage of having a built in group who would always vote for that particular candidate because they promised to keep the free money flowing. That was picked up by the political parties and the free money grew exponentially. Now the party could give lucrative political appointments to loyal party workers to become the administrators of these newly created agencies, Spend pork barrel money to build new office buildings to house those new agencies to help assure their candidates would always be relected by threatning that the other party or politician would derail the gravy train.

 

I do not advocate a complete reversion to the grassroots charity approach as the great depression as well as other historical events have proven that cannot help all of the poor all of the time. However, I do believe that local oversight, - and not by politically motivated administrators who owe their jobs to one party or another, is badly needed to filter out the frauds. And that more emphasis should be on finding or even creating work for those who are able. I would like to see a return of programs such as the WPA (Works Progress Administration) and CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) which gave honorable work to unemployed people while creating many public use buildings, roads and parks that are still in use today.

[marharth]

Having work programs would defenitly help a lot.

[Lisnpuppy]

I agree with a great deal of what BBen says. I have actually been on welfare and the system is so screwy. When I was prego with my daughter I was unable to work. It was simple to get the medical card for us...but then they told me...I was living with my Mother who had just been divorced....that I was not eligible for anything other assistance besides food stamps. I asked if it would be different if I was NOT living with my Mother and was say...homeless. They told me no as to qualify for monthly benefits I would have to participate int heir work training program.

 

I have a B.A. from West Virginia University....I didn't need a training program as my inability to work would have been resolved after the birth of my child. I was give $112/month in food stamps and a medical card. That is all. Once my child was born I got that doubled. I was also told if my car had been in my name and not my Father's I would not have gotten anything.

 

After I had Mackenzie I went back to work at an ok job. However I then lost all the food stamps and had to pay $450/month in child care. I was not getting any child support at the time.

So in a way I was screwed for being able to work and having education. I was exactly was welfare was supposed to be for. To help someone out until they could get back on their feet. If it wasn't for the medical insurance I may not have bothered.

 

So yes...the system needs revamping badly.

[SilverDNA]

Well this is only in general but in health care issues we have some similarity but I'm completely not aware about the difference's so i will follow this topic (apologizes for this ignorance) but in general on my experiences here I can say the following:

With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility!

BUT with Great Power Comes also the Great Power of Temptation, like a thief in the dark, to run away from, and with impudence, to blame someone other for the own inability to take responsibilities. Simply "Man, don't get irritated" (Ludo), on high level!

Now if you are unsure who is to blame follow the profit and tell him/her/It to take responsibilities for their failures. If the reaction is at 1st the same as described above you know you have at least one that should be drawn of from power.... The rest follows from the facts. ;-) The more people participate on your side the more merrier it gets ...

:biggrin:

 

[HeyYou]

Yep yep. The welfare system is easily abused...... Want a raise? Have another child...... Of course, the right-wing conservatives decided that tax money should no longer finance abortion, so, the welfare folks that got pregnant, had their kids instead. So, instead of paying 400 or so dollars for an abortion, the state got to pay to raise another child to the age of 18. At one point, they discussed 'benefit caps'. You could only get assistance for a couple years. Wonder what ever happened to that.... rumor has it, that it passed, but, I still know folks that have been on assistance for better than 10 years.... Some of them turn down raises, or better jobs, because they would then lose benefits, that they would have to pay for, and end up with a net loss of income.... A large part of that particular problem stems from, as I see it, the greater number of single parent households we have now..... one parent just can't do the job any more.

 

Of course, now, the righties want to cut all those social welfare programs, to help "balance the budget". But, they still won't allow removing tax deductions for my private jet, or my yacht.... oh, wait, that's right, I don't have either of those, as I am not rich enough to afford it. So, while the right screams and hollers about welfare programs as entitlements, they have their own brand of welfare, in the form of tax breaks, that you gotta have a damn serious income to take advantage of. What's the difference?

 

And all this at a time when the people need those programs the most. :D Talk about timing....... I suppose that is one way to motivate folks to get out and vote. For the OTHER party.

Edited August 1, 2011 by HeyYou

[Deleted472477User]

Come back when 1 out of 9 people you meet aren't unemployed, many of them simply because the government is too busy playing games with public opinion to pull its head out of its own ass. Sure, there are still many disgusting lumps of humanity who have 20 children and think they're entitled to having something they didn't earn. But many right now are skilled persons who are actively seeking employment, but can't get any because there simply isn't enough work. If there was an excess of work and a plethora of jobs needing to be filled... I might be right there with you. But there isn't.

 

 

This x1000. I'm having to take a telemarketing job (and we all know how people feel about THEM) just to have a job. Especially since employers prefer someone with any job, no matter how crappy, to someone still hard at work looking for one. But I want to work, and I can work, and so I shall. Not everyone can, and some folks on support are struggling and searching. Hopefully, you are never in a position to be judged on this as you are doing the judging.

[RZ1029]

I demand Roosevelt 2.0. Enough said. Let's get some socialism up in here and get the country out of the second Great Depression! Or something like that.

 

I'm with Vagrant. For every few who need the help and are actually trying to get a job, you'll find that one who milks the system. If jobs were aplenty and you were a lazy little ----, that'd be one thing. As it stands, the few jobs that are open require a high level of training that most people don't have. While I would like to see it move back to a more community-funded thing, where it was peoples generosity that covered it, not the government, but I don't think we could support things the same way we used to with donations.