Written by Alfred W. Evans in the Waco Tribune Herald in Waco, TX, on 11/18/10

Put me in charge of food stamps. I'd get rid of Lone Star cards; no cash for Ding Dongs or Ho Ho's, just money for 50-pound bags of rice and beans, blocks of cheese and all the powdered milk you can haul away. If you want steak and frozen pizza, then get a job.

Put me in charge of Medicaid. The first thing I'd do is to get women Norplant birth control implants or tubal ligations. Then, we'll test recipients for drugs , alcohol, nicotine and document all tattoos and piercings. If you want to reproduce or use drugs , alcohol, smoke or get tats and piercings, then get a job.

Put me in charge of government housing. Ever live in a military barracks? You will maintain our property in a clean and good state of repair. Your "home" will be subject to inspections anytime and possessions will be inventoried. If you want aplasma TV or Xbox 360, then get a job and your own place.

In addition, you will either present a check stub from a job each week or you will report to a "government" job. It may be cleaning the roadways of trash, painting and repairing public housing, whatever we find for you. We will sell your 22 inch rims and low profile tires and your blasting stereo and speakers and put that money toward the "common good."

Before you write that I've violated someone's rights, realize that all of the above is voluntary. If you want our money, accept our rules. Before you say that this would be "demeaning" and ruin their "self esteem," consider that it wasn't that long ago that taking someone else's money for doing absolutely nothing was demeaning and lowered self esteem. If we are expected to pay for other people's mistakes we should at least attempt to make them learn from their bad choices. The current system rewards them for continuing to make mistakes and bad choices.

AND while you are on Government subsistence, you no longer can VOTE! Yes, that is correct. For you to vote would be a conflict of interest. You will voluntarily remove yourself from the voting rolls while you are receiving a Government welfare check. If you want to vote, then get a job.


Harsh

Out of bounds IMO
AND while you are on Government subsistence, you no longer can VOTE!

/discuss

 

-----signature-----

In washington state they were using food stamp debit cards at casinos. Also there are corrupt merchants in bad parts of town that will works with people to give the EBT person cash and in return they make a huge profit.

 

-----signature-----

Mostly agree. 2 things I disagree with though. 1) People on food assistance need protein. Beans and cheese won't cut it. 2) It would be inappropriate to take away their right to vote on social issues. Just financial ones.

 

-----signature-----

I agree with the premise.

I do however think the author may be a tad racist and sees the world as black and white.
Absolutes just dont work in social programs
Having said that you can eat for a week on a pound of beans





http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/beans-protein-rich-superfoods

 

-----signature-----

Beans only supply you with a portion of your essential amino acids. Notable exception: Soy supplies you with "complete" protein. Otherwise, beans are pretty damn awesome.

 

-----signature-----

Put me in charge and I wont mess with the piss poor people who live lives of desperation and of no meaning....

Instead, I'll be out there kicking the asses of the bankers, CEO's and others whose actions make honest working peoples lives more desperate and empty.

I can't understand why people bitch so much about unimportant crap, but don't give a damn about things that actually affect them. Must be stupidity.

Yeah, I wonder who he had in mind when he wrote this.

Norplant is no longer available in the US, apparently since 2002. Dated info. Go for a hormonal IUD instead.

I'm all for restriction of foods - I've seen people on food stamps buying lobster and New York strip steak. Ridiculous. Restrict it to off brand cheese, milk, cereal, eggs, butter, flour and such things, MAYBE the cheaper frozen pizzas and such.

I definitely agree with the check stub part. These programs, when working as they're intended to work, are just fine. Abuse is what kills them, makes them a burden. I have NO problem giving someone a hand who's going through difficult times, but I DO have a problem supporting someone who's just mooching off of the system with no effort to make their situation better.

Documenting tats and piercings is honestly pretty useless. I've known quite a few people whose brother/sister/cousin etc. was a tattoo artist professionally and would do a small tat for free, for family/friends. Piercings go the same way, just knowing someone who's willing to do it can get it done for free. This makes it relatively reasonable to claim it was a freebie, even if it was really a paid job.
[Edit:]

And, this. Regulating only the poor doesn't help anyone. They're not the only ones exploiting the system for all it's worth, and certainly not the ones gaining the most out of doing so.

 

-----signature-----

Who do you think he had in mind and why is it relevant?

 

-----signature-----