As someone with no kids I dont have a lot of symapthy for someone with 3 kids. Sure its not the kids fault but you have to draw tye line somewhere. I can understand one kid, people make mistakes when they are young. If you are too stupid to learn from that mistake then I shouldnt help subsidize your stupidity. I have managed fast food restaurants and managed HUD houses, I have seen the culture of dependance first hand.
You are obviously coming at this from a privilege perspective. You have witness dependency but have you been apart of it or have family members/friends who are apart of it? Have you done anything yourself to stop or prevent dependency? I've seen it first hand as an officers daughter. My mother worked and volunteered her time in the projects giving clothes, toys, and supplies to some of the needy families. She has even received a punch in her face for her efforts. My grandfather performed Christian missionary work in the projects working with little kids. Thus as a kid I was dragged along instead of rollerblading in the burbs with my friends I was playing with low income kids whose family couldn't afford rollerblades, sega, or bikes etc. Things I use to take for granted.
I have no kids myself but it's not up to me to judge or to call people stupid or think kids are mistakes. Those same "stupid" women can be abused emotionally/physically or suffer from low self esteem. These are real issues that need to be dealt with that can help prevent future struggles. But maybe if abortion and birth control was free and easy to obtain and women weren't picked on for choosing those options then some public assistance programs wouldn't be so needed.
The changes I would make if I could
1- I would set benefits to a time period with little or no restrictions on income from working. So when someone applies for welfare they get a set time of 6 months or a year. I really hate the incentive to not work. I woukd rather pay someone welfare who works 40+ hours a week thaj someone who works 10-15.
2- I would tie benefits to their kids grades and attendance. If their kids make straight A's and perfect attendance I have no problem giving them more money.
Now you want a single mom to work 40 hours a week. These women probably aren't receiving child support and if they are it's very little money. Factor in daily living expenses (Pampers are VERY expensive and the government does not provide money for this item)plus a car note or auto upkeep bills (cause a car is vital to life and very expensive). Mom is not getting home until late and then she has to cook and clean. Then help a child with schooling. Do you understand how important a child's first few years of life is in terms of education. If a mom is working all the time making minimum wage....too physically/emotionally tired to help their child(ren) with school work a child can be so far behind other children their age by the time they start kindergarten. If a mom works too much to spend time with their kid she is evil. If she doesn't work enough she is evil. It's a no win situation.
Have you even factored into it if a child has a learning disability? A parent who can barely read and write assisting a learning disable child is disastrous! But you want their benefits to be tied into their child's grades? As a librarian, former teacher, and a learning disabled person I'm pulling out my hair over this....OMG!!! God help us all.
3- if you are going to take government handouts then I think you should give up some personal rights. If you can't afford to feed your kids then you can't afford beer and tobacco. Also would support a random drug test every once in a while.
But what happens if I take a female friend out for a birthday drink whose family is on food stamps? She is not paying for the drinks. Can't she have a day of fun just 1 day? I only agree with this if they are known alcoholics or drug users. Other than that I don't have a problem with a person working minimum wage getting food stamps and using their own money for a drink of beer on a sat or fri. night once and awhile. It's not like they are using their money to take vacations to Europe etc. Let them have 1 little vice to relax.
4- benefits should be reduced for every child after the first. Also no benefits for additional kids produced while currently on benefits. The only way around that would be if they agreed to get their tubes tied or vascectomy. That's the price you pay for living off other people.
I say let's just cut off the private parts of all men who aren't paying child support or greatly behind in paying. I can go for women having their tubes tied as long as the men are forced to do the same or they face life in prison.
No one is talking about JOBS! Maybe just maybe if the government provided free job training, childcare, and transportation these people will not need welfare. Cutting benefits won't do anything but have some or most of these people commit crimes. If you want them robbing you and your family then have at it.
I should feel the way some of you feel on this very subject but I simply can't because of my life experiences...
Currently my family has fostered then adopted 2 little biracial girls. Their mother who is white dropped out of school in 6th grade (Where was child protective services at this point?). She has had abortions, two older (fully white) kids already taken from her. She was not on welfare when she was drunk/drugged up and rolled over on my little sister causing her to suffocate almost to death. At 6 months old my sister was pronounced brain dead and drs. thought she wouldn't live. My sister is now 3 years old, walking but will more than likely never talk, spoon feed herself, use a potty etc. I have now given up my life, my relationships, my money, and time to help be a sister/mother to these girls (who were complete strangers). That's how I have helped to break the cycle!
Now this lady, my siblings bio mom has served her time and trying to get on her feet. She attends college, but with no income she uses her loan money and prostitutes her body for $ to get to class & live. She worked hard in jail to get her GED but because of her background she can't get a job. What should she do just kill herself? No one wants to give her an opportunity to work. It's not easy for someone who has made bad choices in life to pull themselves up because we condemn them for their poor choices in life and won't give them a chance.
All I'm saying is that it's not race, class etc. what affects one person really does affect all of us as a society. Taking welfare programs away is not going to help anyone. It's just going to create starvation of children, homelessness, crimes, and death.
Free birth control, abortions, education, childcare, job placement/training, and transportation is the way to go! I don't mind using my tax money and paying even more taxes for these things if it will help people.