By Skip Chatterson - December 12, 2010
Those Who Are Forgotten During Christmas And Those Who Are Not
During this the Christmas season thoughts are with those who are less fortunate. This year, as in the past, my fiancée is very good about making sure we give to those who are in need through the Church or our local community services.
I was thinking about those who are truly in need. Thank God, there are community services and various churches to care for these people. Somehow these people slip through the cracks and are outside the help of the government.
President Johnson declared war on poverty in 1968 and instituted the Welfare system. Despite these efforts and over a trillion of dollars spent, we still have the same percentage of citizens in poverty. People argue that we have spent a lot of money on the war on drugs and have not gotten anywhere, but the same is true of poverty.
While we have many people who are truly poor and cannot get on the welfare rolls, there are millions of people on welfare who are doing quite well. It is true that many people have been helped, or are currently being helped by welfare using it only as a temporary helping hand until they get back on their feet. Unfortunately there are a great number of welfare recipients for whom this is a way of life.
I see these people in my office frequently. They are the people who have the latest cell phone, as they continue to text whoever, while I attempt to examine them. I have made some comments about 46 inch flat screen TV, to which the welfare participate assured me they already have (just as reference, I have an old cell phone that does not even get the internet and I own 2 TV’s neither of which is 46 inches or larger).
Another side effect of welfare I have noticed is a number of these recipients are overweight and diabetic.
This all sounds contradictory but the following graphs from the Heritage Foundation support my findings:
Rush Limbaugh has stated before that the leading cause of obesity in America today is Welfare, and looking at the graphs he doesn’t seem too far from the truth.
I am heartened by the fact that the food I just dropped off for the community food bank truly goes to the hungry, but knowing my tax dollars are going to overfeed people is not a comfort.
Latest stats show in a comparison between a family of four, making $14,000/yr who qualify for a number government subsidies and a family of four, making $60,000/yr who qualify for nothing, the family of $14,000/yr end with $37,000 desposible income, while the $60,000/yr family ends with $32,000 in desposible income.
While it is true the government gives too much of our money to welfare recipients, don’t forget those who are truly in need. During this Christmas season give to your local food bank or church to help the hungry.
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