Welfare case with a problem, what would U do?

[Alan]

I stopped at a Chevron with a mini mart tonight, big line for the cashier. One of the cashier asked the 8 to 10 year old kid behind me if he needed a basket for his items.... no problem yet. When it came to my turn I gave it to the 8 to 10 year old kid to go first, "go ahead you have a hand full." He had a big chocolate milk, a 16 oz pop, and two big boxes of candy (the movie theater kind of boxes) and a bag of chips.

So he get rung up and out pops a Oregon Trail Card (welfare, food stamps, &*^%&*&**&%'s) he also pops out a pieces of paper that had the PIN number on it and used it. I asked the cashier about it and she said she gets hot about it, but if she doesn't take it she gets fired, it's the same as money to the store.

My thoughts are at this point make many phone calls to the state government, most likely to no help, or ...... What... take it and live with it????


A kid using his moms or dads welfare to buy candy, chips and pop with my tax dollars!

What would you do?

Alan

[Howdyjabo]

Been going on for 35 years that I know of-- I worked as a cashier when I was a teenager.Saw the same thing over and over.
I don't see why it would change now, no matter what you do.
It keeps the masses from rioting so they figure its cheap.

[cross_7]

those type programs(here lonestar cards) are good for people that need them.
some people have no other option and i'm willing to help them all i can, but like anything else there will be people that abuse the system.

[JSCATTLE]

Well i have just about given up . After getting reamed when I filed my taxes this year I've decided to make some changes . I'll have everything I own paid for in 5 years . Land tractors house everything . After that I'm gonna let the wife continue to work if she wants to . I'm gonna do odd jobs for cash . And report as little as possible . I tried to talk the wife into a divorce so she could get Medicade food stamps etc. but shes to proud . This year alone we spent 12k dollars on insurance premiums co pays and rx scripts. At full price we would have only spent 6 k with out insurance as self pay patients . That's taking the 2 boys to the dr 3 times each and my wife and I once . If everyone quit paying the government they will be forced to rethink thier revenue wasting .

[Commercialfarmer]

I totally agree with you, but honestly that is way closer to food than a lot of dollars get spent on. Do a search for liquor, cigarettes, lap dances, bingo halls, casinos, and I saw a map once documenting the various Caribbean islands where the cards were used. Makes you very sick.

To decrease fraud and waste, we need to go to offering basic staples. You want beans or rice with your spam? Milk and cheese for the kiddies. I bet it would be amazing the number of people that would find a minimum wage paying job so they could decide how to spend the money. And nothing would stop Churches or other organizations from assisting with additional groceries if they wished.

[chrisy]

probably the only way the poor kid gets anything from his parents, it is most likely his weekly allowance, better that than nothing at all. not his fault his parents are a waste of space. JMO

[Hondac]

I totally agree with you, but honestly that is way closer to food than a lot of dollars get spent on. Do a search for liquor, cigarettes, lap dances, bingo halls, casinos, and I saw a map once documenting the various Caribbean islands where the cards were used. Makes you very sick.

To decrease fraud and waste, we need to go to offering basic staples. You want beans or rice with your spam? Milk and cheese for the kiddies. I bet it would be amazing the number of people that would find a minimum wage paying job so they could decide how to spend the money. And nothing would stop Churches or other organizations from assisting with additional groceries if they wished.

Exactly. Cheese, flour, meal, peanut butter, salt, milk, etc.. Providing just the basics just might give a few of these people the incentive to get a job. But, it ain't gonna happen because Obamanites need their vote.

[TexasBred]

Had a scam going down here last year. Convenience store owner would allow "Lone Star" card holders to get and amount likw $100 in cash on the card. He kept $50 for himself and gave them $50. . Then they would use their $50 to play the 8 liners in the back of the store. Some arrests were made but they never catch them all.

[Jogeephus]

The average convenience store in Georgia takes in $20,000 a week in lottery sales with 80% of the buyers receiving government assistance. Its sad to watch a parent buy lottery tickets rather than milk for their children. Our lottery was going to fix the education problem and make it cheaper so everyone could afford to get a college education. Our colleges are short of money again and they are having to deny more and more children this opportunity because money is being diverted to Head Start programs and other things because so many children are not getting any food or structure in the home and its our responsibility to intercede.

[circlew]

The average convenience store in Georgia takes in $20,000 a week in lottery sales with 80% of the buyers receiving government assistance. Its sad to watch a parent buy lottery tickets rather than milk for their children. Our lottery was going to fix the education problem and make it cheaper so everyone could afford to get a college education. Our colleges are short of money again and they are having to deny more and more children this opportunity because money is being diverted to Head Start programs and other things because so many children are not getting any food or structure in the home and its our responsibility to intercede.

And People here want us to get a lottery.

[I luv herfrds]

I ended up with my kids on WIC when they were babies (land debt was eating up 75% of our income plus a $6000 hospital bill).
I HATED IT!
The coordinator and her opinions about my care over my daughter made me quit. Felt much better after I did.
In laws stepped in and helped us out along with my grandmother.

Some of the people who get the assistance have no choice and are honest about it but unfortunately a majority look at as "free money" and that they are entitled to it.

It ticks me off when I see these people in line ahead of me buying junk food and other garbage they don't need.

[Commercialfarmer]

I ended up with my kids on WIC when they were babies (land debt was eating up 75% of our income plus a $6000 hospital bill).
I HATED IT!
The coordinator and her opinions about my care over my daughter made me quit. Felt much better after I did.
In laws stepped in and helped us out along with my grandmother.

Some of the people who get the assistance have no choice and are honest about it but unfortunately a majority look at as "free money" and that they are entitled to it.

It ticks me off when I see these people in line ahead of me buying junk food and other garbage they don't need.

Bad times can sure happen to anyone. And I'm okay with having a bit of a safety net (like I say, necessities only), but would prefer much more of it provided by organizations/individuals/family etc. like in your instance. But again, I'm not against having some form of a safety net as I really don't want to think that a child would go hungry in our blessed nation. But I think we passed safety net a long time ago.

I'm sure it was rather humbling to ask family for help also, but I believe it provides increased responsibility. And I think if we gave more incentive for those being wasteful to get off of being dependent we would see their self esteem improve. I ended up under employed for a bit and had ample nest egg to go off of, but it was awful depressing for me.

[cross_7]

I ended up with my kids on WIC when they were babies (land debt was eating up 75% of our income plus a $6000 hospital bill).
I HATED IT!
The coordinator and her opinions about my care over my daughter made me quit. Felt much better after I did.
In laws stepped in and helped us out along with my grandmother.

Some of the people who get the assistance have no choice and are honest about it but unfortunately a majority look at as "free money" and that they are entitled to it.

It ticks me off when I see these people in line ahead of me buying junk food and other garbage they don't need.

there is the problem.
it's good program for people in need and i'm all for it, but there are too many capable bodies with thier hands out.
my first thought was we need to do a better job regulating these progams then i read where 60% of the money for these type programs goes to administration.
so only 40% of our tax dollars goes the needy and 60% to bureaucracy
maybe as someone stated we need to just hand out staples instead of "free money"

[Alan]

I ended up with my kids on WIC when they were babies (land debt was eating up 75% of our income plus a $6000 hospital bill).
I HATED IT!
The coordinator and her opinions about my care over my daughter made me quit. Felt much better after I did.
In laws stepped in and helped us out along with my grandmother.

Some of the people who get the assistance have no choice and are honest about it but unfortunately a majority look at as "free money" and that they are entitled to it.

It ticks me off when I see these people in line ahead of me buying junk food and other garbage they don't need.

I have no problem with WIC, they tell you you can get and it's milk and Cheese type stuff, no chips, pop and candy. No problem with my tax dollars going to WIC, it's a good program. So far I'm with JS, I feel like applying food food stamps just to get some of my tax dollars back. One of the many reasons this country is going broke!
Alan

[MO_cows]

We don't know the whole story. What if the kid's mom had scrimped and saved their food card benefits by making beans and rice, boiling up their chicken bones to make soup, etc., just so the kids could have a sweet treat?? Maybe that is all that kid got as a birthday present?

Our cousins took in a boy as a foster child, and as foster parents they got WIC for him. He had been born very prematurely and was supposed to drink the kid version of Ensure all the time to help him grow and gain weight, he was underweight and undersized. So one week they went thru the checkout at WalMart with the boy's special nutrition drinks and foods, also a flat screen TV in the cart they had bought. When they whipped out the WIC paperwork for the cashier, they said they got very dirty looks from everyone around them. It was a very uncomfortable situation for them. And by the way, they have since adopted that boy and permanently solved a problem for society and the taxpayers.