States repurposing welfare $$ = hurting families

[SusanBAnthony]

Also, although WIC provides some food, it isn't much. Not enough to feed a kid with that being the only source of food.

This just makes me so mad. That is all I can say right now. Also, it should be required reading for teenage girls before they ever have a chance to get pregnant.

[basilosaurus]

That was so fucking depressing. I don't even know where to begin.

[ttt]

Jun 19, 2012 14:38:49 GMT -5 druidp said:

Jun 19, 2012 13:19:46 GMT -5 ttt said:

I just want to point out that when people say "cut government spending!" this is the result. It's not some amorphous "government spending" money that goes into a black hole. It has a very direct and very real impact on human beings and their lives.

Yes, because inefficient spending also plays no role in this scenario. <-- sarcastic

Georgia's welfare system is fucked up. Unity horse. But a sweeping statement that cutting government spending leads to single mom sleeping on the floor and only feeding her child cups of juice for a few days is not accurate. Your last sentence above, however, is absolutely true. And the same can be said for inefficient use of funds, which is what it sounds like is happening here - a gross mishandling and abuse of the system of requirements they have at play.

How does cutting spending NOT include reducing benefits or services? Agencies aren't going to suddenly become more efficient because their budgets have been cut. They're just going to drop people from the program and/or offer more limited services. Which is pretty much what's happened in Georgia.

But that wasn't even my point exactly. My point is that people talk about government spending as if it were completely useless and no human benefits from them, only soulless government employees and illegal immigrants driving Cadillacs. But that misses the fact that government spending DOES do important things and that taking it away has a real effect on real people.

[jillboston]

I always chuckle when people point to the inefficiency of social programs. When one of my agency's funding sources (block grants) were set to be cut our director made sure to point out to the congressional delegation that one year of nationwide funding for the program cost less than 16 hours of spending on the war in Afghanistan.