Free Republic

Obamaville Livin off welfare, dreamin of healthcare, the US economy burdened with debt, Strumming my six-string, On my front porch swing, watching taxpayers beginnin to boil! Wasted away again in Obamaville, Searching for my lost home grown, Some people claim that theres a Conservative to blame, But I know its Liberals fault. Banks are a bustin, Big 3 are bankruptin, Nothin to show but the national debt, another stimulus package, another tax increase, how much more of this can we take? Wasted away again in Obamaville, Searching for my lost home grown, Some people claim that theres a Conservative to...

It's the kind of statistic that makes radio talk show hosts drool: California is home to about 12 percent of all Americans – and more than 30 percent of all Americans on welfare. Critics of the state's welfare program, called CalWORKs, say it's clear proof that the system is flabby and overly beneficent, particularly as compared to other states. "We are more lenient here; we are more generous in the state of California," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said last week, "and also we are giving greater benefits for longer periods of time, and there are really no consequences if someone doesn't...

Late night thread discussing how unemployment insurance benefits came about, the impact it's had on our country and way of living, spending, and saving, who is/was/expects to be on it, whether it's right or wrong to be taxed for them (or claim a right to them when unemployed), how our country and personal lives would be different now if they never existed, is it a Constitutional law?, can/will it ever be changed/revoked?, do they work?, yada yada.

Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) founder Wade Rathke wants to use the Internet to overthrow the capitalist system. He said so in his new book, Citizen Wealth: Winning the Campaign to Save Working Families, in which he serves up some community organizing war stories, and offers his thoughts on the future of organizing. Rathke, a pioneer of the so-called welfare rights movement that aims to get Americans on welfare, devotes an entire chapter of his book to what he calls "The 'Maximum Eligible Participation' Solution." It is a strategy for orchestrated crisis that savvy leftist groups across...

Now that Obama is the president, fasten your seat belts. During his first year in office, and particularly during his first hundred days, we are about to witness the most prodigious output of legislation since 1981-2 (under Reagan), 1964-5 (under Johnson), and 1933-36 (under Roosevelt). The combination of top heavy Democratic majorities in Congress and a mood of public fear bordering on panic over the financial crisis and the looming depression will speed his legislation through a compliant Senate and House. We will enter his Administration as the United States, buoyed by an aggressive free market economy. We will exit...

Bandaids on Fiscal Bullet Wounds by: Mytheos Holt, July 13, 2009 In the face of legislation to create a public option in health care, the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) recently convened a panel of experts to discuss the prospects of reforming the existing institution of Medicaid—a proposition which economists Thomas Granneman and Mark Pauly aim to defend in their newly released book “Reform Medicaid First: Laying the Foundation for National Health Care Reform.” The talk was moderated by Robert Helms, of the Medicaid Commission. Pauly and Granneman gave the first two speeches. In his speech, Pauly stated that the most...

Illegal Immigration: As California issues IOUs to its citizens, another ballot proposition may be brewing to cut off benefits that are draining the state budget. From education to welfare to crime, the cupboard is bare.California is a leader in both government debt and the sanctuary city movement. But as its citizens seek shelter from the economic storm, the question has arisen anew whether its non-citizens and the better life they want takes precedence over its citizens and the better life they are entitled to. In this mother of all recessions, it's getting harder to argue that illegal aliens are here...

... The president's stimulus plan has been aimed primarily at the top of the economy, pumping money into banks and car companies and state and city governments. But it also has put more money into the hands of the poorest Americans by boosting monthly food-stamp allocations. Starting in April, a family of four on food stamps received an average of $80 extra. Money from the program -- officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program -- percolates quickly through the economy. The U.S. Department of Agriculture calculates that for every $5 of food-stamp spending, there is $9.20 of total economic...

snip Nineteen years later, they will see another long-awaited increase beginning this month, bringing a subsidy for a typical family of three to $321 a month, from $291, city and state officials said. For a family of four, the subsidy will rise to $413.70 a month, from $375.70. The increase was a small line in Gov. David A. Paterson’s budget this year, but a hard-fought victory by advocates for the poor, who have long argued that the welfare subsidy was too low. “It was way overdue,” said Mark Dunlea, the executive director of the Hunger Action Network of New York...

GREENSBORO -- A buck-a-day -- that's the incentive being offered to young girls to keep them from getting pregnant, WXII-TV reported. The group College-Bound Sisters was founded at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro by Hazel Brown, a maternity nurse who thought too many teens were having babies. Brown said she hopes the program, which pays $1 each day to 12-to-18-year-old girls, will keep them from getting pregnant. In addition to remaining pregnancy-free, the girls must also attend weekly meetings. The program is funded by a four-year grant from the state. "Our three goals are that they avoid pregnancy,...

When I heard Assemblyman Chuck DeVore in a radio interview saying a never-discussed part of the budget debate was how California's failure to aggressively implement the 1996 federal welfare reform act had kept its welfare rolls far bigger than other states, I asked him to show me where he was getting his info. He pointed me to a federal web site detailing the program created by the 1996 law to help get people off government assistance and into jobs: SNIP 32 percent were from California! 1,226,362! California has 36.8 million of the nation's 304 million people -- 12 percent. (I'm...

... In view of the gloomy employment report last week, economists are debating whether to increase stimulus funds over all. But in a side argument, poverty experts are also asking whether elements of the package aimed at the most vulnerable Americans should be extended beyond their scheduled expiration in two years or even made permanent. The new safety-net study found that federal aid programs had helped tens of millions of Americans stay afloat in recent years, especially those with low-end jobs who benefited from rising tax credits. Going into the recession that began in late 2007, however, “the safety net...

... Despite budget cuts, many schools and community groups are expanding their efforts to feed children from poor and struggling families this summer as the lingering recession deepens longstanding concerns that those who qualify for free meals go hungry once classes end. The number of students qualifying for free and reduced-price lunches was up about 5 percent nationwide this spring, to nearly 19.4 million from 18.4 million the previous year, according to federal officials. These new programs extend beyond school hours to feed children on weekends and in the summer, and they have spread from impoverished urban areas to suburban...

The “F as in Fat” study presented by the Trust for America’s Health provided statistical information to show that the nation is becoming more obese. The states were ranked 1 to 50, from the highest percentage of obese people to the lowest. States 51 through 57 were, unfortunately, left out of the study. Sorry, Mr. President. News broadcasts across the country scolded their respective localities for their gluttony. Rather than simply take the statistics at face value, however, I wanted to see if there is any relationship between the federal government’s social welfare programs and obesity, a link between Big...

The Nebraska man who abandoned his nine children under the state's Safe Haven law last year is expecting to become the father of twins, FOXNews.com has learned. > Kathie Osterman, a spokeswoman for Nebraska's Department of Health and Human Services, said the Staton family had received more than $995,000 in government aid as of last fall, including an estimated $600,000 in food stamps and more than $100,000 in Medicaid. >

Repaying a student loan could soon be a little less painful. Starting this week, anyone with a federal student loan can apply for a program, run by the Department of Education, that caps monthly payments based on income, and forgives remaining balances after 25 years. Those choosing to work in public service could have their loans forgiven after just 10 years. Eligibility for income-based repayment (IBR) is determined by a person's income and loan size. A calculator at http://www.ibrinfo.org can help borrowers determine their eligibility for the plan, which becomes available Wednesday. "It's a way to borrow for college without...

The stark evidence of the growing imbalance between what the Government raises and what it spends is likely to intensify the political row over the public finances and may strengthen calls for cuts in spending. Treasury figures show that welfare payments will exceed income tax receipts by almost £25 billion. Normally, income tax receipts comfortably cover the benefits bill. In 2009/10, the Treasury is expecting to take in £140.5 billion in gross income tax receipts. Social security benefits are projected to be £164.7 billion. The disparity between tax revenue and welfare costs was identified by Andrew Brough, a fund manager...

WASHINGTON -- Raised in an individualistic culture, Americans dislike the concept of the "welfare state" and do not use the term. But make no mistake, the United States has a welfare state, and its future is precarious. The true significance of General Motors' bankruptcy lies more with this welfare state than with the battered condition of American capitalism. Broadly speaking, the U.S. welfare system divides into two parts -- the private, run by firms; and the public, provided by government. Both are besieged: private companies by competitive pressures; government by rising debt and taxes. GM exemplified the large corporation as...

On Monday, June 15, the National Council of La Raza (La Raza), an open borders advocacy group, issued a statement calling upon Congress to ensure that illegal aliens are given health benefits if and when Congress considers health care reform. La Raza's statement "strongly urge[d] President Obama and Congress to make every effort to ensure that health care reform reaches all communities" in the United States, and stressed that "one out of every three uninsured persons and roughly 40% of all uninsured children [in the United States] are Latino," and demanded "health care reform that makes coverage affordable and accessible...

Stimulus Bill Race Quotas? Did you know that CalTrans, the huge state agency that spends billions in federal highway construction funds, "sets a quota of having 6.75 percent of contracts go to women or members of [a] targeted group--African American, Asian-Pacific American, and Native America, but not Latinos or other groups." Not a "goal"--a quota. They are being sued. But why is a lawsuit even required? Stimulus money appears to be involved. And aren't "quotas" are what every poll-tested politician says he or she is against? Don't you think if the GOPs (or anyone) made a big stink about the...

<p>Raised in an individualistic culture, Americans dislike the concept of the "welfare state" and do not use the term. But make no mistake, the United States has a welfare state, and its future is precarious. The true significance of General Motors' bankruptcy lies more with this welfare state than with the battered condition of American capitalism.</p>

This would create new jobs and stop the obama Death Spiral into Depression and China would once again be buying from us! As it is now "Welfare Rolls have seen a SHARP Increase" we have the worse housing market in this generations memory and the Death Spiral continues. Scientists Confirm U.S. Has World’s Biggest Oil Reserves It has been more than a year since the Department of Interior announced that North Dakota and Montana have an estimated 3 to 4.3 billion barrels of recoverable oil in an area known as the Bakken Formation, but little is being done about it....

Raised in an individualistic culture, Americans dislike the concept of the "welfare state" and do not use the term. But make no mistake, the United States has a welfare state, and its future is precarious. The true significance of General Motors' bankruptcy lies more with this welfare state than with the battered condition of American capitalism. Broadly speaking, the U.S. welfare system divides into two parts -- the private, run by firms; and the public, provided by government. Both are besieged: private companies by competitive pressures; government by rising debt and taxes. GM exemplified the large corporation as private welfare...

Welfare rolls, which were slow to rise and actually fell in many states early in the recession, now are climbing across the country for the first time since President Bill Clinton signed legislation pledging "to end welfare as we know it" more than a decade ago. Twenty-three of the 30 largest states, which account for more than 88% of the nation's total population, see welfare caseloads above year-ago levels, according to a survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal and the National Conference of State Legislatures. As more people run out of unemployment compensation, many are turning to welfare as...

SOUTH BEND - Three local shelters have lost the ability to acquire food from the Food Bank of Northern Indiana because they charge fees to certain residents or accept their food stamps. It could create a financial pinch for the shelters: the Center for the Homeless, the YWCA of St. Joseph County and the Salvation Army's Adult Rehabilitation Center. Food Bank CEO Lisa Jaworski says she regrets that those ties had to be severed, but she says her “hands are tied” by the strict federal and nonprofit rules for the two kinds of food that were provided. It all came...

"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." - James 1:27 The Obama Administration and both houses of the US Congress are fast-tracking a number of programs designed to increase the size of what's commonly known as the Welfare State. And while Christian church leaders and members may wag their fingers at this socialist strategy of "forced charity," we must remember that in order to remove the specks from the eyes of liberal-left politicians, we must first remove the boards...

Picture the following possibility, as posed by one of a handful of prominent Jewish rabbis in Salt Lake City this week to visit leaders and operations of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: "We can come together to use Welfare Square and facilities there to have Jews and Mormons standing side by side, engaged in a project to help humanity," said Rabbi John Borak of Los Angeles, one of five visiting rabbis from across the country. He and Rabbi Brad Hirschfield of New York City were making a second call to LDS headquarters in less than six months....

Philosopher Bertrand Russell suggested that "Men are born ignorant, not stupid. They are made stupid by education." And, it was Albert Einstein who explained, "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." So which is it -- stupidity, ignorance or insanity -- that explains the behavior of my fellow Americans who call for greater government involvement in our lives? According to latest Rasmussen Reports, 30 percent of Americans believe congressmen are corrupt. Last year, Congress' approval rating fell to 9 percent, its lowest in history. If the average American were asked his opinion of congressmen,...

Well, the prayers of Obama's most fervent supporters have almost been answered by god (sic) himself: He's gonna make their car payment for them. More precisely, we the taxpayers are going to make it for them.

Maybe the Governator is realizing that conservative ideas are the only ones that will save his state. ...It's time for new ideas and bold initiatives because Lord knows that spending money we don't have has been a disaster. It would be nice to smack Obama upside the head with reality if this approach works even a little bit.

Could California become the first state in the nation to do away with welfare? That doomsday scenario is on the table as lawmakers wrestle with a staggering $24.3 billion budget deficit. County welfare directors are "in shock" at the very idea of getting rid of CalWORKs, which has been widely viewed as one of the most successful social programs in the state's history, said Bruce Wagstaff, director of the Department of Human Assistance in Sacramento.

With empty pockets and maxed-out credit, California is debating whether it can continue honoring all parts of its social contract with the state's most vulnerable residents. The state faces an unprecedented drop in tax revenue and a widening budget deficit amid the deepest recession in decades, prompting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to propose cost-cutting steps that once seemed unthinkable. At stake are programs for the poor, elderly and frail, placing millions of people in the nation's most populous state at risk of falling through a decades-old social safety net. Ending the welfare-to-work program for mothers and their children would affect some...

Remember the "shovel-ready" projects lined up for all that stimulus money? It turns out social spending, more than construction, is hitting pay dirt in the huge federal effort to turn the economy around. The public face of the stimulus package has been the worker in a hard hat, getting back on the job to rebuild the nation's infrastructure. --snip-- The reality of how the vast majority of the stimulus money will be spent is quite different, and that raises questions about how much help the Recovery Act achieved by President Barack Obama will be to the economy in the long...

Hurricane Katrina victims around the Gulf Coast who were told to vacate their temporary trailers by the end of May will instead be allowed to buy them for $5 or less, White House officials announced on Wednesday. The Department of Housing and Urban Development will also give the 3,450 families still in trailers or temporary housing — including many elderly, poor and disabled people — priority for $50 million in permanent housing vouchers. The money for the vouchers was appropriated by Congress last year. Some of those living in trailers are destitute and have no other housing. Others, including many...

When United Auto Workers (UAW) union chief Ron Gettelfinger announced the end of GM's two-day strike in the early hours of September 26, 2007, it was the beginning of the end for the world's largest car manufacturer. The agreement to end the first US nationwide automotive strike in 31 years, which saw General Motors' then 73,000-strong US workforce walk out, was the final death knell in the company's 101-year history. The strike had occurred not over the future of those employees however, but rather of the fate of GM's 460,000 retired workers whose continuing eligibility for healthcare benefits had placed...

Details of Desmond Hatchett's remarkable family emerged when he was taken to court by the authorities in Knoxville, Tennessee, for failing to keep up with maintenance payments. He had four children in a single year – twice. Mr Hatchett, who works in a minimum wage job, said that he was not trying to break a record and has no plans to have any more children. He insists that he knows all of their names, ages and birthdays. "I'm done. I'll say I'm done," he told WVLT local television. "I didn't intend to have this many. It just happened." Knox County...

Just wondering how those people who decide they want to change there sex get the money to pay for what must be very expensive proceedures and operations? Does Medicaid pay for this? On the Laura Ingraham show this week, she spoke of a case of an 8 year old boy who goes to a Catholic school who says that he wants to be a girl. The parents say that he has wanted to be a girl since he was 2 years old. The parents say that they have been to professionals who are helping him to "transition." Many questions come...

Sweden's high tax regime is counterproductive: rather than focusing on the improvement of core services, it has led to a bloated bureaucracy and an inefficient welfare state... Sweden is a nation with extraordinarily high tax rates. The average worker not only pays 30 percent of income in visible taxes, but also close to 30 percent in hidden taxes... Some level of taxation is of course required to fund the public sector. At the same time, a high level of taxation does not necessarily translate into an equally high level of welfare: - High taxes do not always mean high tax...

Desmond Hatchett, a Tennessee man, has fathered 21 children by 11 different women at the age of 29, an American court has heard. Details of Desmond Hatchett's remarkable family emerged when he was taken to court by the authorities in Knoxville, Tennessee, for failing to keep up with maintenance payments. He had four children in a single year – twice. Mr Hatchett, who works in a minimum wage job, said that he was not trying to break a record and has no plans to have any more children. He insists that he knows all of their names, ages and birthdays....

Desmond Hatchett's children have 11 different mums and their ages range from a newborn to 11-years-old. The prolific father even boasted of fathering four tots by different women in the same year His giant brood came to light after authorities in Tennessee took Hatchett to court for non payment of child support. [snip] Hatchett, who earns minimum wage, told reporters he knows the names and ages of all his children. [snip] Hatchett's lawyer Keith Pope said: "The children can't all be supported by Desmond, so the state of Tennessee has had to step in."

A man aged 29 has fathered 21 children with 11 different women, it emerged yesterday. Desmond Hatchett's brood came to light after authorities in Tennessee in the U.S. took him to court for non-payment of child support. He has apparently set a U.S. record but said: 'It just happened.' He added that he would not have any more children. 'I'm done. I'll say I'm done,' he said. Hatchett, who earns a minimal wage, told TV reporters he knows the names and ages of all his offspring. Authorities in Knoxville said they plan to take half of his monthly salary to...

We need some commonsense ways to cut down on welfare abuse. If the people could decide, I bet we would find lots of ways to keep the welfare system on the level. As it is now, welfare is in the hands of a self- perpetuating Democrat liberal system which keeps both recipients and welfare workers dependent on the Dem party. Most of the people on welfare are "single moms" and kids. Ever wonder how many of these "single moms" are actually single? With the permissive attitudes that abound today, do you think that most of these "single moms" are actually...

Governor plans to completely eliminate welfare for families 3:58 PM | May 21, 2009 Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to completely eliminate the state’s welfare program for families, medical insurance for low-income children and Cal Grants cash assistance to college and university students. The proposals to sharply scale back the assistance that California provides to its neediest residents came in testimony by the administration this afternoon at a joint legislative budget committee hearing. It followed comments by the governor earlier today that he would be withdrawing a proposal to help balance the budget with billions of dollars of borrowing and...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to completely eliminate the state’s welfare program for families, medical insurance for low-income children and Cal Grants cash assistance to college and university students.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to completely eliminate the state’s welfare program for families, medical insurance for low-income children and Cal Grants cash assistance to college and university students. ... The proposals would completely reshape the state’s social service network, transforming California from one of the country’s most generous states to one of the most tightfisted. ..

   Mean drunk worries loss of free booze will impact relationships, uppercut.  "Most of my relations is based on powerful mixture of continuing alcohol abuse and the threat of violence, both physical and mental" said Leroy Atticus Stone, a frequent domestic abuse perpetrator. "And a little whiskey gets me in the violent mood. Without it, I lose my edge."Stone fears that Pennsylvania's pending ban on the use of Welfare money to purchase alcohol would restrict him from using his access card to purchase liquor and beer. He reasons that without a ready access to alcohol, those relationships with his...

Amazing stuff. Evidently her first ever TV interview, fifty years ago. This is in three parts. Hope I posted this correctly. If I screwed it up, mods, please clean it up.

BATON ROUGE -- A proposal to require drug testing of adult applicants for cash public assistance programs died by a single vote today in a House committee. The House Health and Welfare Committee's action leaves in place the state's present use of questionnaires to screen applicants for public assistance, with state employees ordering laboratory drug tests for applicants who demonstrate the possibility of testing positive. Applicants who test positive must undergo state-paid treatment plans to receive benefits. Rep. John LaBruzzo, R-Metairie, wanted to require drug testing of all applicants and leave in place the treatment requirements for anyone who tested...

At the age of 14, Catherine Scott left her wealthy parents' home to have a baby Four years later, she has just had twins by another man more than twice her age. She says taxpayers should provide a four-bedroom house in a more affluent area for her, jobless 40-year-old Dean Evans and their children. Miss Scott, whose boyfriend has five other children by three ex-wives, is also demanding more benefits, saying that £16,000 a year is not enough to live on. At 14, she gave birth to a son but after six months she left him with her parents Katherine...

Friends... Please help me. Millions of people in the world suffer from a dread disease, but most don't even realize they are infected. The disease is Sao Paulo Afybrillitis-Macrodegenerative-Molaral-Ephedryl-Diticularism (or S.P.A.M.M.E.D). Each day children and some well meaning adults in third-world countries and remote places such as Hot Coffee, Mississippi come into contact with the Sao Paulo Kidney Rat and don't even know it. This results in exposure to the S.P.A.M.M.E.D virus which almost always ends in hundreds of people suffering with severe pain of the lower posterior region. Please do what you can to stop the spread of...