Hmmm... thanks for your perspective. I didn’t see that up close.
Look, I could be wrong too, but this is what I learned from someone who knew what was going on.
We knew of two people in the mid 1900s, a man and a woman husband wife.
One of them explained what programs they were on. Housing, cash, food, medical care...
We figured out their income and they were making more than we were, two of us working full time at decent wages.
I believe they were going to school also, so that was probably on the public dime some way also.
These people seem to know every angle in the book, even if they are new to the country.
I went to take some classes at our local community college.
While I was standing in line, the guy in front of me was signing up for his classes. When it came time to pay his fees, he tossed up his hands and said something like indigent. Here was this well dressed young man, demanding the government cover his fees. And so it did.
I walked up to pay my fees and the lady look me right in the eyes, and transmitted volumes without speaking a single word.
I paid my fees and went on my way.