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From: liz@umcp-cs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.flame,net.followup,net.politics
Subject: Re: The Christmas Spirit in Texas
Message-ID: <4418@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 13-Dec-83 14:31:31 EST
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.4418
Posted: Tue Dec 13 14:31:31 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 16-Dec-83 02:29:52 EST
References: <794@ihuxl.UUCP>
Organization: Univ. of Maryland, Computer Science Dept.
Lines: 47

It's not just Texas that treats people receiving public assistance
that way...  Imagine that you're a single mom with one child and
don't have a lot of skills.  Taking a job for minimum wage and
getting someone to look after the child is pretty hard cause the
child care support takes a lot of money.  Anyway, you find yourself
on public assistance.  Well, public assistance has decided that
you and your child can survive on about $230 a month (or so...).
Needless to say, that's quite minimal.  You might be eligible for
foodstamps, but if you live with someone else that's not on public
assistance, you have to proove you don't eat with them.  If you're
honest, you're hurt...  So, you decide to do something to earn a
little bit of extra money.  You keep a child in your home from time
to time or you help clean someone's house or maybe you belong to
a church and they decide to give you some money.  Maybe you do a
little bit of all three.  So, somehow you get about $100 or $150
extra income.  This brings your income up to maybe $330 or $380.
You're rich, right?  Actually, no.  You see, you're honest (or
naive or something) and when you go to the public assistance place
again to fill in forms, etc (you hate going there because they
treat like you're worth nothing, anyway, but you go), they ask you
to list all your sources of income.  So, you tell them that you've
gotten busy and supplemented your income a little.  So, they want
to know why you didn't tell them sooner, but, in any case, they
immediately reduce your benefits by the amount of money you make
-- now your public assistance is down to $130 or $80... and your
total income is back at $230.

I guess I don't object to them reducing your public assistance some
when you have other sources of income, but I don't think they should
reduce it by the total amount that you make since you have no
motivation whatsoever to go out and try and help yourself.  If you
do, then you're much better off being dihonest and not telling them
about it since it is sheer frustration otherwise.  Then, after you
get "used" to being dishonest...

I think we'd be a lot better off treating these folks with some
respect and, instead of frustrating them, encourage them to start
working by letting them keep some of what they earn.  Who knows?
Maybe the once in a while babysitting will turn into a full time
occupation with the advantage of being able to stay home with your
own child.  It could be cheaper in the long run...

				-Liz Allen
-- 
Univ of Maryland, College Park MD	
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