I was listening to an afternoon talk show on the radio the other day.  The host and his guest talked about the administration of the welfare system and how it used to be administered on the local level by the cities and towns.  They were discussing the how the attitudes regarding welfare have changed, also.  One of the callers was a teacher at a technical school and he was relating the way his students compared their welfare benefits to one another.  They bragged about the amount they get in “food stamps,” which are now in the form of an EBT (electronic benefits transfer) cards, and in other benefits.  Apparently a man was arrested in the eastern part of the state and there is a recording of a phone call he made demanding that the person on the other end get his EBT card and go to the ATM to get money to get him out of jail.  He made the call from a cell phone.  The cell phone was one of his welfare benefits.

I don’t know much about the arrest or the man who was arrested, but it sounded from the conversation that he has been arrested before.  He was arrested for drug possession with intent to distribute.  He lives fast and “high off the hog” so to speak.  He flashes cash around.  Yet he has a cell phone paid for by the state and an EBT card.

The host recalled the way people felt ashamed of having to be on welfare at all when he was growing up, and indeed, that is my recollection of how people felt about the system when I was growing up, too.  He also recalled that the neighbors knew who was on welfare and they watched out for fraudulent claims.  People also lent a hand to each other.

I wonder what has changed.  Have people become tired of watching others get a free ride and decided they should also get a free ride?  Are more people less able to care for themselves?  Is it simply lacking that the survival skills necessary to make through tough times have not been passed on?  Maybe it isn’t that the skills were not passed on, but rather complacency and the idea that the skills are no longer necessary.

I know there are many people whom are supportive of the welfare system because they believe in social justice.  I don’t believe that keeping people down with handouts is social justice.  Giving each other a hand up in times of need is social justice. The corporal works of mercy are social justice.  People seem to have lost sight of how to care for one another, though.  Community no longer exists.  Sure there are neighborhoods, but are the people living there really neighbors?  Do they come together when someone is hurt or ill?   From what I have seen in my own life, the answer is no.  While sharing the same street or block, people no longer shares their lives with one another.  They no longer care for one another.

I don’t know how I can make a difference in this.  I don’t have answers.  The only thing I am certain of is that I will try to live my life caring for others and assisting those in need where ever I can.  I will try to instill in my children the truth that it is right to help others when we can.