The polarization of our country is suddenly starting to make sense to me. The left accuses the right of being greedy bastards who are emotionally incapable of feeling sympathy for the poor; however the definition of poor has changed over the years, and therein lines our debilitating divide. Im not a History buff and Im not here to preach. Im drawing the obvious conclusions and comparisons, and now Im simply curious to hear your thoughts. During the Great Depression the poor became jobless, homeless and helpless when the stock market crashed in October 1929. The desperate farmers fled the Great Plains during the Dust Bowl when they were no longer able to feed themselves. Men, women and teenagers rode the rails, jumping on and off trains, traveling from town to town in search of work. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and it was all about survival. When I was a kid I remember when Kaiser Steel went out of business. A few of my friends fathers worked at Kaiser and I remember the black cloud that hovered over their houses while they struggled to keep above water. They became the poor families; however I remember these proud men searching for odd jobs like cleaning horse corrals, house painting, lawn care and handyman services while they searched for full time employment. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and it was all about survival. My elementary school was located in a poverty stricken neighborhood in a prominently Hispanic town. We all knew which kids got the special lunch tickets, but we also knew it would be taboo to harass them over it. They were always clean and their asses were always in school. Their moms would make treats for class parties and were constantly playing a role in volunteering in the class rooms. I would also see these same moms working at Bakers, McDonalds and Fedco. They were struggling moms who worked hard and were thankful for their kids free lunch, as desperate times called for desperate measures, and it was all about survival. Last week I was at the grocery store and I stood behind a 20 something female who rudely chatted on her blinged-out iPhone while the checker was asking her a question. I watched as she reached into her Coach purse, to pull out her Coach wallet to retrieve her EBT/WIC cards. After paying more attention to her, I realized she had custom airbrushed, acrylic nails, designers jeans and enough gold to impress Mr. T. When I walked out to the parking lot I wasnt too surprised to see her get into a new Nissan Altima that still had dealer plates. I guess its not a BMW, which means desperate times call for desperate measures, and its all about survival. I have a family member who doesnt work and neither does her husband. They are in their 30s, have 3 kids and are fully physically capable of employment; but why would they? Theyre not shitting gold bricks and living a lavish life style, but they prefer to accept government welfare in lieu of setting an alarm clock every morning. Work is for chumps. Besides, peddling a little meth here and there subsidizes their income, because after all, desperate times call for desperate measures, and its all about survival. The helping hands of our government has created second and third generation welfare recipients who are now completely disabled. They grew up in government assisted housing while they ate from government provided plates. It is no longer a temporary aid to help the needy. Its become a system they know and its one they can easily abuse. Those of us who choose to set an alarm clock 5-6 days a week and bust our asses are no longer capable of empathy when we see Miss Thang dripping in designer goods pay for her groceries with EBT/WIC. Gone are the days when our countrys poor deserve compassion and understanding. Before you start screaming at me, please know I completely understand Ive made very simple generalizations here. There are the recently unemployed, recently sick/disabled that deserve a compassionate society; however the poor that complain the loudest are the poor that need to be kicked from the Statue of Libertys tit and forced to sink or swim. Welfare reform MUST be a priority in our country, because desperate times call for desperate measures and its what HAS TO HAPPEN for our countrys survival.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 17:28:15 +0000
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