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Should Conservatives Use Welfare Programs? — John Boyer
My wife and I recently found out that we are pregnant. Hooray! I make very little money as an adjunct professor and full time college tutor. I am a PhD student working on my dissertation. I know I’m in a transitional period. Nevertheless, money can be tight. With a baby on the way and my wife deciding she doesn’t want to work for the first six months after giving birth, it’s going to be even tighter.
While filing my income taxes, TurboTax told me about another website they run called MoneyFinder. It’s straightforward. You enter in your projected income, some information about yourself (Is anyone in your household pregnant or has anyone in your household recently given birth?). Hit enter. The internet gremlins crunch the numbers. And voila! A list of government programs you may qualify for.
One of the programs which we may qualify for is WIC, which is food stamps for families with young children.
Now, I never considered using a government program. Even when I was fired from my first job about eight years ago, I never thought of going on unemployment. That’s just not what conservatives do. We don’t ask for handouts. When I couldn’t find another job, I moved back in with my parents and applied to graduate school (which had been the plan all along). But now, with a child on the way, the idea of a little help sounds attractive.
I think we can get by on our own. Tightening belts and whatnot. The idea of going on welfare instinctively offends my conservative mindset. If I can trim fat from our budget, why should I take money from my fellow citizens? Isn’t that government-organized theft?
But if it would help and if I don’t intend to continue on welfare after I get a full-time job, where’s the harm? The money will be spent anyway. And we appear to qualify. Thus, I pose the following question: Should conservatives ever use government safety net programs? If so, under what circumstances?
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My wife did when she was 21 with a 2 year old and no alimony, child support. Then she ended up with a couple of jobs and stopped it after 6 months. There’s no shame in it unless it’s a way of life. Congrats on your baby!
Thanks! I think that attitude is right. I remember Milton Freedman saying something about conservatives shouldn’t let liberals be the sole beneficiaries of these programs as long as they exist. And cuts to programs like WIC definitely won’t determine my voting preferences.
Yes.
As long as you are using as a safety net and not as an end in itself. Conservatives have compassion and don’t believe that in a rich society that people should starve or unduly suffer due to fate or misfortune. However, conservatives would counter that the safety net should not be primarily the responsibility of the Federal government as it is today. Rather, churches and other social institutions should provide the bulk with the States as a constitutionally agreeable backstop.
That being said, does your situation warrant accessing the Federal benefits? You said you could tighten your belt, but you don’t want to tighten the belt of your baby. Are there other options? In the end it is a personal decision, but if you do decide to use it you should show your gratitude by supporting/volunteering at a local food bank, church food pantry, etc. (I am sure you will be paying back everything you receive in future taxes).
Yes, conservative are being force to contribute to these programs. It is only right that conservatives get back some value for the money that is being extorted. The key is to not allow them to become a way of life, do not commit fraud to obtain the benefits, and strive to get off them as soon as possible.
My dad is a proud irish catholic working class guy, never wants a dime unless he earned himself. But when my sister was hospitalized for several months when we were kids we went on WIC. The Point of the program is to help families who need it temporarily. We were on the program for about 8 months when my mom could go back to work after taking care of my sister . Hayak wrote in Road To Serfdom about having some social safety in a society that has certain living standards
congrats on the baby by the way
You may find it to be more trouble than it’s worth, but take it if you can get it.
I’m reminded of a vignette from Catch 22. It goes something to the effect that Yossarian is talking about how he doesn’t want to serve. He is challenged “But what if everyone felt that way” to which he replies “Then I’d be foolish to feel any differently.”
My oldest daughter is blind and developmentally disabled. She collects SSI and medicaid-medicare. She might be eligible for SNAP if I wanted to jump through the hoops but the $200 or so a month isn’t worth it. I figure we saved the gubmint maybe $250,000 by homeschooling her K-12, and she lives with us. So we’re just getting back a little bit of what we were required to put in. If it stopped tomorrow we’d cope.
This is a great topic, thanks for posting this. The way I see it, a person has to look at his contributions vs what he takes out over a lifetime. If you contribute more in taxes than you take out in benefits, you’re pulling your weight. Conservatives didn’t create the high tax rates or the welfare state. We have to live in the world as we find it. The current tax system makes it more difficult for people to save enough for retirement, so many conservatives will rely on social security and medicare when they get older. This isn’t hypocrisy. If the gov’t takes our money we should all expect something in return. If a man robs you, it’s natural to want something back.
Just don’t let it turn into a habit you can’t get away from!
The decision whether or not to accept aid from the government, in my view, involves two questions:
1) How much will I have to change my behavior in order to accept the aid?
2) Will I be accepting more in aid over the course of my life than I expect to pay in taxes?
If the answer to question 1 is – not much and the answer to question 2 is less in aid than a lifetime of taxes, then I don’t see any issue with accepting the aid. When it comes to SNAP and WIC though, the government decides what can be purchased and what cannot. I would make sure that it covers whatever you were already planning to purchase, otherwise, Congress, state legislatures, and their bureaucrats will be making those choices for you.
This reminds me of the first joint tax return I filed with my wife, some 37 years ago. The tax preparer told us we had qualified for food stamps that year. It was news to us. I turned to my bride and said, “Whadya know? We’re poor!” We never thought of ourselves as poor. (Broke, yes. But poor? No.) We had the support of family and friends. Money was incredibly tight, but we had help waiting in the wings if we needed it.
While I think programs like WIC are easy targets for scammers, that certainly isn’t the case here with your family. You’ve paid into the system, and until it changes, you are within your rights to take something back from it.
You could have asked the question before they took the money out of your paychecks. But once done, there’s nothing wrong with using that money for its intended purpose – or at least using it for the excuse they gave for taking it in the first place.
I don’t want to see you in line buying your food with WIC coupons, then buying your beer and cigarettes with cash!
A Hearty Congratulations. No, it’s alright for a Conservative to take part in these programs if truly needy – unfortunate medical problems or disabilities.
Ask yourself, what story/values do you want to relate to that child as they grow? The story about Mom & Dada being broke, living with Grandma & Grandpa and not taking a dime from the Government is a pretty great story (especially for a Conservative). One that you and that little one can be very proud of some day. If you think you can be the “Anti-Julia”, do it.
I say as long as you’re confident you will not draw more than your lifetime tax contributions you should just think of it as regaining some of the taxes that were (will be) taken from you and there’s no real problem how you get it back.
Well, I’m going to dissent, if for no other reason than to generate a conversation.
You’re paying into Social Security, no doubt. Do you think you’re going to have a pot of money at the end of the rainbow upon retirement? I doubt it. Mr. C. and I are closer to the end of our earning years than the beginning, and we’ve never behaved as if Social Security will be there for us. There is no lock box. The money is spent. Sucked out of the productive sector of the economy to buy votes and give mostly white women (with the longest life expectancy) retirements as long as their careers.
The same could be said of all these “safety net” programs with our national debt approaching, what, 17 trillion? If you accept WIC, you’re going to be spending your child’s future earnings opportunities for a pot of porridge today. What will you answer when your child asks, “How did you make it through the lean early years when you were in graduate school, Daddy?”
I don’t mean this to sound as harsh as it does. But, I think taking government assistance is shortsighted.
John,
First, Congrats to you and your wife. Kids are fantastic and have made me a better person than I otherwise would have been.
Now, to your questions, I actually believe there should be a government safety net that offers temporary aid to people with very low incomes (I’m a psychologist–I can’t help it). And, I don’t believe there is anything that conflicts with your core conservative values by accepting temporary help. A century ago, that help may have come in a different form, but today things are different. I’m pretty sure there will be no mass movement to rescind your Rico membership.
Lastly, I think this story will give you future opportunities to share your thoughts and feelings about this time, and how your experience with “the system” shapes and informs your political thoughts.
Besides, to quote my pastor from a week ago….You are more important that my view.
Also, I have a friend who worked at a WIC office in NM for a while. It turned her into a conservative. The women sitting across the desk from her to collect their benefits had expensive manicures and nicer clothes than she did. They also drove nicer cars. I think you’ll find the experience depressing and humiliating.
That’s no way to start out life with a baby. Better to eat Kraft mac and cheese and hot dogs and retain your mental health.
Aaand, one more thing. Hardship builds character. And lends itself to good storytelling. Young people today don’t have enough experience of it.
Aaand — get off my lawn!
Okay. I’m done. ;-)
Yes. It doesn’t seem as if there is much fat in your budget to trim. WIC is a program to assure children get proper nourishment, and macaroni and cheese as a steady diet won’t make a healthy baby. WIC doesn’t pay for diapers and other necessities, and it is a temporary situation.
In principle? No.
In reality? Do what you have to do to protect your family.
Welfare corrupts. The more of us use these programs, the more acceptable (nay, necessary!) they become.
Oh, one more thing. We made it through our transitional period just last year by taking out $10,000 in unsubsidized student loans. They are still from the government, but it avoided direct handouts which I wouldn’t be interested in taking anyway even if I did qualify. (We probably did with our newborn baby and one grad student income for half the year.)
One could argue that taxpayers are the only people who should use welfare programs.
After all, they paid for ’em.
That is not true, it is the attitude that corrupts. Change attitudes and you can change a person for life.
We started out our married life as students and we were especially poor after our first baby joined us. We would have qualified for government programs but we didn’t want to use them. It just wasn’t who we were. The thing about food is that it isn’t that hard to eat cheaply and nutritiously, especially if one of you is home to cook. That said, I wouldn’t think ill of you if you took it, but you’ll have bragging rights about not using it in the future if that’s your choice, and being a good conservative, you might want to use them.
I’ve always thought of those programs as precisely FOR people in your situation (or worse). There to help you get through the rough patch while you work toward better times. So yes, avail yourself to what you need.
Ah yes, bragging rights are more important than a healthy baby and mother. Perhaps you haven’t noticed the increase in food prices, what I paid $9 for 3 years ago I now pay $15, and that is just 8 cans of tuna from Costco. Ten items from Costco, tuna the most expensive and the total was $75. No meat, no milk, no cheese. Perhaps you are now in an income bracket of which you don’t have to worry about food prices anymore.
There were times when my children were small, with serious medical problems that I occasionally used AFDC, Medical, and food stamps. Never for more than a few months at a time. However, as an adult and grandmother, I have supported several grandchildren, kept my mother out of nursing homes, supported a little friend for the past 3 years who does not qualify for aid even tho she is type 1 diabetic and low I.Q. Along with numerous other endeavors. So I am bragging, as I have long since repaid society for what I used when I needed help, deeply grateful for that help, in addition to paying taxes that was being used for others. And I expect to still be helping others for many years to come.
Nonsense, Kay. It is still just as possible to eat cheaply and nutritiously. Here’s how: buy that big bag of broccoli at Costco, some carrots and cabbage, a big bag of rice, a package of meat–that will give you literally 20 stir-fire meals–and some leftovers to boot. Make your own delicious European bread and the two pound package of cheese and you’ll have wonderful toasted cheese. Potatoesw/cheeseandbroccoli, etc. Easy.