I generally try to stay out of these debates, but... one of my first jobs as a teenager was working in a grocery store. That particular chain had a return policy such that any store brand product could be returned without a receipt. Every week we had people come in, use all of their food stamp/EBT benefits on store brand foods then turn around and return them without a reciept to trade for alcohol and cigarettes. Around the same time we had family friends that qualified for benefits, really could have used them, but refused to accept them. They were regular donors to food drives that I volunteered in.
The way I see it, asking the government to provide social services is like asking a gorilla to cross stitch. Government is just too big and clumsy to get the job done right. Some people who need help will never be able to get into the system and some people who abuse help will always be able to get into the system. It doesn't matter if you prohibit the purchase of donuts or not, people will still get them using benefits if they want them. I think we'd be better off abolishing all governmental social assistance, making a special category of non-profit that provided similar services, had very generous tax breaks associated with donations of time and money to said organizations, and let local charities do the job. Luckily for all of you that disagree with me, that'll never happen.
Interestingly, that job as a bagger for the grocery store is the only one that I have ever been drug tested for. I don't have an issue with drug testing to recieve benefits. Giving people the right to take actions without having to take responsibility for those actions is a recipe for disaster.
The way I see it, asking the government to provide social services is like asking a gorilla to cross stitch. Government is just too big and clumsy to get the job done right. Some people who need help will never be able to get into the system and some people who abuse help will always be able to get into the system. It doesn't matter if you prohibit the purchase of donuts or not, people will still get them using benefits if they want them. I think we'd be better off abolishing all governmental social assistance, making a special category of non-profit that provided similar services, had very generous tax breaks associated with donations of time and money to said organizations, and let local charities do the job. Luckily for all of you that disagree with me, that'll never happen.
Interestingly, that job as a bagger for the grocery store is the only one that I have ever been drug tested for. I don't have an issue with drug testing to recieve benefits. Giving people the right to take actions without having to take responsibility for those actions is a recipe for disaster.