In the minds of many conservatives...poor people are just laying around, living the life of Riley, chowing down on food bought with food stamps and using their welfare checks to buy liquor -- all the while spending their watching Jerry Springer.
Reality -- the working poor are just as likely to use SNAP (because there are no food "stamps" any more) and WIC, as well as Section 8 rental assistance. Very few individuals are eligible for any kind of direct payment for living expenses unless they are a) unemployed and collecting unemploument insurance or b) diaabled. In those states in which welfare as they envision it still exists, you have to work to collect it. If you can't get remunerative employment, you generally have to perform volunteer work as part of the TANF program.
Sensible solutions to these problems could include raising the minimum wage to something that helps support a family of four and offering any and every incentive for people to attend CC/JC to expand their job skill set. Conservatives favor more Dickensian solutinns. First, they basically want to prevent any government assistance of any kind going to anyone who drinks, smokes a joint, buys a pack of cigarettes, or chews gum. Furthermore, they want to bring back work houses and debtors prison. Their basic attitude: You are poor because you suck. Suck less, and you won't be poor. I won't give a dime of my money to people who suck.
In any event, I will cease ranting and instead heap praise upon you and your church. Feeding the homeless and the poor is doing the Lord's work. And so, for the second time in an evening, I will make a rare quotation of scripture on DU -- this time, in honor of your work:
Matthew 25:31-46
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
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