Land of the free(loaders)

Ah, the United States of America: land of endless opportunity... land of the American dream... land of people who perpetually live on welfare because they don't want to get a job.

Now, I have nothing against the principle concept of welfare. I think that people should be allowed to utilize the funds of this country on a TEMPORARY basis in order to mitigate unforeseen circumstances or assuage graduate student loans... but it seems that for those who truly need it, who would truly contribute to society and pay it back in some form or another, welfare is nothing but a series of rejections.

For those who are destitute despite efforts to improve their situation and need welfare to survive, I feel for you; however, I think that this is a minuscule percentage of the populace. Most of the people I've seen on welfare are married couples who decide not to work because the guy's in school (getting his undergrad... COME ON it's not grad school, get an effing job) and the girl decided to have babies right away and has no education to do anything. They like the fact they get thousands of dollars worth of a tax return and help from the government, while the people who are actually trying to work and support their families don't qualify because they make too much. In what stretch of the imagination is this fair or advantageous to anyone?

While that previous passage may be offensive to some, let me qualify my statement with an example of sorts. Couple A has a husband pursuing his bachelor's degree and a wife with two kids. They insist they need two cars to get around and need to acquire a certain amount of toys and other superfluities. They both have decided not to be employed... because living off of welfare is just easier for them. They brag to their friends about how much they can get from the government. In fact, it's almost a game for them. Then you have Couple B. The husband is in grad school, and therefore cannot be employed. The wife has a college degree and a baby, so she works at home to supplement their student loans and raise their child. They live a modest life style and try not to spend too much money. They can't qualify for welfare (or even government health care) because they make too much, which in my mind is just WRONG. It is Couple B who needs this help, because they would be using it in the short term. Their contribution to society would then be infinitely greater after the conclusion of grad school, thus paying the system back more than they took from it. And when has it been acceptable to be rewarded for NOT working hard? It just seems skewed to me.

Maybe my examples aren't the most eloquent or make the most sense. But I'm using examples from what I have seen with my own eyes, and that's all I can write about. I realize that I have used some generalizations and such, but take this for what it is worth. It's just frustrating sometimes.