Remeber when we lived by the code, ifyou want it, workfor it?

When I was a little boy I wanted a skateboard, I asked for one many times. One day the parents came home and they told me that my grandma had bought my younger brother and I skateboards, but if we wanted them we would have to work off the cost of the skateboards by mowing her lawn over the summer. My brother and I had a decision to make. We could 1) keep the skateboards and spend time each week doing yard work, or, 2) give the skateboards back and have our whole summer free for ourselves. We both chose to keep the skateboards and gave up time each week to go do yard work. Even a skateboard has a cost, and I knew if I wanted the skateboard, then I would be paying for the skateboard. No one else was going to mow that lawn for me, if I wanted to have the skateboard I was going to have to work for it.
But that has all changed now, Americans can get whatever they want and they never have to even leave the house. Actually… Let me rephrase that because there are people who work out of their homes now. You can get whatever you want and you can sit and do nothing in your home. But how is this even possible you may ask. The answer lies in our countries many Social Programs, or more simply put, Welfare.
Welfare is a set of government run programs that are meant to provide benefits and economic assistance to American families with either no or low income. Simply put, Welfare is financial assistance which is funded through taxes which are paid by the American working class. Welfare is meant to improve the quality of life and living standards for poor and underprivileged families, but is also extended to groups of other people such as the elderly, the disabled, students, and unpaid workers, such as mothers and caregivers (http://www.welfareinfo.org/state/). This is where the problems start to arise for me.
You see, I am a student. I am paying my way through school by using my GI Bill that I got from serving my country in the Army. I also work full time. I have been going to school for about 7 years now because I half to go to school part-time in order to hold a job. And I have to have a job to pay for things like my mortgage, clothes, utilities, food, car, insurance, gas, etc. etc. Now if I am capable of going to school and working enough to provide for myself then why am I helping to provide for other students who won’t work? Why should I lose part of the check that I work to earn to someone who is not willing to work? I served my country for three years to help me pay for my college, why can’t people who want to go to college do the same?
In addition to the above, I work full time, and go to school part time so that I can provide for myself, and hopefully make a better future for myself, hence going to school. So if I am willing to work, to provide for myself, and go to school, correction pay for myself to go to school, then why should I give up the money I earn from working to help pay for someone to sit at home and do nothing?
I do understand that there are exceptions. I do not think that all of the elderly need to be holding down regular jobs, and I know that there are people who are disabled and can not work. But you can not tell me that a healthy 28 year old female needs a lot of assistance. You can’t because she doesn’t!
Let me support this claim with an example. We will say that there is a local community college, and there is a 20 year old male who attends this college. This male lives in the dorms and is a full time student. He does not have a job, and is not seriously looking for one. This male comes from a single parent home, where his mom raised him by herself. His mom can not afford to pay for his schooling. The young man applies for assistance and gets it. Now for the sake of our discussion here, the amount he gets is completely irrelevant. For the sake of this discussion the only thing we need to be concerned with is the fact that he gets some form of State Assistance. What we need to do is look at where this assistance is coming from, and this is an easy answer. The assistance is coming from the taxes collected from the working people, which includes me. So in essence, I am helping this kid have somewhere to live, eat, and go to school. His mother who is working is also helping her son, but then being he is her son isn’t it kind of her responsibility? It is certainly more her responsibility than mine, I don’t even know the guy. And it is only slightly her responsibility, because he is 20 years old, and he should be supporting himself. So if this kid isn’t willing to work for his own education, and his parents can not provide his education, then why should I? I am working trying to provide for myself, why should I also be working to provide for you? Is this selfish? Perhaps it is, but on the flip side of the coin, isn’t the 20 year old male being even more selfish? I am saying let me keep what I earned, he is saying let me have some of what you earned. And isn’t that irresponsible on top of being selfish?
I know there are special situations, and I know that I am painting with broad brush strokes here, but I think you see what I am saying. I have never been, and never will be opposed to giving someone a hand up, but I think it is silly, irresponsible, and really quite rude to be giving hand outs. Lets go back to our analogy above. What is wrong with telling the 20 year old male, “You will receive no assistance of any kind until you have some kind of work.”? Anything he puts in is better than nothing.
This is an example of some of the dangers created by the welfare state. If you can go to school and never pay anything for it, why work? Why put forth any effort to earn your own way?
If you want to go to school, then you should be willing to pay for it. If you want food, clothes, a house, a car, if you want anything you should be willing to pay for it. Why should I pay for it? I am trying to pay for my own way, why can’t you? We now live in a society, in my opinion, that has come to embrace the “welfare state”, and some of the people just feel like they are entitled to something for nothing. The problem is nothing, NOTHING is ever free. It is going to cost someone, and the people it is costing now is the American working class who are paying taxes. I for one say that the time has come to completely revamp the entire welfare system. If you are not putting anything into the system, then you get nothing out of the system. I understand that some people may not be able to find a job. But at least get up off the couch and go try! I understand that some people may not be able to work a full time job, or a full time shift. That is fine, but get some kind of job and do something to help yourself. I think that we should be able to tell any person in this great country, that if you are not willing to do anything for yourself, then the hard working people will not be so willing to do it for you. I know that this is contrary to a lot of liberal beliefs and to them I have this advice. If you are so sure that the welfare state works, then ante up more of your salary to pay for it. If people are not abusing the system, and we aren’t just throwing money at a problem that we are making worse by our own actions, then give up more of your money. You could also help lower some of the welfare costs by having some of these “needy” families move in with you. I am willing to give4 a hand up to any American who is willing to at least try. But I am sick and tired of giving a hand out to people who feel like they deserve something for nothing, and are willing to try and get a free ride form me.