When I was 20 years old(1976), I worked at our county Dept. of Social Services. I saw generational poverty, and learned about how the system actually rewards self-destructive behavior. When a 17-year old with a baby is set up in her own apartment, given Medicaid, food stamps, and a monthly check, it can look like quite the cushy life to a kid who has grown up without much.
We had one young woman client who was pregnant, and whose baby-daddy was a minor child whose mom was collecting AFDC for him. He said he thought the two of them would have three kids, courtesy of the taxpayer, before they got married, because why should he have to worry about medical bills?
Many years later I worked for a Christian non-profit. We worked with the churches in our community to meet specific needs. Every single item we were able to give--cribs, car seats, or whatever--came because people in our churches donated because they saw the needs and chose to give.
"Stuff" wasn't all we had to offer. We were sometimes able to provide services that government agencies weren't designed to give. I got a call one day from a NICU nurse who said that a young mom in our community had given birth to triplets, and needed some HELP! I put out a notice to all of our area churches: "Baby holders needed!" with a brief description. Wow! The calls flooded in!! Women were eager to reach out to this woman; to hold, cuddle, rock, and feed those babies. I got a call from one woman who had a disability and didn't feel comfortable holding a newborn, but was willing to regularly spend some special time with the big sister, who was probably feeling a little left out.
I had one woman who offered to do laundry for the babies. The mom seemed to think she had laundry under control, but I kept that lady in mind, and a few months later when I got a call about a different mom who was undergoing medical treatment and needed some help with laundry, I gave her a call. That began a relationship that continued for years, right up until the mom passed away.
At one point one of our clients needed $100 for a pair of special order shoes for her big-footed son. No government agency has funds for that kind of thing. I, personally, reached into my pocket and gave the $100.
You know what? Giving like that blessed me, in a way that being taxed for it never would have.
I'm just letting you know that not all conservatives are heartless or greedy, or "I've got mine, so kiss my a--" types. I have seen the social problems that Johnson's "Great Society" created, and know that all social programs have unintended consequences.
