Something I've been ragging on on here for several months now ......
Our wellies and/or scummers getting "welfare tattoos". Or the fact that we have WAY too many "tattoo parlors" in Bradford applying "welfare tattoos" all day long, any day of the week!

From WESB-



States Tackling Issue of Welfare Recipients
Getting Tattoos, Buying Booze & Cigarettes
Massachusetts is the latest state trying to crack down on a problem that can be seen right here in Bradford – welfare recipients using benefits to buy alcohol, cigarettes, lottery tickets and tattoos.

Opponents of the measures say tougher restrictions are punishing the poor, but a Massachusetts state representative says people who are not abusing the system should not have a problem with the reforms.

The movement has been spurred in part by Congress. Under legislation signed by President Barack Obama in February to extend a payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits, welfare recipients are barred from using their cash assistance in strip clubs, casinos and liquor stores. States must change their own laws to conform by 2014.

We’ll talk to Pennsylvania State Representative Marty Causer about this issue on today’s LiveLine at 12:35 on 1490 WESB.



If you get a chance to call in ..... somebody ask Marty "what can be done in Bradford to curtail the wellies from spending OUR hard earned tax money on tattoos"?

Here is the link, its on now! http://www.wesb.com/listen/

The only way to prevent the "welfare system abusers" from using their benefits to purchase the things they shouldn't be is to do away with welfare. Concentrate on making situations easier for more jobs to be created and put these people to work!! Keep the medical assistance in place so that individuals can at least still have medical coverage but do away with the rest of it!! Make these people responsible for themselves and their actions. If they end up to be poor and homeless - or whatever it may be - then maybe it will teach them some sort of sense of responsibility.

If Wisconsin can have success at welfare reform - Pennsylvania should have absolutely NO problem with a high success rate.

http://www.heritage.org/research/lectur ... are-reform

Yesterday, when I was in Tops, a young girl with 2 kids, was checking out in front of me. All Brand name items, total $83.00. She pulled out an Excess Card. It's all I could do to keep my mouth shut. She had a balance of $38.00 that she had tocover. What did she do,pull out a Credit Card. I thought, "man the sure know how to work the system".

So if she is a single mother who works but also gets assistance to make ends meet and payed the balance with her debit card which her paycheck is direct deposited onto that's wrong? You should probably reserve judgement, because besides the fact that she had an access card, it sounds as though you know nothing else about her.

Sorry, bothers me when people pass judgement on others with only 2% of the facts.

Jeff, its just collateral damage. We are back in another "summer of scummer". Everyone is so disgusted by the hard core scummers that anyone on the fringe automatically gets lumped in. I guess a safe way to look at it would be, "if the shoe fits"...

If you have kids, you're golden. You get all kinds of assistance then, to be used for their benefit.

I know that if I were to lose my job or the work to dwindle to almost nothing, and my wife and I were forced to get foodstamps (you can get partial benefits if you just need a little help and you qualify) and she was at the store trying to get groceries used the foodstamps then paid for the rest with my/our earnings that go into our account that we access with a debit card I would absolutely hate it if I knew people were labeling her like that.

I also don't see why it's wrong to pay the extra few cents for name brand over generic when the quality is better and you actually have the money to cover the difference. Have you ever tried to feed 2 kids? You'd be lucky to get them to both eat the same thing, and if it isn't exactly what they want or the way they want it they won't eat.

The way I see it is that as long as she was spending the foodstamps on food and not tattoos cigarettes soda or junk food, then why not?

Someone posted this great quote on facebook in reply to the Marty Causer/Anne Holliday interview about welfare reform. "Welfare assistance should be a safety net not a hammock."

Excuse me! I know the parents of the person, and believe me, she dosen't work.Infact I don't think she ever has. Don't get me wrong, there are hard working people that have had to go that route to get back on their feet. It wasn't food that she could take home and prepare a meal with.

Chips, candy, energy drinks ,oh there was a loaf of bread.

I saw what my own Mother went through 35 years ago when my Dad died. She had to lower her standards long enough to get on her feet. And the only thing she could get was a mere $10.00 a month!!!!!

And any of us who have lived here can eyeball all of them.

You didn't mention that in the original post, so I apologize.