Arbecht Macht Frei

I'm on food stamps.  I'm on medicaid.

I never signed up. 

The man in the basement did. 

The county social workers can't remove me because I didn't sign up -but- they can demand that I quit my business and work for less than $1 per hour in foodstamps. 

I'm freakin' furious.

It's a sad day when you realize that marriage gives another person license over what you do. 

I'm not happy with this at all. 

There are times when one realizes that marriage is not a good thing.  The man is a potential stranger.  What do I do? 

The  conservative politicians I know are telling me that I must stay in my marriage at all costs.  They are telling me to put the kids first, to stay home and make sure that they are doing everything in their power to get good grades. 

Only after the baloney here is settled, then I can look for work. 

The problem is the social policies those weirdos voted in....they say that I must work first, then and only if the workfare job allows me to, stay home when the kids are here at night so that I can keep them from becoming truant, pregnant teens. 

What they say to do and what they demand that I do are two very different things.  The local social services department told me that the government claims my contributions at home are worthless unless I make $217.00 per week. 

I'm not joking.  She said that the politicians want to push marriage.  Yep...married women don't fall into the trap of poverty.  

Then, since I stayed in a shitty marriage, why in the world did she call me? 

Hmmm....

As far as the $217 is concerned....


Sometimes I make that amount. 

Sometimes I don't. 

When I have an office I make that in an hour.   

When I don't, I have to sell an awful lot of CDs to meet that demand. 

Elder care doesn't count, according to the government.  Nope...I spent 10 hours on Saturday helping a woman in a retirement center but that isn't contributing to society. 

Nope...I've got to do the work the government says counts.  Never mind if I saved medicare some cash on butt wiping.  That doesn't count....only the crap jobs the social worker says count.

Upon providing feedback, I had one snot at the county ask me, in a condescending tone, if I had a background in social work. 

Yep, I sure do and politics, too!  I also earned a grad degree in psychology after my stint at the county.  So many people working there had mental issues, I had to go back to school.

Trust me on this, I am uniquely qualified enough to say that politicians make piss poor social workers! 

According to the county, child care doesn't count as a worthwhile contribution to society, unless I charge for it.  Watching my grandaughter to keep her off TANF doesn't count.  If I want to charge strangers to babysit, I need licensed and I need to get over my fear of the auditor chick who lies about me at the city building. 

The lawyers representing the city told me that she's threatened to audit anything I do...

So...I can't make money from home.  I really, really, really want to move. 

I wonder how conservative politicians sleep at night?  Really?  I mean, if women are supposed to stay home barefoot and pregnant, how can they justify pushing the married ones into the world of paid employment against the wishes of their husbands? 

They assume every woman listed on the medicaid/food stamp rolls are single mothers.

I've been trying to get my name off of medicaid and food stamps as I won't touch the benefits anyway.  It's not working.  I've whined, sent emails, letters and spoken to at least three reps yet I am still listed as what they term as a lazy tax hog: Last November, a county social worker called me lazy and said I needed to learn discipline and get out of the house to do something for the community.  Uh...I don't think he reads the newspaper or votes. 

If I were lazy, politicos wouldn't have had cops sit in front of my house to intimidate me and no one would give a hairy rat's behind my opinion of anything. 
I've ratted Mr. Dumb Social Worker out to the people in charge.  I hope I got that little idiot fired.  Maybe having to get unemployment will put a chill in his stereotypical bottom.   

I think the county is keeping me on the rolls so that they can up their numbers and beg for more money from lawmakers.

The county wants me to do workfare.  I can't afford to work 30+ hours for free.  The daycare alone will cost me $180 a week.  The benefits my ex will get equal about $125.  It doesn't come out in the wash, especially for me as I have no say in where the funds go. 


According to the politicos, work isn't work unless I can make $217 each and every week or allow a greedy corporate stooge to profit from my free labor. 

That's not going to happen. 

Sorry...I do a lot of work pro bono now just so I don't have to get a business license and tango with the snotty, lying, gossipy Tax Audit Supervisor.  I'm practically giving my inventory away until I sign another lease. 

It'll work out.  I have faith.  I'm looking at another office tomorrow and it is nowhere near a memory. 

Last night, I whined to a conservative about being thrown on the rolls and unable to leave. 

I'm so freakin' mad. 

I also spent two hours on the treadmill. 

I do my best thinking when I'm drenched in sweat.

Guess what??? 

I know why they won't let public employees have workplace rights and why they abuse them to the hilt!!! . 



Because if they extended workplace protections to public employees, they would have to extend them to workfare workers!!! 

I have to throw out my study now and start over!! 


I'd love to get the unions in here to represent the workers fined $500 due to gossip and protect the workfare workers picking up needles off the side of the highway without proper protection. 

Let's make it too damn expensive for the county to abuse the poor!! 

I prayed for years wanting to know how to conduct my study to help families.  God made me broke, bankrupted me and let a social worker kill what was left of my marriage because I am a worthless pile of shit for being conservative and putting my husband's wishes first....

 but, low and behold,

 I know what to do now!!

Hang on to your hats!! 

This is gonna get real fun -  real fast. 

Love ya,

S.

P.S.  Arbecht macht frei was the slogan posted on the doors of Auschwitz. 

P.S.S.  Just so you know, we spend less on actual aid to the poor in the entire country than we do our office of Economic Affairs...

I'm not happy about that. 

The people in economic affairs aren't doing their jobs if the welfare rolls are burgeoning. 

We spent the same amount on welfare in 2010 that we did in 1992, in spite of the rising costs of living and the greatest recession. 

Do you think our people are better off? 

Really? 

How much of our GDP was spent on welfare related programs in 2003? 

50%

10%

2%

No.

Just 0.0098%

If we want to complain about moochers, then we must look at corporate welfare first. 

Workfare (and Prisonfare) is just a way to provide free or low cost labor to corporations.  I don't like it and neither should you.