Pubdate: Fri, 10 May 2013
Source: Times-Press-Recorder (CA)
Copyright: 2013 Pulitzer Central Coast Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.timespressrecorder.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/537
Author: Kaytlynn Jackson

DRUG TESTING AND WELFARE

To the Editor:

Government spending on welfare alone is $131.9 billion a year. The 
purpose of government aid programs is to encourage enrollees to 
better their lives, not to support their drug addiction.

Some people abuse the system, so drug tests should be required to 
receive any government benefits.

One downside is that it stereotypes people who receive benefits as 
drug addicts. Michael Spencer, author of "Journal of Family Social 
Work," stated, "... Delva and colleagues found that occurrence of any 
illicit drug use among welfare recipients to be 50-percent higher 
than among nonwelfare recipients."

The statistics speak for themselves, and not all welfare recipients 
use drugs, but the ones who do don't deserve to receive money they 
don't work for.

Another argument nonsupporters use is that drug testing welfare 
recipients is unconstitutional. There are U.S. citizens who are 
working 12-hour shifts every day to provide for their families. About 
84 percent of employers in the U.S. require a drug test. It is 
unconstitutional to drug-test citizens who don't work for their 
money, but it is constitutional to drug-test people who do work for 
their money? Talk about double standards.

Kaytlynn Jackson

Nipomo
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