Sunday, September 22, 2013

Drug testing for food stamps

Recently there has been even more movement in the direction of requiring drug testing to receive food-stamps. (http://goo.gl/WB38xv).
Many would argue that legal drugs as well as some food items might test positive and deny you your benefits. The same could also be said for opiates like heroin, they are also used to relieve pain. However if you test positive for opiates on a drug test your CDL license will get yanked, and at many jobs you will be fired. 
The way it works in a FREE society is if you receive funds from someone they do have the right to dictate the terms. If I want to drink, smoke and party I have that right until someone pays me not to. I am all for making all drugs, food and medicine legal (ideally with proper warning labels). However if you receive a check or compensation from either the government, company, or private individual they should have the right to place whatever conditions they wish on the compensation as long as they are stated up front.
I have worked places where I was not able to eat any poppy seed muffins as they could taint a pee test. I knew this before I took the job but deemed the sacrifice of a good lemon/poppy seed muffin in the morning with coffee worth the wages I could earn. 
Government aid is no different. Food Stamps, SSI, medicare, medicade, etc are not rights. We have the choice to except them or not. For most of the history of this nation most of these things did not exist as we were not trying to create a socialistic state but a constitutional republic where we had the right to pursue happiness. 
   The founding fathers never intended the government to become so large as to become responsible for providing for everyone's happiness, health, food, shelter, or any of the other things free men can provide for themselves when the government gets out of their way and does not regulate or tax them excessively.
    One of the reasons so many are on food stamps (about 1/7th of the population last time I checked) is because the government has nearly regulated and taxed small business out of existence. The number of news stories on things like police closing down kids lemonade stands for not having a permit (http://bit.ly/15N4FJQ) or requiring every small business to pay so much money in taxes or in the new health care they are forced to close or lay people off (http://bit.ly/15N4IVP) are now so many it should be obvious how bad this nations experiments in socialism are failing.
      The Bible says in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”
I realize many do not hold God’s word to be the standard and one of our founding principles is freedom of religion but even common sense would dictate only so many people can ride in the wagon per people pulling it. If we reward laziness and steal from those trying to work and provide jobs and services to our society then soon everyone will be poor waiting for the next working person to rob with excessive taxation.
     Requiring drug testing as well as making people who receive benefits from the government seek work or do things to make themselves more attractive to employers is a good 1st step. Even better would be reducing taxes but both the reduction of government programs and the reduction of taxes are needed if we hope to be a free country again.
   If we cut all programs overnight there would be massive civil unrest as much of our population still needs weened from the government tit, but perhaps these 1st steps of drug testing and making people prove they are looking for work are a first step to turning this country from a nation of dependent children into a nation of free men and women yet again.

2 comments:

Timothy@thelionsgate.org said...

I agree for the most part and not to elevate my opinion because of the fact I have never in all my life applied for food stamps SSI or any government aid what so ever. Because I do believe we should support ourselves.Even over the years as I have been a full time preacher I always ran a handyman biz to make sure myself and the ones who followed me never expected a free ride. As I grow older though I realize my zeal to do the right thing can be oppressive to those who maybe never had two parents who never divorced or a myriad of other benefits I grew up with. having said that we need to be realistic about our expectations based on our view points which come from life experience. Also TAXES and how they effect small business is no less than criminal so in my eyes it is double oppression to either not provide training and other assistance if we are going to turn them down for basic needs or drop the tax structure end of story. In my opinion income tax among others is completely un constitutional.

Donald C Phinney II said...

The question here is if the government should forcibly take money from some people (taxes) to provide for other people, or is it the job of the individual to decide if and when to be charitable.
The poor will be with us always (Jesus told us this) however whose job is it to care for the orphan the widow and disabled?
Most will agree that those who just choose not to work should not get a check from the government but is it the job of the government to take care of anyone's food shelter and clothing or should that be something that individuals, churches and private charities should handle?
I also receive no government benefits even though my income and my prior military service would entitle me to under the current laws. I also have started and volunteer in many food banks and homeless shelters(all privately funded).
I am not against helping the needy, but I am dead set against the government doing it as charity should never be mandated by the state in a FREE country.
In order for the government to give something to a person they must first take it from someone else as government does not produce. Government only regulates, controls, or oppresses.