anti-climactic

Apparently a big, important, fancy bill was passed today.

How has the public at large responded?

Have I witnessed crowded parades cheering? Mothers crying tears of joy? Or men and women taking to the streets, crying, "Fascism!"

No, not really.

Have I felt a tangible wave of excitement in the air among the individuals I walk by? Or a cloud of dread hanging over their heads?

Not exactly.

Just some facebook comments revealing mildly excited praise, a couple of good-tempered debates, and muted criticism. No angels singing. No devils cackling. Just one anarchist friend ranting, but he'll always find something rant about as long as we have a government, now won't he?

I'm sure in due time there will be emails and symposiums about What This Will Mean for Our Dear Profession, but right now we're more concerned about passing statistics and deciding where to apply to internship.

I have a feeling that someone is sad that she wasn't the mother who birthed this bill, but dry your tears ma'am, there are still problems in the Middle East to attend to, and you could get 1/4 credit for solving them if you keep your chin up and roll your dice right.

By the way, I'm still here, in the blagosphere.

buh?

So, the interview that was supposed to be this afternoon, is actually next week. Huh? I really thought that we scheduled it for today. I'm disappointed because I was all riled up and ready to go out there. I'm even wearing my lucky underwear. Oh well, I can do laundry, now I get a whole 'nother week to be nervous, and at least I found out before I made the 2 hour round trip. Now I get to go to stats class this afternoon, wheeeee! So, please pray for my interview next week, and the other application, and other sites where I may apply.

In other news, I have made two important decisions about my future:

1. I will not cut my hair more than a couple of inches at a time before August 2009. Reason being: I will be in three weddings next year, and I want to be immortalized as long-haired and beautiful in other people's wedding albums.
2. I will return to Europe before May 2011. Reason being: Eurail passes become more expensive once I turn 26, so I should take advantage of these deals while I'm young and adventurous and carefree (hah!).

It feels good to take a firm stance on these decisions, but I wish I had more direction and guidance in other areas of my life to make definite plans or take a firm stand. You know, politics, research ideas, dissertations topic, just little stuff like that.

Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?

It seems somewhat lame to just recount the events of my weekend, but I had an unexpectedly great weekend. Seriously, I was expecting it to be lame, and kinda boring, but this was one of my most enjoyable weekends spent in BCS in recent memory.

Friday, I worked, then went to this web conference with the project directors behind the revision of the WAIS-IV. This was probably the nerdiest thing I've done yet in graduate school, but I really enjoyed hearing how this test was developed! I saw some clients at a nursing home, then went to a church where some evacuees from a nursing home are living right now. Friday evening, I ate some chili, met some folks from Taiwan, and sang Bohemian Rhapsody karaoke at an event for international students at my friend's church, then watched the presidential debate with said friend, my roommates, and their boyfriends. I must be the man in that relationship, because only me and the guys actually stayed awake through the entire debate.

Saturday, I slept in a little, saw some more clients at the nursing home, and administered two of the three WAIS-IVs that I gave over the course of the weekend. These were administered to teenagers, so in between testing, we talked about Metallica, Pillar, and colleges. I haven't been around many teenagers lately, so I guess it was fun to learn that teenagers talk about . . . music. And school. Hmm, how far have I really come in 6 years? After I got done with that, I headed to the hippest bar/venue in BCS called Revolution with Neeta and her boyfriend. We drank sangria and watched a folky kinda chic with a guitar, cowboy boots, and a sleeve of tattoos on one arm sing Neutral Milk Hotel songs and songs I think she wrote about leaving Georgia to go find her baby in Texas with the sun setting in her rear view mirror. Unless that's another Neutral Milk Hotel song.

Sunday I administered my final WAIS-IV, ate some corndogs, went to church, and did some laundry. The weekend was productive, but also randomly fun. Even when I was "working" (administering tests, seeing clients), I still had a fun time. I feel especially blessed to receive things that I wasn't expecting. I often get down about things that I don't have, and wishing that God would bless me with other things and often feeling like he's holding back on giving me what I need. But the truth is, he's blessing me with what he's blessing me with, and he's not giving me what he's not. I want to live fully in the present and enjoy the life that I have, instead of wishing that my life looked different or that I was living in the future. I want to be fully engaged on not miss out on what is now and what opportunities are already present for me.

unique cargo, ugly baggage

I have about three potential blog entries already written in my head, but I've decided to first write the most salient one.

Yesterday, driving along Highway 6, a train passed me. This is pretty common as I see plenty of trains, but the cargo of this train was unique, and like nothing I'd never seen outside of movies. This train was carrying at least 40 military tanks, all desert tan.

Two weeks ago, I saw a dead man on the highway. It was late at night, and several police cars had a lane blocked off. As I approached, I noticed the wrecked cars, the ambulance, the police officers, and then there he was, contorted face down on the pavement. There were people nearby, but no one giving him medical attention, no one hauling him away on a stretcher, no officers collecting evidence, no white sheet covering him, no white chalk outline, he just lay there as car after car passed. I still don't know what happened. Was he thrown from his vehicle? Was he trying to cross the street, and hit by a car at 70 mph? This is the first time I've told anyone what I saw. I don't know that I've ever seen a dead person that wasn't in a coffin, hair and makeup nicely fixed. I'm not even positive he was dead, but why else was he face down in such an awkward position, with no one helping him?

And then there were those tanks yesterday. 40 plus killing machines being transported across Texas, that will eventually make it over to the Middle East. I described it to my mom, and she said, "That sounds like something you'd see in WWII." And it's true, while the technology as change drastically in the past 60 years, on the outside, tanks still look relatively the same. A tank is a tank is a tank, and I felt like I was transported back to a time when reminders of war were an everyday occurrence.

I've felt so insulated from this current war. Yes, it's all over the news, stories, sounds, images, reports, controversies, but it still seems to far removed from my present life. I've had ROTC and Corps friends talk about it, but that's all in the future, none of them have been sent to Iraq yet. I've only known dads of friends who have been sent to Iraq, and while it's affected them, and they've told me about it, it's not my dad, or brother, or cousin, or uncle, or friend.

But this past week I've found myself more interested in the War in Iraq, listening to new reports, reading up on its origins, reading about controversies, reading about horrible, terrible, horrific things that have happened. We all heard and saw the pictures from the Abu Ghraib prison tortures, and just googling the name to check the spelling brought up horrifying images. And what about the US soldiers who raped an Iraqi girl, and murdered her and her entire family? These might be isolated incidents of a deranged and depraved few, and I don't consider them to be representative of our soldiers. But what about the high rate of sexual assaults and sexual harassment against women in our military? I truly respect our soldiers, their families, and their sacrifice. But no amount of email forwards of US soldiers hugging Iraqi children will make me believe that war does not bring out the worst in people. I know that it sometimes brings out the best in people, and purple heart medals and heroic stories are testimony to this, but I believe that many soldiers from Iraq are making a tremendous sacrifice and returning home worse from their experiences, as many sustain traumatic brain injuries and suffer from PTSD.

Am I anti-war? I hate that label, because in our society, to label someone as anti-war also means that they're radically liberal or unpatriotic, but these words are just misguided attacks. I love my country, and I hate war. War is ugly and a result of the fall and the presence of sin in the world, and as Christians, we probably should be against war. I believe that wars are sometimes necessary and there is such a thing as a just war, but I believe that this current war against Iraq was unnecessary. I know that at the time, just about everyone in Washington, reds and blues alike, believed this war to be necessary, but they were making judgments off of false information. Now that we know more of the truth, we're so far into this war, that we can't just pull out, we have to stay and attempt to stabilize the country. I hope that good will come of this, for Iraq and the United States.

I want our nation to make wise decisions about war. I want us to stand up against injustice, with the help our international community, and use our military power for good. I doubt that the Republican party can adequately do that, and I'm not sure that the Democratic party can do it either. I really can't put my full hope in political leaders and policies, but I do put my hope in the belief that one day Christ will return, he will judge the nations, and we will beat our swords (or machine guns, or tanks) into plowshares and need weapons no longer.

Until that day, tanks will roll across the plains, reminding us of our fallen state.

Politically Speaking Part 1: Does welfare make people lazy and dependent on the government?

I tend to avoid discussing politics. For one thing, I never feel like I'm informed enough to make a good point or even have something worthwhile to contribute. But despite the amount of information I have or don't have, I mostly avoid it because too often political discussions become unproductive and downright nasty. I've seen otherwise nice and polite individuals become hostile toward one another just because they disagreed politically. People are passionate about politics (and rightfully so), but often this passion leads to blindness and deafness. People stop listening, and start shouting. Political discussions, and even presidential debates, often seem to me to just be contests of who can shout the loudest.

"I'll listen to other people's ideas, but they just need to realize that I'm always right," smirked a politically-minded friend last semester.
"Now, that doesn't leave much room for real dialogue, does it?" I smiled, patronizingly.

I would never want to discuss politics with a friend of that mindset. Well, I will admit, I do have another friend of a similar mindset with whom I do occasionally like to discuss politics, but mainly because she's so easily riled up and I like to get under her skin sometimes. But nothing productive ever comes out of it, as I'm often just playing devil's advocate and don't even share my true opinions with her.

However, last week I enjoyed a political discussion with a few people seated around a round table (how appropriate), in which we presented our ideas, questioned, argued, hypothesized, and no one got hurt. Surprisingly, I not only enjoyed this conversation but felt invigorated by it. I think it turned out well because people actually listened. Imagine, actually listening to someone you disagree with, and actually being heard by that person. I agree with Carl Rogers, to be heard really is something incredible. To be heard is to be respected and accepted in a way that words can never express.

So, perhaps political discussions aren't as scary as I had thought. On that note, I have some things to share in response to that conversation last week, Anton's posts about Ron Paul and his ideas on healthcare, and Martha's recent post about her political leanings. Anton, Martha, I respect and admire both of you. Fortunately, because slight differences among friends are good things, I respectfully disagree with some of your opinions. I do hear what you're saying and it's given me a lot to think about. I don't want you to feel singled out or attacked by this post - you guys were the inspiration for this, and I thank you. I want to respond with my thoughts, and give you and anyone else who reads this something to think about.

There are several things that I intended to address in this one post, but I began writing and realized that I was being too ambitious. This will merely hopefully be part one of a four or five part series addressing welfare, charity, healthcare, and how our taxes are spent. I think the quality of individuals posts will be better than if I just lumped all of my ideas together, and this also allows you guys to comment and me to respond to your comments throughout. Before reading Martha's post this morning, I had intended to write about my intense and unyielding love of HEB. By the end of this series, some of you may wish that I had carried out my original intention. But rest assured, once I get a few political thoughts out of my head and into the blogsphere, I'll be back to writing about HEB, trees, grad school, loneliness, whiteness, and whatever else I'm experiencing. But right now, I'm experiencing an unusual political interest, and I intend to take advantage of it.


Part 1: Does welfare make people lazy and dependent on the government?

Lots of people don't like the idea of spending their hard-earned money on poor people, arguing that they are lazy and welfare creates dependency, giving no incentive to find work and get off of welfare. It really is an awful idea. I work for my my money, so why should I be paying for someone who isn't working? Doesn't sound fair at all. As a social work minor, I remember in one course discussing myths about welfare. I tried to find these myths and facts online, and I found plenty, but most authors were citing statistics that were at least 10 years old, before the welfare reform of 1996 and TANF was created to replace the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program. So, I decided to just read up on Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and refresh myself on what exactly it is. First off, just reading the title, welfare is temporary and therefore shouldn't create dependency because at some point, a person will be unable to continue receiving it. I learned more reading this handy dandy fact sheet about TANF from the US Department of Health and Human Services:

"Five-Year Time Limit:

• Families with an adult who has received federally funded assistance for a total of five years (or less at state option) are not eligible for cash aid under the TANF program.
  
• States may extend assistance beyond 60 months to not more than 20 percent of their caseload. They may also elect to provide assistance to families beyond 60 months using state-only funds or Social Services Block Grants. "

If I'm reading this correctly, 80% or more of those receiving TANF will be completely cut off after five years, unless the state decides to use its own funds, but federal funds will not be provided. It's temporary; it's not designed to create dependence. If people are continuing to use TANF more than 5 years, then that's because of a state, not federal, choice.

"Work Requirements:

• Recipients (with few exceptions) must work as soon as they are job ready or no later than two years after coming on assistance.
  
• Single parents are required to participate in work activities for at least 30 hours per week. Two-parent families must participate in work activities 35 or 55 hours a week, depending upon circumstances.
  
• Failure to participate in work requirements can result in a reduction or termination of benefits to the family.
  
• States cannot penalize single parents with a child under six for failing to meet work requirements if they cannot find adequate child care.
  
• States, in FY 2004, have to ensure that 50 percent of all families and 90 percent of two-parent families are participating in work activities. If a state reduces its caseload, without restricting eligibility, it can receive a caseload reduction credit. This credit reduces the minimum participation rates the state must achieve. "

"Work activities" include employment, job training, education, and community service. Even job searching is considered a "work activity," but it is "not to exceed 6 total weeks and no more than 4 consecutive weeks." To receive this assistance, you must working or serving your community, or actively working to increase your ability to find a job through education or job training. TANF is designed to give individuals the incentive to find work. It's designed to temporarily help needy families get onto their feet so they can soon provide for themselves. If people are receiving TANF checks and sitting around not working or trying to work, or continuing to receive those checks for years and years, then the program isn't being implemented correctly.

Ok, so TANF is temporary and has built-in work requirements. What about other social services, such as Food Stamps or housing and energy assistance? I don't think the Food Stamp Program has any sort of work requirement, but according to its fact sheet:

"FSP provides crucial support to needy households and to those making the transition from welfare to work. In fact, 29 percent of participating food stamp households have earnings."

"The average time a food stamp recipient stays on the program is 9 months."

While it may not have the built-in incentives like TANF does, the Food Stamp Program also is generally being used temporarily. Without knowing the standard deviation of this 9 month average, there could be a wide spread, meaning that there may be outliers who use food stamps for years upon years, but these likely represent a very small portion of food stamp recipients.

In addition to nutrition assistance, low income households can receive government assistance in paying their energy bills. The federal government gives money for this to states, but lets the states decide eligibility and how it's allocated. Texans can apply for this assistance through the Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program (CEAP). Their website clearly states that CEAP is not an entitlement program, meaning that:

• "Program funds must be available;
• One must apply for the assistance and qualify;
• The assistance is not limitless (there are caps for assistance); and
• The assistance is determined on a case-by-case basis. "

There are plenty of government websites explaining what exactly these welfare services are, who's eligible, and for how long. If you're curious, go take a look, but I think the information I've surveyed shows a couple of interesting themes: 1) the temporary and limited nature of these services, and 2) the states' relative freedom in distributing the funds. Reading about these services, unless they're being horribly implemented and abused, I don't see how a family could become permanently dependent on the government for assistance.

Next Post: Could Charity Replace Welfare?