Reprinted from Smirking Chimp
Who should we really be drug testing?
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has signed a series of bills into law that will require some welfare recipients in Michigan to be drug-tested.
Meanwhile, other states are considering following in Rick Snyder's footsteps.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is on the record saying that he also wants to make drug testing welfare recipients and applicants a law.
And, according to ThinkProgress, "In 2014, at least 18 states introduced proposals or addressed bills that would require some form of drug testing or screening for applicants for or recipients of public assistance."
One of the main reasons why conservatives across the US are trying to pass welfare drug-testing laws is to shame and punish poor people. It's really that simple. But they rationalize it by saying they need to "control government costs."
Welfare programs in the United States include programs like the Women, Infants and Children program (WIC) and food stamps.
And, as Lou Colagiovanni over at Examiner.com points out, in 2012, a married person with one child making $50,000 per year paid just over $36 in taxes for "food and nutrition assistance" programs like food stamps and WIC.
That's just 10 cents per day!
While conservatives will never admit it, welfare is a mind-bogglingly small expense and a very small piece of the pie.
On the other hand, the nation's biggest welfare recipients -- rich people and big corporations -- are making out like bandits, because the welfare they take isn't for food or housing -- it's to increase their profits and wealth.
As Paul Bucheit points out over at Common Dreams, the average US family pays a staggering $6,000 each year in subsidies to big business.
Think about that for a second.
Each year, you're forking over around $6,000 of your hard-earned money to big banks, fossil fuel giants and massive transnational corporations that already rake in billions and billions of dollars in profits.
But you don't see conservatives arguing against that.
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