Abuse of the welfare system has become a serious problem today.

Welfare is the money or assistance granted by the Government to help needy people who are suffering from poverty or other social and economic issues.

Earlier, this assistance was used by needy individuals to enter into mainstream society and some people used this money to further their skills that enabled them to find better jobs.

Unfortunately, over a period of time this welfare system became largely unpopular and people started to abuse the system.

The primary problem with this kind of assistance is that the assistance is not related to work.

In other words, the beneficiaries do not have to work to receive the federal assistance.

As a result, many generations of families have been living off welfare assistance and have not made any reasonable efforts to find jobs for themselves.

This money has not been used constructively in many ways and the whole idea of giving money to people who are socio-economically backward has lost it's meaning.

All this has led to massive abuse and manipulation of the system.

AMERICA WANTS AN ANSWER

WELFARE SOCIAL STIGMA

Abuse of the welfare system is so prevalent now that many people view the recipients of assistance with scorn.

There maybe some genuine single mothers who may use the assistance, but the overall impression on the minds of the public is that they receive taxpayers money without doing any work.

This social stigma attached to the welfare system has increased public resentment towards it.

What was once viewed as helping hand, after decades of misuse and abuse, is now view as social scar in the eyes of those who work hard for what little they have.

WELFARE REFORM ACT 1996

Government has taken some steps to curb the abuse of the welfare system.

One such step was the Welfare Reform Act of 1996.

Under this act, single mothers had limited access to temporary assistance and there were rules that they had to follow in order to avail the assistance.

Though it has had some impact, there is still a long way to go.

The welfare system shackles the very foundation of hard work, individualism, and free thinking on which the society is built.

It is definitely necessary to help needy people but the categorization of who is really "needy" is ambiguous.

This ambiguity has helped many people to thwart the founding principles of the American society.

PREVENTING WELFARE FRAUD

What can the citizens of this country do to prevent the abuse of the welfare system?

To start with, it is important to force the Government to enact laws and implement the same to ensure that people do not get "free" money that they can use for their living expenses.

A united and dedicated effort from the citizens alone will prevent this abuse.

This action by the citizens of this country is very important to curb drug abuse, lawlessness, and frauds.

It is very basic that every individual must work hard to earn the money required for their next meal. Healthy individuals are in a position to take care of themselves without any kind of dependence on the society or the Government.

The mindset of the purpose of welfare must change. Families who are multi-generational users of welfare need education to break the cycle of dependency. A man is not helped by feeding him a fish if he is hungry, he is helped by teaching him how to fish so that he may provide for himself and his family.