Lori Alexander - She didn't need no welfare

[AtroposHeart]

Dr. Carson spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast this past week. Ken and I watched him be interviewed by Hannity last night. He has an amazing story to tell!

He was raised by a single mother who only had a third grade education. She married at thirteen years old and was one of 24 children. He was raised in poverty and was not a good student. However, his mother refused to be a victim and she never felt sorry for herself. She never allowed her children to feel sorry for themselves either.

She refused to be on welfare. She saw that no one who ever went on welfare came off of it. She never wanted to be dependent on anyone so she worked as long and as hard as was necessary to provide for her family.

She cleaned homes for a living and observed that the people whose homes she cleaned didn't watch much television. They spent a lot of time reading and strategizing. One day, she came home and turned the television off and told her children that if they improved themselves and their brains, one day people would be watching them on television.

She made them read and write book reports. He realized once he started reading, many things opened up to him. He began using his imagination! Within a year, he went from the bottom of the class to the top of the class. {We home schooled our children through junior high. All I had them do was read for two hours a day and do math. They all love to read and benefited greatly from this.}

He believes political correctness is dangerous and Americans need to get over their sensitivity. Our constitution gives everyone freedom of speech and it should always be allowed. He said America's educational system is a failure and children are being dumbed down. He spoke about the dangers of our debt, class warfare, etc.

He prays before every speech asking God to give him the right words to say. Few people speak truth and the fabric of our nation is being destroyed. He said our nation is going from a "can do" nation to a "what can you do for me?" nation. People know so little today and believe whatever the news media tells them. People are being too easily led which is very dangerous.

Hannity asked him if he would run for president and he responded, "If the Lord grabbed me by the collar and made me run." {Dear Lord, grab him by the collar!} Thank you, Jesus, for men like him who are not afraid to stand up and speak Truth!

By the way, he is a pediatric neurosurgeon and wrote a book called America The Beautiful.

lorialexander.blogspot.com/2013/02/dr-benjamin-carson-for-president.html

[linnea27]

I hate that these people insist that being a SAHM is the only natural and honourable occupation for a woman. Unless you are a single mom. Then you get out of the house and bust your ass at a "suitable" low paying job, otherwise you are taking away work from the strong, innocent men WHO ARE JUST TRYING TO PROVIDE FOR THEIR FAMILY.

The mind, it boggles.

[EyeQueue]

She saw that no one who ever went on welfare came off of it.

Nope. No one EVAR!!11eleventy has EVAR came off of welfare.

Never happened.

/bullshit

[lilwriter85]

I read that posting a couple of days and I also bullshit on Carson's mom saying that nobody ever got off welfare. Yes, some people do stay on welfare for years. But some people do get off welfare. Lori also needs to realize that some people in certain situations don't want to be on welfare but they do it for their kids.

[JMarie]

Lori's homeschooling curiculum consists of reading and math, nothing else?

[tanksmom]

Dear Lori and your ilk,

I was on welfare, government assistance, food stamps or whatever you wish to call it. It kept me from starving, helped me get an education and helped me to improve my career and job prospects. I have since gotten off assistance. I have plenty of friends who are the same way.

Do me a favor Lori, go fuck yourself.

[Dixiebelle]

For Lori's info - We were on welfare once, for about a year, when my husband was laid off. It took him a year to find a job and then we went off welfare. Ba-da-bing, ba-da-boom.

[GiggleOfGirls]

A friend of mine had food stamps until her asshole abusive deadbeat ex-husband was forced to start paying child support because the child support enforcement people finally caught up to him. Now she's not using food stamps any more. Shock and awe!

[dairyfreelife]

As I have said before, Lori was born, raised and married into priviledge. She does not know a difficult life or money struggles if it came and bit her on the ass. Her whining about other people on welfare is just another "I got mine, so fuck the rest of you"attitude. She lives in a wealthy area and I doubt Lori knows anyone in serious proverty, just hears stories and parrots without any real awareness. Age does not always=wisdom. Lori is proof of that.

[jenny_islander]

I read that posting a couple of days and I also bullshit on Carson's mom saying that nobody ever got off welfare. Yes, some people do stay on welfare for years. But some people do get off welfare. Lori also needs to realize that some people in certain situations don't want to be on welfare but they do it for their kids.

People who like to bwah-bwah on about those lazy welfare so-and-sos ignore that the only way to get off welfare is to get a job. Which means that jobs have to, you know, exist. I've spoken with people who have been trying to find a job, any job, for several years. They apply, so do 200 other people, they don't even get as far as an interview, lather rinse repeat. I'm talking degree holders trying to get a job flipping burgers.

Also: Our house is warm at this moment because we got a state fuel aid check. The price of fuel has gone up and up; my husband's income hasn't, despite working at the same place for years with excellent job reviews. Everybody at that place has had to endure a wage freeze and he can't get a job anywhere else that gives equivalent benefits. I am meeting with a WIC coordinator next week and applying for state-subsidized dependent children's health and dental insurance for the same reason.

[SamuraiKatz]

People who like to bwah-bwah on about those lazy welfare so-and-sos ignore that the only way to get off welfare is to get a job. Which means that jobs have to, you know, exist. I've spoken with people who have been trying to find a job, any job, for several years. They apply, so do 200 other people, they don't even get as far as an interview, lather rinse repeat. I'm talking degree holders trying to get a job flipping burgers.

Also: Our house is warm at this moment because we got a state fuel aid check. The price of fuel has gone up and up; my husband's income hasn't, despite working at the same place for years with excellent job reviews. Everybody at that place has had to endure a wage freeze and he can't get a job anywhere else that gives equivalent benefits. I am meeting with a WIC coordinator next week and applying for state-subsidized dependent children's health and dental insurance for the same reason.

If you need it go for it. I think WIC is a great program. Lori is clueless.

[lilwriter85]

As I have said before, Lori was born, raised and married into priviledge. She does not know a difficult life or money struggles if it came and bit her on the ass. Her whining about other people on welfare is just another "I got mine, so fuck the rest of you"attitude. She lives in a wealthy area and I doubt Lori knows anyone in serious proverty, just hears stories and parrots without any real awareness. Age does not always=wisdom. Lori is proof of that.

I also doubt that Lori knows anyone in serious poverty. If she knew a few, I think her attitudes on welfare, WIC, etc would have change a bit. Lori also refuses to learn about certain things. I laugh at her whenever she preaches to others about having big families. She admits she didn't have more because of health problems. I think she doesn't realize that her husband might have struggled if he had to support a large family on one income especially in California.

[Claddagh]

When Brother Claddagh and I were very young our parents were on welfare and food stamps. Dad had gotten laid off his job and Mom was looking for work. If it weren't for government assistance we would've lost the house, been out on the street, and starved.

Mom and Dad both found work and went off the welfare program and food stamps.

[YPestis]

I'm skeptical about this guy's claim that his mother never used to welfare but managed to raise him by doing low income job cleaning houses. Last time I checked, most of those jobs didn't have insurance and didn't pay enough to allow a person to buy insurance for themselves. Now, unless this mother was foregoing health care for her and her child(ren), she probably used government welfare. If his mother decided that welfare is evil! evil! evil! and never allowed her kids to see a doctor, then I'll eat crow and admit that perhaps she never took government money. Then, I'll call her a bad mother.

Truth of the matter is, there are many forms of government aid. Some are obvious, and gets ballyhooed such as food stamps and welfare checks. Others are less so, such as extended unemployment benefits, child tax refund and medicaid.

I think it's funny this guy is a pediatric surgeon and talks about not taking welfare. In pediatrics, half of American children receive care through medicaid. I wonder what he'd say if medicaid was cut off for those kids so their parents could "get off welfare". This guy would be out of a job.

[KBepote]

I'm skeptical about this guy's claim that his mother never used to welfare but managed to raise him by doing low income job cleaning houses. Last time I checked, most of those jobs didn't have insurance and didn't pay enough to allow a person to buy insurance for themselves. Now, unless this mother was foregoing health care for her and her child(ren), she probably used government welfare. If his mother decided that welfare is evil! evil! evil! and never allowed her kids to see a doctor, then I'll eat crow and admit that perhaps she never took government money. Then, I'll call her a bad mother.

/quote]

When I was a child, our household qualified for welfare/Medicaid many times, but my parents refused to apply (pride, god, church, etc.). We were uninsured for most of my childhood.

[cindyluvs24]

Generalizing here but most of the cleaning ladies used to collect welfare and then clean houses for cash under the table to supplement. Fine. However.... perhaps if his mother had not been one of 24 children, she might have benefitted from a better upbringing, more education etc.

[Boltingmadonna]

Dr. Carson is a remarkable person. And I WISH that all we need do to magically turn all poor, malnourished kids with inadequate health care into neurosurgeons was to turn off their TVs. Sadly, I do not think one follows from the other.

[Joan of Snarc]

People know so little today and believe whatever the news media tells them. People are being too easily led which is very dangerous.

Says the woman repeating what she hears on Hannity as if it's fact.

:roll:

[outrunningzombies]

I'm skeptical about this guy's claim that his mother never used to welfare but managed to raise him by doing low income job cleaning houses. Last time I checked, most of those jobs didn't have insurance and didn't pay enough to allow a person to buy insurance for themselves. Now, unless this mother was foregoing health care for her and her child(ren), she probably used government welfare. If his mother decided that welfare is evil! evil! evil! and never allowed her kids to see a doctor, then I'll eat crow and admit that perhaps she never took government money. Then, I'll call her a bad mother.

Truth of the matter is, there are many forms of government aid. Some are obvious, and gets ballyhooed such as food stamps and welfare checks. Others are less so, such as extended unemployment benefits, child tax refund and medicaid.

I think it's funny this guy is a pediatric surgeon and talks about not taking welfare. In pediatrics, half of American children receive care through medicaid. I wonder what he'd say if medicaid was cut off for those kids so their parents could "get off welfare". This guy would be out of a job.

Especially since he worked (works?) at Johns Hopkins, which is in the middle of the poorest spot of one of the poorest cities in America.

He seems to be an incredibly talented surgeon, and good for him for escaping poverty, but I'm sick of the false idea that if you work hard enough you'll get ahead and be a world famous surgeon. What about the kids who can't spend extra time studying because they're working to support their family? The ones with a single mom (or two parents) who are working evenings and weekends to pay rent, so the kids rarely see their parents? How about the poor people who went to college with my husband--as part of the top 10% of their class in high school, they were automatically admitted to the flagship public state school but the ones from very poor districts were so ill prepared they were in remedial classes for the first year and (anecdotally) had a much higher drop out rate.

Edited for riffles

[lilwriter85]

Especially since he worked (worked?) at Johns Hopkins, which is in the middle of the poorest spot of one of the poorest cities in America.

He seems to be an incredibly talented surgeon, and good for him for escaping poverty, but I'm sick of the false idea that if you work hard enough you'll get ahead and be a world famous surgeon. What about the kids who can't spend extra time studying because they're working to support their family? The ones with a single mom (or two parents) who are working evenings and weekends to pay rent, so the kids rarely see their parents? How about the poor people who went to college with my husband--as part of the top 10% of their class in high school, they were automatically admitted to the flagship public state school but the ones from very poor districts were so ill prepared they were in remedial classes for the first year and (anecdotally) had a much higher drop out rate.

I agree with all of this. I knew a few people during high school who had after school jobs to help their families out. Sometimes their grades did suffer.

[quincygal]

Didn't Jesus encourage people to help each other??? Widows, orphans & whatnot? And as a pediatrician, shouldn't he WANT children to get medical care & enough to eat??? What if these were his kids? Couldn't these programs be God working to help you through your tough times?

I'd rather my taxes go up higher so I know people are being taken care of than not.

We can spend our tax dollars on helping kids & families or we can jail them later.

[countressrascal]

Let's set the record straight on Dr Carson and his comment about welfare. First off, I think that it is great that he escaped poverty to become a neurosurgeon, I have no issue with that. It is welfare comment since he recieved fed money through out his career and still is. So I guess it depends your defintion of welfare.

He went to Yale, I am sure that it was a fully funded ride, then U of Mich med school which is a state supported med school and since he was a resident of Mich his tution was state supported. If he took out any loans to get thru med school they were federally funded (welfare). After med school he did a 7-8 yrs resident and fellowship program, which is totally funded by Medicare (welfare). Then if he purchased a house during that time, he recieved a mortage that was subized by the federal government under a medical professional program (welfare). Since he is located at John Hopkins, he could have served a number of years in their federally funded clinic (welfare) to reduce his med school loans.

[Closed Womb]

I find it very believable that Carson's mother would have said that "he saw that no one who ever went on welfare came off of it" (emphasis mine). If she was living in poverty, there is a good chance that she saw plenty of people, maybe even most or all of the people around her, stay on some form of permanent government assistance. Obviously, many, many people do come out of the welfare system; my own family, who used foodstamps for a year or two in the 1970s, is an example of this. However, it is entirely possible that Mother Carson did not see this firsthand.

Government assistance/welfare used to be a way of life for some people (and I assume it still is for some people, although changes from the 1990s makes it harder to be permanently on assistance, as I understand it.) I am not saying this in a derogatory manner. My own great-grandmother, who lost her husband during war, remained on some form of government assistance from the time of his death until her own. With three kids and little working skill, her earnings never brought her above the poverty line. I know what government cheese is (and happen to think it makes the best grilled cheese sandwiches ever.)

My question is this: did life every improve for MOM? Or did she work long, hard hours without financial assistance while never getting her head above water?

tl;dr - I think Mother Carson really did say that she never saw anyone come off welfare, not because no one ever did, but because she did not see it firsthand.

[Maggie Mae]

Especially since he worked (works?) at Johns Hopkins, which is in the middle of the poorest spot of one of the poorest cities in America.

He seems to be an incredibly talented surgeon, and good for him for escaping poverty, but I'm sick of the false idea that if you work hard enough you'll get ahead and be a world famous surgeon. What about the kids who can't spend extra time studying because they're working to support their family? The ones with a single mom (or two parents) who are working evenings and weekends to pay rent, so the kids rarely see their parents? How about the poor people who went to college with my husband--as part of the top 10% of their class in high school, they were automatically admitted to the flagship public state school but the ones from very poor districts were so ill prepared they were in remedial classes for the first year and (anecdotally) had a much higher drop out rate.

Edited for riffles

Me too. Even if you are middle class and get decent grades in high school, you still have to pay for college. In the US, our financial aid system for higher education sucks for anyone who has parents. We are supposed to be adults at 18, yet our parents are expected to contribute x amount of dollars per year for college. If you can't get your parents to do their taxes and tell you their income, you can't apply for aid. If your parents have outrageous medical expenses ($1000/month in copays) you can't go to college unless you knew in advance to save $10,000 or more from working minimum age jobs at coffee shops or retail. (The only places that really hire 16 year olds.) If you do work and manage to save money, the good colleges don't want you because you don't have extra curricular activities. Yes, there are people who are able to go to school, work, do 3-5 clubs and sports, paint a mural, volunteer, and take care of their sick relatives. Oh, and do the 3-4 hours of homework every night, and keep up on pop culture and normal teen things so they aren't ostracized at school. But I don't know any of those people.

[hapamama]

If you need it go for it. I think WIC is a great program. Lori is clueless.

Our electric bill is subsidized. Our kids being eligible for reduced price school lunches makes us eligible for a 20% discount on our PG&E bill. It probably saves us $600-$800/year.