CRITICAL THINKING/EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION PAGE 1 OF 3

DRUG TESTING FOR WELFARE

CRITICAL THINKING/EFFECTIVE COMMUNIATION PAGE 2 OF 3 In the following paper I will discuss the topic of welfare and is it fair to drug test for welfare. I will go into the pro’s and con’s of the subject and why I disagree with this article on the stance that it is not fair to drug test the applicants for welfare. The main premise of the article, by the author, is to state the stance that it is not fair to drug test applicants. That the stigma of people who use welfare is already bad, so now they have to be classified as drug users too. Added to the argument is, are they going to test alcoholics for alcohol or prescription drug users for that as well. While I agree that just testing for drugs should not be the end all be all, I think that it is an important step in weeding out certain people from the people who really need it. Let’s look at the facts; there is no real way to police people from using welfare or food stamps properly. It has also been proven that it is widely abused and it is very easy to work the system to get. As a hard working tax payer, it frustrates me that people work the system and get my hard earned money in return. The way I approach this subject and many other subjects is would it be unfair for me or would it violate my rights. I view drug testing for welfare a lot like drug testing for a job. If you want the job you have to abide by the rules of the employer and submit a background check and a drug test. Same goes for welfare, if you really want the help, why should a drug test stand in the way. In my opinion, the majority of the people who have a problem with this, are the very people working the system and could possibly have a drug problem. Let me add that I also do not