September 1, 2010
USA Today reported Monday that a record one in six Americans now receive some form of anti-poverty aid. One in six! More than 50 million Americans are on Medicaid, an increase of 17 percent since the recession began in December 2007. And doctors are squeezed with more and more patients. Wait until Obamacare kicks in.
More than 40 million people are on food stamps. That's up 50 percent. Close to 10 million receive unemployment insurance, nearly four times more than in 2007. More than 4.4 million are on welfare, an 18 percent increase.
This should be an embarrassment to a once-great country that has been known for self-reliance and individual initiative, not the power of the collective. But it is where the left wants to take us: more dependence on government and politicians, which will give them more power to regulate every aspect of our lives. And they will, unless we do something about it and soon. How about in November?
Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.
