while I don't think it should be nightmarish and demeaning, I don't think TANF/Welfare/Food Stamps/etc should be a pleasant process. It should be a wake up call. A few years back I lost my job and it took me almost two months to find a new job. In those two months, I was working 10 hours a day looking for work, whether it be by filling out job applications online or in person, or talking to people who are well connected, I was working HARD to find my job. Luckily I had planned ahead and had a bit of cash, food, and even gasoline saved up and my wife and I didn't have to apply for any assistance. I would have felt like a failure if I had to ask the government for help, and I feel like that's the way it should be. We had to pinch pennies for a while while we waited for my first paycheck at my next job, but we never missed a rent payment or any other bills due to me losing my job.
TL;DR - Assistance programs are necessary but it should not be a comfortable process.
First off, I think you handled your brush with joblessness like a champ! I will bet that not everyone can be as strong minded, driven and forward thinking as yourself though. I think these programs need a certain level of structure so that they cannot be abused, but I also strongly believe that for the people that end up in the horrible situation of having to actually use them should still have some shred of dignity remaining while they go through the process of getting back on their feet, shaming these people will work against them in the end.
while I don't think it should be nightmarish and demeaning, I don't think TANF/Welfare/Food Stamps/etc should be a pleasant process. It should be a wake up call. A few years back I lost my job and it took me almost two months to find a new job. In those two months, I was working 10 hours a day looking for work, whether it be by filling out job applications online or in person, or talking to people who are well connected, I was working HARD to find my job. Luckily I had planned ahead and had a bit of cash, food, and even gasoline saved up and my wife and I didn't have to apply for any assistance. I would have felt like a failure if I had to ask the government for help, and I feel like that's the way it should be. We had to pinch pennies for a while while we waited for my first paycheck at my next job, but we never missed a rent payment or any other bills due to me losing my job.
TL;DR - Assistance programs are necessary but it should not be a comfortable process.
First off, I think you handled your brush with joblessness like a champ! I will bet that not everyone can be as strong minded, driven and forward thinking as yourself though. I think these programs need a certain level of structure so that they cannot be abused, but I also strongly believe that for the people that end up in the horrible situation of having to actually use them should still have some shred of dignity remaining while they go through the process of getting back on their feet, shaming these people will work against them in the end.