The system is built for us, man
September 2, 2009 7:53 AM   Subscribe

A woman in Wisconsin was able to go from being a single mother in poverty to living in the lap of luxury, all within a few years, by defrauding the state of Wisconsin. Since 1999, this woman has received $3 million from the state. Most of that is for employing other single moms so she can get their children on the attendance rolls. Many more examples of epic government fail inside. Read Part 1 and Part 2.
posted by reenum (17 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: I'm sure this was a coup for the Journal Sentinal, but out of that specific local-journo context this really does read like a heavy-handed rehash of the 80s "Welfare Queen" boogeyman. I don't know if your more inside was supposed to redeem this if it had existed, but it doesn't and this isn't great. -- cortex



 
Oh, nice. Welfare Queen, Part II. This was so huge in the 80s, I'm not surprised they're doing a reboot.
posted by absalom at 7:55 AM on September 2, 2009 [5 favorites]


Many more examples of epic government fail inside.

Epic post fail.

Also, an alternative view.
posted by DU at 7:59 AM on September 2, 2009


Wow, so this must mean that all government programs are bad and we should cut all of them. </glibertarian>
posted by octothorpe at 8:02 AM on September 2, 2009


No, but there should be better oversight of the government programs we do have. These articles shows a worst case scenario.
posted by reenum at 8:05 AM on September 2, 2009


And a self favorite?
posted by bastionofsanity at 8:07 AM on September 2, 2009


No, but there should be better oversight of the government programs we do have.

I applaud your call for more regulation and suggest it be extended into the private-yet-mandatory sphere.
posted by DU at 8:07 AM on September 2, 2009


Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet SINGLE MOTHER consectetur adipiscing elit. Vivamus et LUXURY tellus semper SINGLE MOTHERS nisl lacinia GOVERNMENT FAIL vehicula.

That dog-whistle don't hunt.
posted by joe lisboa at 8:07 AM on September 2, 2009


Is this intended to be an expose on somebody criminally defrauding a government service, or is it meant to be anger fodder for shouty people who intend to use it as grounds to abolish the government service, punish and humiliate those who could benefit from it, and publicly excoriate anybody who would speak up on behalf of it?

Because I remember stories like this cropping up during the Reagan administration and what happened afterward. I'm not keen on a replay of it.
posted by ardgedee at 8:07 AM on September 2, 2009


Let us take this story as a lesson, that punishing those who defraud the government of the people is a just act, and that regulators and investigators should have the power to pursue those who steal from the commonweal to the ends of the earth, that they may be brought swiftly to justice.

...

Oh, wait - that's not the lesson? It's that government is bad and minorities are all thieves?

Whoops. Sorry.

I take it all back.
posted by mhoye at 8:08 AM on September 2, 2009 [1 favorite]


government fail

that's like saying you have engaged in NOT-DYING FAIL if someone comes up to you and shoots you in the head
posted by Optimus Chyme at 8:08 AM on September 2, 2009 [3 favorites]


Let's follow this with a post about people pretending to be mentally ill so they can lounge around in luxurious government funded mental hospitals. Then in just 8 years we can elect George Bush Sr. to his second term!
posted by rusty at 8:09 AM on September 2, 2009


Yay reanimated Reagan zombie ideology!
posted by blucevalo at 8:11 AM on September 2, 2009


Yay reanimated Reagan zombie ideology!

"My followers need BRAAAAAINS! No, really. They're right loopy."
posted by joe lisboa at 8:14 AM on September 2, 2009


Good show reenum. It's about time people started shining a spotlight on the poor black ladies who got us into this terrible mess. If they're allowed to get their way, they'll keep squandering our money on boondoggles like this "health care" everyone's talking about. Really, our money is safer in the hands of our bankers, trustworthy fellows, all of them.
posted by felix betachat at 8:15 AM on September 2, 2009 [4 favorites]


Okay, I read some of the article, and the crusading tone -- blaming (in part 2) everybody from caseworkers to Wisconsin's Governor to the U.S. Congress for the lack of awareness that a felon got government support they were not entitled to -- would be dismissed as the tinfoil-hat ranting of a freeper if it wasn't a bylined report in a city newspaper.

Fraud should be exposed and punished, but projecting local problems into national scope for the benefit of demagogic self-aggrandizement does not improve anything. This isn't the best of the internet, or the best of much of anything, really.
posted by ardgedee at 8:15 AM on September 2, 2009


Libertarian types see this and conclude that she is essentially stealing from "hard-working taxpayers" and call for an end to these wasteful programs. I see it more as stealing from the legitimate welfare claimants who would otherwise get this money, which is much worse.
And yeah, they need to crack down on this stuff without jeopardizing the whole system.
posted by rocket88 at 8:15 AM on September 2, 2009


Two pointless tiny anecdotes. Flagged.
posted by lupus_yonderboy at 8:17 AM on September 2, 2009


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