As it stands right now, faith-based organizations can administered public welfare programs, though the majority are still administered by the states. In the new American theocracy, states will get out of the business altogether! All such programs will be run through churches.
I imagine there will be religious-based litmus tests. Heathens will find it hard to get any assistance at all. This means, of course, that people from all faiths and walks of life will need to agree to be taught the word of God IF they want to eat or get help with housing or finding a job. It may simply be lip service, but, once many people start down that road, it will be a lot easier to reel them in.
Hand in hand with turning public welfare programs over the the church, federal funding will be drastically decreased with the goal of complete elimination of taxpayer dollars. In place of federal money, charitable donations will become the funding source.
Needless to say, donations will not keep in step with the need! So, churches will need to prioritize who among the poor receives assistance. Those individuals and families who happen to be non-Christian, non-white, headed by a single mother and/or live in undesirable places will be pushed to the back of the line or out of the line altogether.
The homeless will become legion and, in an effort to "curb" the problem, workhouses will be established. Workers from the workhouses will be "employed" like prison inmates are today.
If you're interested in reading more from this tongue-in-cheek series, go to the The American Theocracy Index page.
I imagine there will be religious-based litmus tests. Heathens will find it hard to get any assistance at all. This means, of course, that people from all faiths and walks of life will need to agree to be taught the word of God IF they want to eat or get help with housing or finding a job. It may simply be lip service, but, once many people start down that road, it will be a lot easier to reel them in.
Hand in hand with turning public welfare programs over the the church, federal funding will be drastically decreased with the goal of complete elimination of taxpayer dollars. In place of federal money, charitable donations will become the funding source.
Needless to say, donations will not keep in step with the need! So, churches will need to prioritize who among the poor receives assistance. Those individuals and families who happen to be non-Christian, non-white, headed by a single mother and/or live in undesirable places will be pushed to the back of the line or out of the line altogether.
The homeless will become legion and, in an effort to "curb" the problem, workhouses will be established. Workers from the workhouses will be "employed" like prison inmates are today.
If you're interested in reading more from this tongue-in-cheek series, go to the The American Theocracy Index page.
It's back to the 19th century.
ReplyDelete