The Houston Chronicle has a piece today that I’m sure is supposed to illicit sympathy for Hurricane Katrina victims (remember Hurricane Katrina — the natural disaster that hit the Gulf Coast more than 2 years ago?) who are losing their government paid for homes and apartments in Houston.
Families like Michelle Mercadel, pictured here.
I’m sorry — but how long does this lady and other Hurricane Katrina victims expect the government to pay their rent? Indefinitely?
It’s been two years of living rent free. If you can’t get yourself back on your feet after two years of assistance, you’re probably not all that motivated or inclined to actually do so.
If this mother of 9 can’t take care of her own kids, then there are other options. But permanent welfare shouldn’t be one of them.
The caption from the Chronicle picture reads: “Michelle Mercadel makes phone calls in a desperate search for housing “. Maybe sometime over the last two years she should have tried a little harder to find a new house or apartment, and — more importantly — a way to afford it on her own.
Why is it that the people who can least afford a big family also have the biggest ones?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Heartless racist bastard. I know.
Yes, she should have gotten a job. Yes, she shouldn’t have had kids she couldn’t care for. However, I don’t see how taking those kids away from her, splitting them up, and sticking them in foster care does anything but punish those least culpable.
Look, there is no way a single mother without a job (and even with a menial job) can care for 9 children financially. I can’t even imagine it. They will go without food, clothes and a roof over their head. There is no choice but to put such children in foster care.
This is a really sad story. The mother must be retarded or mentally ill or something. No rational person would make the decisions she has apparently made.
Houston took in a very large number of displaced people from NOLA, after that beeyotch Katrina.
As sad as this situation is, it was being played out in NOLA for generations, with little notice. The poverty, drugs, crime, and welfare were the side of NOLA most didn’t know about or want to see. Now it has been thrust into the spotlight because of situations like this, as well as the crime. If Katrina hadn’t done the damage it did, though it was only a question of time and it could have been much worse, we wouldn’t even know about this woman and her plight. Also, my cousin’s 82 year old mother in law wouldn’t have had her head bashed in with a tire tool, by two Katrina displaced punks, who were caught several days later using her credit cards. The sweet lady who was attacked, lingered for two days, before her wounds took her life.
So count me in on the cold and heartless feelings toward many of the Katrina refugees.
Look, there is no way a single mother without a job (and even with a menial job) can care for 9 children financially.
There’s no way a single mother with a job can take care of 9 kids, either. She is eligible for assistance and food stamps. What she lacks is housing. She had moved in with her mother but they were told that the number of people exceeded the occupancy limit. Again, I see nothing to be gained by separating these kids from their mother. The kids are safer with their mother than if they were split up and put in various foster care homes.
Sorry, Anon, but I disagree with your assessment that they are better off and safer with their mother.
I think they’d be better off, and infinitely safer, with a mother who could afford to house them, cloth them, FEED them, and provide them with the proper medical attention.
I’m not making any judgments on how much this woman loves or cares for her children.
But sometimes love and caring just isn’t enough.
Maybe this lady had the benefit of that “Abstinance Only” sex education some people are so crazy about. Rather than criticize this woman or threaten to take her children away why not show some of that compassionate conservatism or 1000 points of light stuff. Oh, yeah, that was only meant to close the subject so we could go on feeling good about ourselves. She deserves what she gets, we have trillions of dollars that we need to spend securing oil and profits for private contracters in the Middle East.
CW, you’re a screaming liberal who looks for excuses to perpetuate bad choices and behavior instead of finding ways to resolve problems and encouraging responsible behavior. If you feel so damn bad for this woman, send her YOUR check . I’m sure she qualified for and gets medicaid including free birth control pills if she wants them. I’m also sure there are plenty of Planned Parenthood facilities in Houston.
I’m more concerned about her children and how they’ll be taken care of. If she cared about feeding the children she already had, she wouldn’t have got pregnant with another one.
I think they’d be better off, and infinitely safer, with a mother who could afford to house them, cloth them, FEED them, and provide them with the proper medical attention.
Well, that’s not an option now is it? So going on and on about it is not a solution if you really care about the welfare of these small children. Again, there is nothing to gain by taking those kids away from her, splitting them up, and placing them in a foster care system where there is no guarantee the kids will not be physically, psychologically, and/or sexually abused. If you have no problems with that — if you don’t give a shit about those kids because they are the kids of someone you have disdain for, just be up front about it.
Sorry Diane,
You were right. I was wrong. I will change my ways. I think I will go donate my whole paycheck to planned parenthood. I wonder if I can get a tax decuction for that?
Anon, what guarantees do you have to offer that these kids will not suffer the same types of abuse and more if they manage to stay out of the foster care system and are on the streets with little or no money ?
first of all,she needs to stop screwin’ around,or get her tubes tied.then find all the”baby daddies”…where are they at?doesnt sound like they are paying any child support,much less involved in their childrens lives.She should be getting at least $1000 a month for those kids from the “daddies”.why isnt she?does the “dont snitch!!” rule apply to this situation too?why doesnt she work full time?is it because she cant find anything full time?(doubtful)or will she lose some free govt.benefits if she actually earns some benefits.and her 2 teenage kids could pitch in babysitting,and getting part time jobs as well.