Black Friday comes early as computer glitches cause welfare benefits frenzy.
Just like with our politicians when it's someone else's money there is no responsibility. The handout needs reform big time and those who went nuts need to not only pay back the system but be punished.
In some Walmart stores, customers emptied shelves like it was Black Friday, while in others, no one could buy anything -- all thanks to a weekend of glitches with the nation's welfare system.
Problems involving Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards, the government payments to the poor that are administered by states with the help of private companies, plagued at least 17 states Saturday and Sunday, creating retail riots. At Louisiana stores in Springhill and Mansfield, cards registered no spending limits, prompting recipients to go on buying binges.
"It was worse than any Black Friday,” Springhill Police Chief Will Lynd told local station KSLA-TV? "It was worse than any black Friday.”- Wll Lynd, Springhill, La., police chief
Customers said shelves were picked clean in a mob scene that left employees rattled. Walmart spokeswoman Kayla Whaling told the station the company made a conscious decision to keep ringing up goods rather than to cut people off.
"We did make the decision to continue to accept EBT cards (and purchases on WIC and SNAP) during the outage so that they could get food for their families," she said.
But when order was restored and the cards began reading properly, it became clear that some customers were out to take advantage of the taxpayer-funded program. One woman had $700 worth of merchandise in her cart and an EBT card with a balance of just 49 cents.
Just like with our politicians when it's someone else's money there is no responsibility. The handout needs reform big time and those who went nuts need to not only pay back the system but be punished.