UP IN SMOKE?

Before I proceed any further, let me get this out the way: Apologies to any weed heads who might be reading this. Trust me, this ain't about you; I've got no beef with people who be getting buzzed from a blunt. In fact, I've been a long-time supporter of the decriminalization of marijuana usage and, as far as I'm concerned, weed heads are the least of my worries. I'm more worried about:

• White power extremists who represent a threat to any semblance of democracy and to Black and Brown bodies

• Speech and policies that place the lives of members of the LGBTQIA community at risk

• Politicians who oppose reproductive justice

• Anti-vaxxers whose narrow and individualistic conceptions of freedom includes the "freedom" to infect others

• Elites who pander to plutocrats, suppress voting rights, and support mass incarceration

• Economic ghouls whose ghastly policies would only increase the misery of the "least of these."

That's just a partial list. But weed doesn't even make the longer one. But, apparently, it does make the list of some, including some people in power. Take, for instance, Senator Manchin. According to some sources, the Senator cited possible drug usage as one of the reasons he was opposed to continuation of the enhanced monthly child tax payments to households with children. Since July, eligible households--as part of the American Rescue Act-- had been receiving monthly payments of $300 for children aged 0-5 and $250 for kids between the ages of 6 and 17. For some people--and I suspect Manchin is one of them-- poor folk are a morally shady group that can't be trusted to do the right thing.

Poor folks don't have nice things because they don't do nice things. Nice things like not trying to scam the system. Nice things like prioritizing basic needs over catching a buzz. Nice things like not trying to pimp the taxpayer's purse to pursue a life of hedonism.

Poor folk don't have nice things because they don't do nice things. That's what we're often told and what Manchin--along with millions of others--apparently believes.

But is it true? How, exactly, have parents been using these monthly payments?

SPENDING ON BASICS, NOT SPLURGING ON BEER, BOOZE, AND WEED

On December 22nd, just a few days before Christmas, the Census Bureau released the results of a survey that queried adults if they lived in a household that had received a child tax payment during the past four weeks and, if so, how they used that money. 39% of respondents said they mostly spent the monthly checks, 23% said they mostly saved it, and about 38% told pollsters that they mostly used the money to pay down debt. Obviously, it's the "mostly spent" category that captures the imagination of opponents of financial assistance to the economically marginalized and where, according to them, one finds the morally shady lumbering about, searching for pleasure and dope.

And when the Census Bureau queried adults on what they "mostly spent" the child tax payments, here's some of what they found:

• 73% reported using the money on food for the family

• 40% said that they were using some of the money to cover such basic utilities as internet, electricity, gas, and cell phone

• 15% of adults reported using the money to help out with the purchase of school books and supplies

• 19.5% told pollsters they were the money to help pay their rent

• 14.7% said the monthly payments were helping them stay on top of their mortgage payments.

• 12% of adults said they used the money to assist with school tuition, after school programs, and tutoring services.

What's more, studies also indicate that a) lower income families receiving these payments are especially likely to report that they use them to meet basic needs and b) Black and Hispanic are more likely to allocate some or all of these child credits to education -related activities (e.g., school supplies).

So, here's the deal: If, like Manchin, one of the reasons your opposed to continuation of the enhanced Child Tax Care payments is because you're convinced that an additional several hundred dollars per month to folks who need it will make them go bananas and hell bent on a catching a buzz, I'd suggest that you relax. Seriously.

Ain't nothing going up in smoke.

Catch you on the flip side,

Doc Greene