Mandatory welfare recipient drug testing

 In the news again today, I found a story of the mandatory drug testing the state of Florida has been trying to implement, and the court battle from a lawsuit, just a few months ago. At first glance, it would seem like a really good idea, depending on how it would be implemented, without invading a person's civil rights, According to this article, over at Time magazine, "But as government policy, drug testing is being oversold. These laws do not do what their supporters claim. And more importantly: they are likely to be unconstitutional".

 As a recovering addict, with 11 years clean, I know how this would have affected me back then. Now that I look back though, I realize that in truth, I only remember a few of my fellow addicts (Methamphetamine’s) that were ever employed, and usually for s short time at best. We as addicts, learned to work the system to our best advantage. We could easily spend the cash we received for our drug use, and tobacco products, and use our food stamps as well, to trade for drugs.We also knew that anytime we ended up short of rent or other neccesities, their was always a church, or some other organization that would gladly help us to pay our bills, or buy clothes etc etc. 

  If mandatory drug testing had been in place back then, would we be clean ? That is hard to answer, we also knew ways around the drug testing. it is real easy to buy products that will clean your system out, or to find a friend that would urinate in the little cup for you, that was clean at the time. It took them taking my youngest daughter away though, before I wised up, went inpatient for 6 months, and fighting the CPS (Child Protective Services) here  to regain custody of her.

 AS odd as it may sound, i like to believe that Mandatory drug testing is a good thing. It is just a matter of finding the fine line that the state can legally walk, without stomping all over someones civil rights.