Um....making welfare a loan is a BAD idea. Think of it this way, if a person is poor enough to be on welfare, what makes you think that he/she can ever repay back a loan....even if it's interest free.

Also, you have to remember that once this person gets off welfare and starts making money...that money will go towards basic needs such as rent, food, etc. There is no way to work a monthly welfare repayment back into his/her budget. Then again, this person paying income/sales tax is a way to repay the system.

I guess the point I am trying to make is that welfare is a must. You have to prime the pump on the economy. It's sad that there is abuse, but there's abuse on any system you can think of. Hell, the system is not perfect, but that doesn't mean you need to get rid of it. I agree that there has to be a change to the system, but thus far no one came up with a feasiable solution to the problem.