Unemployment benefits extended; should they be?

Unemployment continues to be a plague in our country. Many struggle to find and keep jobs  which pay enough to sustain a suitable life for them and their families.

These people  generally turn toward unemployment benefits to help relieve the burden while searching for the jobs. Many of these benefits, however, expired on Dec. 28 last year.

Recently, a bipartisan bill was moved forward in the Senate to extend jobless benefits. However, the extension is a hot topic up for debate.

On one hand, many of the unemployed do have families to take care of while trying to look
for job opportunities. It is hard to juggle taking care of the household while not being
able to give all of their time and effort to job searching.

With the economy still being in a state of recovery, some argue that people searching for
work are being turned away by companies who are not producing as much product because
consumer demand is down while customers try to pinch pennies.

However, opponents of the extension do not think that unemployment benefits should be
extended because there are jobs out there.

They argue that some are taking advantage of the system and are not interested in getting
a job.

When jobless benefits are given, it is intended to be for a certain period of time while the
person finds new work.

Opponents feel many people are living off unemployment and turning down job offers
because they make more being "unemployed," therefore causing benefits to continue
to be extended until a job offer matches what they made at a previous job.

This is pretty apparent if you have ever worked at a grocery store. Some customers come
through and pay with food stamps or WIC cards and then load their groceries into a brand
new SUV or full size pick-up truck.

It is called taking advantage of the system and ruining it for those that are truly in need of
the assistance. As an outsider to the situation it is hard to know for sure how many people
might be scamming the system. If one person is doing it then there are plenty more playing the same trick.

Opponents go on to ask where the money is going to come from.

According to usatoday.com, "Most Republicans opposed the bill because the $6.4 billion cost of the  extension is not offset with spending cuts elsewhere in the federal budget."

Think about what other issues the U.S. could fix with the $6.4 billion.

Recent studies also show that despite a small amount of jobs being created, the  unemployment rate is lower.

Citizens are taking jobs that they may have passed up before because they have no choice.

There should be restrictions on unemployment benefits so the entire benefit system does not have to go away.

The bill has yet to pass the Senate but one thing is clear: Unemployment is a problem that  will continue.

It is a controversial issue with arguments on both sides.