After reading Thomas Kozlik's column and giving his ideas thought, I am now ready to respond to him. Thomas, I read your disclaimer and I won't even discuss your suggestions; however, I see some major assumptions you've made about women on welfare in your article and it is on a few of these that I will comment.

1. Women are getting financial gain from welfare. Assuming your estimate of $14,000 annual income is true (which it is not), there is really no room for financial gain.

Children are very expensive members of our society. Even with the most basic and generic items, total care of infants alone can cost $400 per month. Older children -- double that. We have not even figured on the cost of rent, utilities, and the mother's food and basic personal needs. So there isn't much money in her pocket left to classify her as the next Fortune 500 billionaire.

2. Women have children purely to receive more money. First of all, if your money increases and the number of children increases, at what point does money overtake children? It always comes out even.

Second of all, a woman does not receive double of what she had, just an increase. So there really is no true financial gain.

Third, children require a lot of time and energy. I don't believe that the money received for an additional child is of more value than the responsibility of a child.

3. Welfare children are unloved and unwanted. I have found no evidence that supports the correlation of these two variables.

4. Women on welfare enjoy being on welfare. I am a single mother. I am also a college student. I collect health benefits from state assistance. I hate it -- it's the worst place I could have ever imagined my "middle class" self to be. However, it's what I must do for the good -- the welfare -- of my child. I know others feel the same way.

Your attitudes about the welfare system seem to come from half-truths and misconceptions about a lifestyle you fortunately don't have to endure. I suggest you spend some time around the brave, strong, single mothers of the world; we could teach you a thing or two.