*referred - D@m that spellchecker lol

I was attempting to write an article for my blog proving the point that a large number of Oklahoma welfare recipients may be current residents, though have moved here from other states (e.g. New York - who boast not being a "welfare state") and not in fact long time Oklahomans or natural born Oklahomans. I contacted both DHS and Dept of Commerce and that data is not collected anywhere for our state. Recently, a political analyst refereed to Oklahoma as a "knuckle-dragging welfare state" which didn't set well with me at all, and what set me on the course to prove that we may be ranked within the top 20 for states that provide the most dollars for welfare, but that's only due to the fact that we take care of those coming here from other states where they can't find the services they need to survive. Yet, as much as I wanted to defend the state I love, I can't because we don't collect that information when someone signs up for welfare in Oklahoma. I think, if we are going to restructure DHS in Oklahoma, the first thing I would start doing, starting today, is asking where these people are coming from. Where have they been living, lets say, for the last three years should be sufficient enough to prove a point.