Country Ham
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,313
Jun 25, 2014 19:32:08 GMT
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Post by Country Ham on Feb 15, 2018 15:46:32 GMT
It sounds like you and your husband do a good job of taking care of those ten residents. I grew up in a rural town and I know how hard it can be to find services. Thank you. My husband has an absolute heart of gold and it shows in everything he does for folks. In general I think folks who have access to a lot of services don't realize how difficult it is for folks in rural America that don't have access to them. My own ideals are shaped from coming here from Canada where I find even the most conservative of us fall more socially liberal in the US because of the fact of our social programs. I see on a lot of threads where folks ask "How would you handle this" and many replies are call this service, that service, your local such and such etc. Or within the school systems most don't realize that not all schools have nurses, art program, bands, music, AR classes, laptops, tablets etc. Our high school did get chrome books for the freshmen this year but they are not allowed to leave the building and for the most part are rarely used for anything besides creating power point presentations. When you live somewhere that requires an hour drive to the nearest walmart, vet, cat scan machine, dentist etc you realize how few services are readily available to the lower income bracket. I am very lucky that my husband is able to work so hard and I can do what i can with the group home so he doesn't have to. He works 2 full time jobs, and a part time one (sometimes they overlap) and we still don't bring in a 6 figure salary but for our area we are very fortunate. I know tonight i can fill up my van and drive my son 45 miles to the nearest eye doctor and pay for his contacts out of pocket.
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pudgygroundhog
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,643
Location: The Grand Canyon
Jun 25, 2014 20:18:39 GMT
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Post by pudgygroundhog on Feb 15, 2018 15:58:17 GMT
It sounds like you and your husband do a good job of taking care of those ten residents. I grew up in a rural town and I know how hard it can be to find services. Thank you. My husband has an absolute heart of gold and it shows in everything he does for folks. In general I think folks who have access to a lot of services don't realize how difficult it is for folks in rural America that don't have access to them. My own ideals are shaped from coming here from Canada where I find even the most conservative of us fall more socially liberal in the US because of the fact of our social programs. I see on a lot of threads where folks ask "How would you handle this" and many replies are call this service, that service, your local such and such etc. Or within the school systems most don't realize that not all schools have nurses, art program, bands, music, AR classes, laptops, tablets etc. Our high school did get chrome books for the freshmen this year but they are not allowed to leave the building and for the most part are rarely used for anything besides creating power point presentations. When you live somewhere that requires an hour drive to the nearest walmart, vet, cat scan machine, dentist etc you realize how few services are readily available to the lower income bracket. I am very lucky that my husband is able to work so hard and I can do what i can with the group home so he doesn't have to. He works 2 full time jobs, and a part time one (sometimes they overlap) and we still don't bring in a 6 figure salary but for our area we are very fortunate. I know tonight i can fill up my van and drive my son 45 miles to the nearest eye doctor and pay for his contacts out of pocket. I live in NY now, but I grew up in an area like you describe and I totally understand where you are coming from. I'm very concerned about rural areas and what's going to happen with healthcare (my parents still live where I grew up). In those small towns there isn't a large margin of error since there aren't always services available, although on the flip side cost of living is often a lot lower which can help and people in those communities often help look out for one another. Sounds like you got a good one with your husband.
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Post by jassy on Feb 15, 2018 15:58:25 GMT
That's quite a misrepresentation of what a "bleeding heart" believes. And apparently, I am allowed to have an opinion on that as a "bleeding heart" college-educated daughter of a single teen mom who relied on food stamps for a period of time. She had THREE jobs at one time - house cleaner, barmaid, and dress shop clerk. And still needed assistance.
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compeateropeator
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,983
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Jun 26, 2014 23:10:56 GMT
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Post by compeateropeator on Feb 15, 2018 17:51:26 GMT
Country Ham, I have a great deal of respect and admiration for you and your husband. And while I am sure you don’t need (or possibly want) my thanks, you have it. You and your husband are doing wonderful things and most importantly you understand that there are many reasons why the ol’ adage that people just need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps isn’t always a valid/viable view even if others are/were able to do this. There is a lot of “luck” (for lack of a better word) in how someone’s life turns out, the abilities they have, and the life hand they draw. Just ask the: people born into 3rd world countries people born in countries ruled by a cruel dictator, people born in war ravaged countries. People trying to feed their children and give them opportunities...by any means possible, even if it requires them to risk their lives by trying to relocate illegally and live in fear. People born to abusive parents. People born with disabilities. etc, etc, etc. That is not to say that hard work, determination and other things can’t and don’t make a difference with many people and that there are some people who do not try to make their lives better. But to assume that is is the case with everyone that needs assistance is incorrect. And to change or stop the assistance to those that do need it because there are some who use it and shouldn’t is the wrong choice. Sometimes all the want, determination and hard work (no matter how strong) just doesn’t make a bit of difference. It is my opinion that helping those that need it should be a focal point of our society and that the blanketed statement “if people want to choose what food they get they should get a job” (even if you feel that there is a book and/or study that proves it) it not a realistic or acceptable opinion. Someone can have an opinion, I can listen to it and I can understand it, but I can still think that it is a sucky opinion. Just as that person can about my opinions. My apologies for the long post.
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Just T
Drama Llama
Posts: 5,538
Jun 26, 2014 1:20:09 GMT
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Post by Just T on Feb 15, 2018 18:17:34 GMT
I reject your assertion that I hate poor people. It's a word you use to try to feel morally superior and to attempt to shame me. The fact is, I managed to do exactly what I claim others should do. In otherwords, I practice what I preach and I have lived in both worlds. If anyone is in a position to assert that poor people can work themselves into a better life, into self-respect and into dignity it's me; not some bleeding heart whose idea of dignity is giving people everything so that they can feel that they are wonderful while continuing in a life of poverty. People like you try to prove to yourself that you're a good person but what you really are is someone who strokes your own ego at the expense of the dignity and real advancement of poor people. . But what if those who receive SNAP benefits are trying to do exactly what you did? Just perhaps those benefits enable someone to not have to work a second or third job so they can go to school and better their lives and the lives of their children. You don't really know who is trying to better themselves and who isn't. Having to work 2 or 3 jobs in order to feed your children makes it much harder to "pull yourself up by the bootstraps." I will shamefully admit that I used to have a very bad attitude toward people who used food stamps. When I was in college, I worked in a grocery store, and I saw all of the things that are often bitched about here. People using food stamps to purchase expensive steaks. Children who would use a $10 food stamp to buy a 35 cent candy bar or a soda and get cash back. People who used their food stamps to buy Oreos and donuts. It all pissed me off, and my younger sanctimonious self thought, "How dare they use money that the taxpayers give them to buy that stuff!" As I have gotten older, I have an easier time thinking "there but for the grace of God..." Thankfully, I have never had to rely on the government to eat or provide food to my children. I remember one instance when my kids were little and I was in line behind someone in the grocery store who was using wic vouchers. When the cashier rang up the rest of her food that wasn't covered by wic, she didn't have enough money to pay for it all, and I have never forgotten the look on her face as she had to try to decide what items to put back. And she didn't have much there to start with. I felt so bad for that gal as I stood there with my cart of groceries that I wasn't worried about paying for. While I have no doubt that some do abuse the system, I would rather have a few assholes get away with scamming the system than take food from people who truly do need it. In general, I am not a judgmental person; however, I can't help but feel judgy about those who seem to feel no compassion for those who can't afford to eat or feed their children. Especially those who work hard at one or two jobs and still need help. And most especially those in the military. I was completely appalled when I learned that members of our military often qualify for SNAP. #notLauren, are you really okay with those who are protecting our country having to just suck it up and gratefully accept a box of food that someone has deemed them worthy of eating?
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Post by oliquig on Feb 15, 2018 18:58:26 GMT
I just don't understand why we are spending money on a program that is a very small portion of the budget, with a very low fraud percentage. Because it only affects poor people?
My brother gets SNAP money. He is legally blind due to a traumatic brain injury as an infant. He is virtually unemployable. It is also very difficult for him to cook, and he has food issues due to his blindness. A box of food would be basically useless to him, and I'm sure there are many stories like this.
Just so you understand he has tried to get jobs, his situation is tough as it is a brain injury, not an issue with his eyes. He is not intellectually disabled, but there are other issues.
I refuse to believe that this is the best way to save money, when we just put through a tax cut that gave tons of money back to corporations, that already had tons of money.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Apr 24, 2024 0:04:51 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 15, 2018 21:29:06 GMT
@ Country Ham
Yours is the community I wish I would win one of the huge lotteries for. I would open a grocery store with gardens and classrooms attached.
I know grandiose plans of an old white woman.
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 15, 2018 22:02:51 GMT
Along with the food issues think more........... Not much to discuss, his goals speak for themselves! Cut school safety Cut 18.3% from HUD Budget for housing 8.8 billion, people will be homeless... Cut HUD exemptions for a percent of Childcare and medical expenses from gross income. Tell people what they should eat from a box. Tell States and town THEY have to pick up his cuts from Amtack/rail service Telling states to put tolls on the interstate highways that we have already paid for..... His buddies got huge tax cuts so we pay for all of it and more! And they all fly millions of dollars worth on private jets, military and/or first class while we can't afford to go anywhere. He has already spent almost as much as other presidents use in four years so he can travel almost every weekend! I forgot cut Medicare he promised not to touch!! thehill.com/homenews/administration/374103-trump-budget-would-cut-millions-in-school-safety-funds-report
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Post by Scrapper100 on Feb 16, 2018 18:09:32 GMT
The reported purpose is to reduce costs by leveraging increased purchasing power and taking out the overhead and multiple profit layers by directly buying from farmers/producers. The government can certainly buy in bulk at a lower cost than individual consumers buying at the grocery store (particularly if they are limited in their grocery store selection, many poor areas have higher food costs as there is less competition than suburban areas). I think they're woefully underestimating the added administrative costs of actually implementing. This is exactly what I think as well. It sounds complicated and expensive to implement. And that's if we even get to a point where it's actually beneficial to those receiving it. I think this to. It's going to cost a lot more for little added benefit and I bet there will be a lot of waste. I think the intention was good just not reasonable on such a large scale.
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Post by katlady on Feb 16, 2018 19:03:52 GMT
It has probably already been brought up, but I just wonder about distribution. Is it a box left on a porch for thieves to take. Or do people have to get on a bus and go to a certain location, and then have to carry a heavy box back home on a bus?
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Post by Scrapper100 on Feb 16, 2018 21:08:43 GMT
It has probably already been brought up, but I just wonder about distribution. Is it a box left on a porch for thieves to take. Or do people have to get on a bus and go to a certain location, and then have to carry a heavy box back home on a bus? Very good point - mail theft is huge around here and not everyone has a car and a box of cans would be heavy if they had to go and pick them up. My first thought when they said something like blue Apron or what ever one they mentioned was that it would include fresh food which sounded good since so many are in food deserts but this could be a huge problem. I would love to see some charities being able to do fresh produce like the ugly fruit program to get healthy produce to those in need - as long as there was some education involved as well so they would learn how to cook it. Before anyone jumps on me for saying that that poor aren't smart not everyone knows how to cook a lot of veggies - I don't know how to pick out ripe ones and cook a lot of the fancier veggies that are appearing in local farmers markets. I would also love to see more programs with local schools teaching kids to grow veggies - not sure that is so much a government thing but maybe more charities - I know there are some out there already and I have seen several schools doing this a bit but think it would be great to see it expanded. My son just joined garden club at his high school and its not really focused on vegetables but hoping there is some there and thinking that if they grow it they will be more likely to try the foods (well maybe not my stuborn child but most kids).
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 16, 2018 21:43:47 GMT
I would also love to see more programs with local schools teaching kids to grow veggies - not sure that is so much a government thing but maybe more charities - I know there are some out there already and I have seen several schools doing this a bit but think it would be great to see it expanded. My son just joined garden club at his high school and its not really focused on vegetables but hoping there is some there and thinking that if they grow it they will be more likely to try the foods (well maybe not my stuborn child but most kids). Our most recent former First Lady was doing this.. Improving food in the school lunches... and dt shut it all down! Today I bumped into a neighbor who works with SNAP... we had a nice chat. Her office is thinking years to even start any major changes. Extremely difficult logistics!
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Post by lesserknownpea on Feb 17, 2018 1:59:15 GMT
I receive SNAP benefits. I appreciate them very much.
As a whole food, plant based eater I have found a way of eating that has solved many health problems, including pre diabetes. ( I’d probably be there now if I had not changed ). My cholesterol, blood pressure, weight, and triglycerides are now normal. I am 60, and come from a family with a crazy amount of cancer.
The majority of my food purchases are fresh fruits and vegetables. I buy in season as much as I can. I also get lots of beans, brown rice, grains and pasta in the bulk section of Winco. Also I get my spices in bulk there.
I seldom buy canned food. I eat no dairy or meat.
While fresh produce can be expensive, the money I save by not buying animal products, soda, processed food, or oils and fatty foods allows me to make it work.
Oh, and I’m celiac. No gluten, either.
The food boxes would be worthless to me.
Taking away the ability to purchase what is best for my health, ( and incidentally save TONS of money on my health care), would be so counter productive.
I’m convinced this idea is a way to further enrich individuals and corporations who support those in power.
As a kid and again as a struggling young mother I remember the food commodity boxes. That “cheese” was nasty, but I used it. But I also remember the completely revolting “canned pork” mentioned upthread. Ugh. Not fit for anyone.
People whose only interest is making money off this program for the poor should not get to decide what food people get to eat.
The program has a small amount of fraud, but contributes greatly to the free market and local economies.
The proposed change has ENORMOUS potential for staggering fraud, and would take away jobs and money from local hard hit areas.
It would also be a very socialistic, big brother type of thing to do.
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scrapngranny
Pearl Clutcher
Only slightly senile
Posts: 4,759
Jun 25, 2014 23:21:30 GMT
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Post by scrapngranny on Feb 17, 2018 2:12:15 GMT
This is a horrible idea on so many levels. My first thought was how can they possibly guarantee food quality and freshness. Our citizens struggling financially should not be made to eat spoiled rancid food. The thing that struck me first off is that to ship quality food, and by quality I mean, wholesome and nutritious, would end up costing more than the current food stamps.
Another one of Trump’s hair-brained ideas.
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 2:13:47 GMT
I’m convinced this is a way to further enrich individuals and corporations who support those in power. I have addressed this a few times. It will NOT help local farmers! Expansive operators withe on site packaging facilities will reap the benefits. Pre-processed foods tend to have preservatives and excess salt. Canned fruits are generally in sugary syrup. Just no healthy. Some where I mentions that I bumped into a neighbor today who works for the SNAP program, her office thinks it would take years to even start the process.. Fraud is not an issue.. 1.3% I think the number is......... it is posted one here somewhere.
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Post by lesserknownpea on Feb 17, 2018 2:16:49 GMT
I’m convinced this is a way to further enrich individuals and corporations who support those in power. I have addressed this a few times. It will NOT help local farmers! Expansive operators withe on site packaging facilities will reap the benefits. Pre-processed foods tend to have preservatives and excess salt. Canned fruits are generally in sugary syrup. Just no healthy. Some where I mentions that I bumped into a neighbor today who works for the SNAP program, her office thinks it would take years to even start the process.. Fraud is not an issue.. 1.3% I think the number is......... it is posted one here somewhere. Let’s hope so, then maybe a new administration can revoke the whole thing?
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Post by jeremysgirl on Feb 17, 2018 2:32:00 GMT
Seriously I have kept a lot of acquaintances on my Facebook even though much of what they post pisses me off. I have always felt that we should try to understand where people are coming from especially if we hope to change minds. And if I unfriend them, they also don't get exposure to my thoughts either. Well today one of my Facebook friends posted about this. Her argument was...welfare is not supposed to be enjoyed. And honestly I am just having a hard time justifying still being friends with someone who believes poor people deserve to be punished and that they should just shut up and be grateful for whatever the government gives them.
And I wonder how she can go to church on Sunday and reconcile her heart with the Lord with views like this. I just am really torn. I have seen some real ugliness. I just don't even want to see it anymore.
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 2:50:28 GMT
Who receives them? As of fiscal 2016, 44% of food stamp recipients are children, and 12% were senior citizens older than age 60. The rest were working-age adults. Some 57% are female, while 43% are male. Some 36% are non-Hispanic whites, while 26% are black. Another 17% are Hispanic and 3% Asian. The race of 16% of participants is not known. About 11% of are non-elderly Americans with disabilities** Republicans have long wanted to downsize food stamps, known formally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. They argue that the program is too large and rife with fraud.** Roughly 1.3 cents for every dollar is lost to fraud, according to a 2013 U.S. Department of Agriculture report. ** money.cnn.com/2018/02/13/news/economy/food-stamps-what-to-know/index.html**I stand corrected sort of.... "USDA America's Harvest Box is a bold, innovative approach to providing nutritious food to people who need assistance feeding themselves and their families -- and all of it is homegrown by American farmers and producers," said Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue in a statement. "It maintains the same level of food value as SNAP ** Home grown?? Producers... Walmart and others are having an issue with loss of SNAP shoppers.. Local supermarkets, small stores in the cities without supermarket will also lose revenue. States will pay for/have to distribute boxes? Storage? And the beat goes on............
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 20:38:29 GMT
Trump’s Food Stamp Idea Is Like Blue Apron Had a Socialist Hangover The administration’s 'Harvest Box' proposal is more about the welfare of agribusiness than the poor.By PAUL NIEHAUS and MICHAEL FAYE February 15, 2018 It was a marriage of “the best of the humanitarian instincts of the American people [and] the best of the free enterprise system,” said President Lyndon Johnson in 1964, a way to combat hunger that would give recipients the ability to make their own food choices while avoiding a giant, Soviet-style food distribution scheme: food stamps.Today, some 46 million Americans with low incomes receive food stamps’ modern incarnation — electronic benefits transfers from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. EBT cards in hand, recipients have some choice in the food they will eat instead of the government deciding for them. ** Clearly not in the service of any free-market ideal. It is hardly pro-market to displace the private sector and build a parallel, state-run distribution system, no matter how many times you name-check Blue Apron. This is the sort of thing you find in countries still recovering from socialist hangovers. India’s government, for example, buys more than 30 percent of the country’s grain output at above-market prices and then sells it to consumers at below-market prices through ration shops. Emulating that approach by delivering the food in a box is hardly an innovation. No, the Harvest Box approach to hunger policy makes sense only in the context of hunger politics. And hunger politics have always been as much about the welfare of agribusiness as about the welfare of the poor. ** You can similarly see the farm lobby’s influence on the way the U.S. helps its own citizens. Food stamps are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture largely because when they were first created during the Great Depression, it was in part to dispose of surplus commodities that the USDA had accumulated through its farm-support programs. The U.S. is hardly alone in this. As leading food security scholar Christopher Barrett concludes, in most countries, “the quantity and type of food available has historically been driven primarily by the patterns of surpluses generated by farm support programs, not by recipient need.”** One week after President Trump took office, a consortium of 10 of the largest agricultural lobby groups wrote to him, lamenting that their subsidies had been “relentlessly attacked by previous administrations,” and urging him to “prioritize the use of American-grown in-kind commodity contributions” in fighting hunger. If the Harvest Box is any indication, their pleas have found a receptive ear. Lot more at link: www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/02/15/trump-food-stamps-harvest-box-blue-apron-snap-217004It's never going to end...... Johnson said it in 1964, so people could pick out their own food....
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Post by pierogi on Feb 17, 2018 20:43:39 GMT
Seriously I have kept a lot of acquaintances on my Facebook even though much of what they post pisses me off. I have always felt that we should try to understand where people are coming from especially if we hope to change minds. And if I unfriend them, they also don't get exposure to my thoughts either. Well today one of my Facebook friends posted about this. Her argument was...welfare is not supposed to be enjoyed. And honestly I am just having a hard time justifying still being friends with someone who believes poor people deserve to be punished and that they should just shut up and be grateful for whatever the government gives them. And I wonder how she can go to church on Sunday and reconcile her heart with the Lord with views like this. I just am really torn. I have seen some real ugliness. I just don't even want to see it anymore. Would she notice you unfriending her? Maybe that's what it will take to make her think about the poison she spews. Seriously, there's a place in hell for people like that.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Feb 17, 2018 20:48:20 GMT
Seriously I have kept a lot of acquaintances on my Facebook even though much of what they post pisses me off. I have always felt that we should try to understand where people are coming from especially if we hope to change minds. And if I unfriend them, they also don't get exposure to my thoughts either. Well today one of my Facebook friends posted about this. Her argument was...welfare is not supposed to be enjoyed. And honestly I am just having a hard time justifying still being friends with someone who believes poor people deserve to be punished and that they should just shut up and be grateful for whatever the government gives them. And I wonder how she can go to church on Sunday and reconcile her heart with the Lord with views like this. I just am really torn. I have seen some real ugliness. I just don't even want to see it anymore. Would she notice you unfriending her? Maybe that's what it will take to make her think about the poison she spews. Seriously, there's a place in hell for people like that. You know what? I just don't even care. I unfriended 59 people last night. I just don't even want to hear anymore. I put this on her post before I unfriended.
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Post by lesserknownpea on Feb 17, 2018 21:14:13 GMT
revirdsuba99 thank for that article, it says a lot of what I’ve been thinking
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 21:23:24 GMT
revirdsuba99 thank for that article, it says a lot of what I’ve been thinking I have been trying to sort it all out... I understand that some people think it is worth trying. I just cannot see it working well for the recipients and tax payers. Big business would win while local businesses would lose so much, but the administration prefers big business and seems not to care about expenditures except those that help people. Let us not waste anymore dollars for this!!
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StephDRebel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,663
Location: Ohio
Jul 5, 2014 1:53:49 GMT
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Post by StephDRebel on Feb 17, 2018 21:31:16 GMT
Problem solved. Gah, why didn't we all realize it was this simple. You know, you are the epitome of what a person can accomplish with hard work in a positive attitude. I’m sure it wasn’t simple but you worked your butt off in order to make a good life for you and your children My life for a long time was a shit show rodeo and I was the clown. When I received food stamps, I had two jobs, most of the time I had three. What I also had were medical expenses that were through the roof, crazy rent and a lack of affordable housing, and childcare that had no assistance. When my car broke down I rode the bus to work and when I finished working, walked a mile to the nearest bus stop and if I missed the last bus of the night I hitchhiked home. Thankfully there was a grocery store 3/4 of a mile from my home because I literally don't know how I would've been able to make time or find transportation to get across town to pick up a heavy box of food and then make it home. I graduated high school with honors at 9 months pregnant. I was smart, resourceful, and had a good head on my shoulders. Life punched me in the face when my birth control failed and I ended up with two babies at 17. I own my actions, my choices, and I know that ultimately I was responsible for the years that were really, really bad as well as the year that are much better now. The system isn't as simple as we'd like to think it is and the stories and experiences of the people receiving these benefits aren't also simple. Life broke me and I had everything going for me until one day when I woke up and realized it all fell apart. I had people stand in my face and tell me to 'get a job' but when you've got three of them and are exhausting all of your resources just trying to survive, what next?
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Deleted
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Apr 24, 2024 0:04:51 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2018 21:38:01 GMT
Have to post and run, so........... without reading any of the responses on the 5 pages here, I'll give you some of my thoughts: DH & I have had SNAP for a # of years (ever since we both divorced our ex's and they both scammed us out of everything!!), so we're familiar with it and how it works in NY/NJ/FL. From what I've read and heard, #45 wants to replace 1/2 of your benefits with this box of crap...err... food. The administration REALLY wants to eliminate these "entitlements" that we all depend on to live. What happens to people with restrictive diets?? Diabetic patients? High cholesterol patients? High blood pressure? Stomach/throat issues, like diverticulitis or IBS or colon cancer??? Food allergies? A box of generic food won't help. Some food shelters do this and it doesn't help a lot of people. As it is, our social security hasn't seen a real increase that's in line with the cost of living (reality). Medicare is increasing co-pays. And now SNAP might change? Sounds like #45 wants to eliminate all people who are old, disabled, or generally not white/blonde/American born.
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StephDRebel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,663
Location: Ohio
Jul 5, 2014 1:53:49 GMT
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Post by StephDRebel on Feb 17, 2018 21:50:47 GMT
As I'm thinking more about this- What happens to the rural community? Then, I was living in an area that had bad bus service with short hours and unreliable schedules, but what about now? Now I live in a tiny village that has a little market for essentials, but the next closest grocery is 20 miles away. Thankfully now if my car breaks down I get a rental and if I need to I buy a new car. What about 7 years ago? I would have immediately lost all of my jobs.
I just ran a quick search on my village and 49.9% of the households in my community receive SNAP benefits. HALF of our population. I live by an apartment complex for seniors where most don't have transportation and only shop our local market. I shop for some of them, when it's nice out some use their wheelchairs to go to the store, some are dependent on neighbors.
If the program is cut in this way, I can just about guarantee that our little market will close. I'd bet 75% or more of their business is from SNAP. The produce there sucks and so does the meat. If you have transportation you shop in town at the real grocery but for the ones that can't? This program could seriously harm our little town.
Having deliveries like meals on wheels sounds fantastic, but every day I see an ad or a facebook post begging for meals on wheels drivers because there just aren't enough ways to provide for the need here.
Getting a job just isn't that easy, they're not plentiful and if they are they don't last long before you get fired because a kid is sick, you're late because of unreliable transportation, or for a long list of other reasons that I'm grateful I don't have to worry about any longer.
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 22:04:03 GMT
I shop for some of them, when it's nice out some use their wheelchairs to go to the store, some are dependent on neighbors. If the program is cut in this way, I can just about guarantee that our little market will close. I'd bet 75% or more of their business is from SNAP. The produce there sucks and so does the meat. If you have transportation you shop in town at the real grocery but for the ones that can't? This program could seriously harm our little town. You are doing your part, you are helping when you can. There is little doubt that small stores for sure will close but it will hit some of the larger stores too..
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StephDRebel
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,663
Location: Ohio
Jul 5, 2014 1:53:49 GMT
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Post by StephDRebel on Feb 17, 2018 22:35:01 GMT
I shop for some of them, when it's nice out some use their wheelchairs to go to the store, some are dependent on neighbors. If the program is cut in this way, I can just about guarantee that our little market will close. I'd bet 75% or more of their business is from SNAP. The produce there sucks and so does the meat. If you have transportation you shop in town at the real grocery but for the ones that can't? This program could seriously harm our little town. You are doing your part, you are helping when you can. There is little doubt that small stores for sure will close but it will hit some of the larger stores too.. Right. the impact is going to be huge on all communities but it has the impact to be devastating I'm small ones like mine.
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Post by revirdsuba99 on Feb 17, 2018 22:43:31 GMT
You are doing your part, you are helping when you can. There is little doubt that small stores for sure will close but it will hit some of the larger stores too.. Right. the impact is going to be huge on all communities but it has the impact to be devastating I'm small ones like mine. I see it as shifting the dollars to big business to the detriment of local businesses: loss of local jobs and free choices.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
Apr 24, 2024 0:04:51 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2018 22:53:15 GMT
If they insist on doing something like this I would prefer it be more like the WIC program. At least on that you can get fresh fruits, vegetables and yogurt. I personally, as a diabetic, think the box is too heavy on carbs, sugar and processed stuff. You can get all of that on the SNAP/EBT card now. We do get fresh fruits/veggies, yogurt, meat, milk, etc. with ours. For those who mentioned abuse of the system, I know more people who use the food assistance honestly. For those 30% (est) who abuse it, that's TERRIBLE. As other Peas mentioned, I doubt anything will happen with these LAME proposals. Each idea or notion out of his fat, orange face makes me more and more mad each day. It's as though his mission was to undermine everything that Pres. Obama accomplished, and also to demean and delete the poor and weak in our country, while giving more $$ to his scamming friends. Sick, fat bastard! (Let's take his fast food away for a week and see what he says!!!!!!!!!!)
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