Food Stamps to be drastically cut in the US

[Ayaan]

[Ayaan]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/1 ... 62465.html

WASHINGTON -- While the House of Representatives considers cutting more than $20 billion from the food stamps program this week, it may want to consider a startling statistic: military families are on a pace this year to redeem more than $100 million in food aid on military bases.

Nearly $53 million in food stamps had been cashed in by people eligible to shop in base commissaries, including disabled veterans and others with military ID that entitles entrance to the facilities, through the first half of this fiscal year -- from October through March, according to data provided to The Huffington Post by the Defense Commissary Agency.

[Warren Dew]

I've been on it for two months or so, since I have no income while I wait for the resolution of my workers comp claim. I was surprised how much they gave me: two hundred a month. It seemed like an awful lot but it gets eaten up pretty quick. Still, I could easily do with less. I do find myself wasting it sometimes when I'm lazy and don't feel like cooking. I'll get prepared food food from the grocery deli. Even though prepared food is not supposed to be covered, for some reason, it is. Sometimes, at least. It's strange what things are allowed and what not. I got a coffee from the grocery store bakery dept, for instance, and I had to pay for it. Even though the two tiramisu squares from the same bakery dept were covered
Not sure how I'd sell my benefits for cash even if I wanted to. I get them on a reloadable card, so it's not like I could sell the card

The way the benefits for cash thing works is that the grocery store charges a bunch of nonexistent stuff on the card and pays the person with the card in cash. It can land you in jail, though, so I wouldn't recommend it for people who don't make a career out of welfare scamming.

$200 is a lot of money for one person for food. If I had to, I know I could survive on $10/week, no problem. I'm not saying the needy SHOULD only get $10 per week. It's just an indication that with some care, that $200 can go a fucking long way. I'm not against helping the needy. I'm against the jackalopes who scam the system.

Agreed. $200/month per person is about what we spend, and shop at Whole Paycheck Foods, buy mostly organic fruits and vegetables, wild salmon, humane eggs, steak, etc. We could easily survive on $100/month per person if we had to just by substituting regular grade meat and produce, so I guess I think the food stamp program could easily be cut by 50%, rather than the 5% trim that was passed through the House.

Whole Foods is for yuppies, who for some reason want to pay $10 for a head of lettuce.

Organic strawberries taste far better than the overly sweet conventional strawberries, though.

Ironically, Whole Foods is owned by a libertarian.

[Warren Dew]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/1 ... 62465.html

WASHINGTON -- While the House of Representatives considers cutting more than $20 billion from the food stamps program this week, it may want to consider a startling statistic: military families are on a pace this year to redeem more than $100 million in food aid on military bases.

Nearly $53 million in food stamps had been cashed in by people eligible to shop in base commissaries, including disabled veterans and others with military ID that entitles entrance to the facilities, through the first half of this fiscal year -- from October through March, according to data provided to The Huffington Post by the Defense Commissary Agency.

So either the military isn't being paid enough, or, more likely, food stamp eligibility is far too lax.

[Tyrannical]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/1 ... 62465.html

WASHINGTON -- While the House of Representatives considers cutting more than $20 billion from the food stamps program this week, it may want to consider a startling statistic: military families are on a pace this year to redeem more than $100 million in food aid on military bases.

Nearly $53 million in food stamps had been cashed in by people eligible to shop in base commissaries, including disabled veterans and others with military ID that entitles entrance to the facilities, through the first half of this fiscal year -- from October through March, according to data provided to The Huffington Post by the Defense Commissary Agency.

So either the military isn't being paid enough, or, more likely, food stamp eligibility is far too lax.

Doesn't the military adjust housing and food stipends based on family size? I guess adjust the adjustment and food stamps become unnecessary

[Ayaan]

Congress would have to come up with more money so the adjustments could be increased. I don't see that happening with this Congress given that with so many of them support of the troops stops at bumper stickers.

[Warren Dew]

Congress would have to come up with more money so the adjustments could be increased. I don't see that happening with this Congress given that with so many of them support of the troops stops at bumper stickers.

Actually it's Obama who has been limiting military pay increases - while ensuring that civilian bureaucrats get cost of living adjustments.

[Tyrannical]

And then there is all that money Obama is wasting financing his was agenda. Boy, I bet the liberals never saw that coming

[klr]

...

$200 is a lot of money for one person for food. If I had to, I know I could survive on $10/week, no problem. I'm not saying the needy SHOULD only get $10 per week. It's just an indication that with some care, that $200 can go a fucking long way. I'm not against helping the needy. I'm against the jackalopes who scam the system.

Hold on ... food prices in the USA are not much cheaper than in Ireland or the UK, are they? 10 dollars is about 7.50 Euro at current exchange rates. I would struggle mightily to just meet basic - and I do mean basic - breakfast and fruit requirements with that.

[Ian]

Congress would have to come up with more money so the adjustments could be increased. I don't see that happening with this Congress given that with so many of them support of the troops stops at bumper stickers.

Actually it's Obama who has been limiting military pay increases - while ensuring that civilian bureaucrats get cost of living adjustments.

The fuck you say???

I'm a "civilian bureaucrat". I haven't had a pay raise in three years, nor has anyone else. We're also in the middle of a hiring freeze, we've been hit by sequestration (read: 20% pay cut) and expecting more, and we're facing major billet cuts. If I had stayed military, I'd be making more than I am now - even without sequestration.

There's the right-wing fantasyland that people like you enjoy living in, and there's fact-based reality, and ne'er the two shall meet...

[tattuchu]

...

$200 is a lot of money for one person for food. If I had to, I know I could survive on $10/week, no problem. I'm not saying the needy SHOULD only get $10 per week. It's just an indication that with some care, that $200 can go a fucking long way. I'm not against helping the needy. I'm against the jackalopes who scam the system.

Hold on ... food prices in the USA are not much cheaper than in Ireland or the UK, are they? 10 dollars is about 7.50 Euro at current exchange rates. I would struggle mightily to just meet basic - and I do mean basic - breakfast and fruit requirements with that.

It would be easy to live on ten dollars a week if you ate nothing but rice and pasta, and drank water. No meat. No vegetables. Maybe you could also get a loaf of bread. No butter, though. Jam? Forget it.

[pErvinalia]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24170617

US lawmakers vote to cut food stamp benefits from 2014

US lawmakers have narrowly voted to cut food stamp benefits from next year despite a veto threat from the White House and opposition from lobby groups.

The Republican-led House of Representatives passed the bill by 217-200. But it has little chance in the Democratic-held Senate.

The bill would save $39bn (£24bn) over a decade, but affect four million people on the programme.

It comes a day after census data showed 15% of Americans live in poverty.

An estimated one in seven Americans - most of them children, elderly or disabled - receive food stamps.

The bill aims to cut $4bn a year, representing about 5% of the current programme.

(continued, with food riots in major cities followed by cannibalistic tribalism and the collapse of civil authority - like a apocalyptic Hollywood movie only in 4d?)

Fucking Republicunts (and Democunts). They are a fucking blight on this planet. Is it too much to ask that a virus evolve that only targets old rich moralising selfish conservatives?

[Bella Fortuna]

Article on food-spending related to this issue, with a calculator to see where you fit with other Americans in how much you spend for food.

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/ ... get-frugal

[pErvinalia]

My wife is a recently sworn in US citizen, and she is very patriotic about it. She loves the US, memorized the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem, and likes the flag and such. It's a bit quaint. Well, she ordered a new credit card from these companies that will give you some sort of image or pattern on the card. The one she wanted was an American flag. She later learned that the EBT card has the American flag on it, and she turned in her credit card for a new one because of the embarrassment of being thought to be using EBT. She's a great gal. Came to the US and made it by digging it out, making her own breaks, learning, working hard, getting it done. I am so proud of her. She's worse than me when it comes to the government benefits scammers. She sees how many immigrants scam the system for free stuff and it rightly pisses her off -- she played by the rules, filed all her taxes, did all the right things, and has always been ineligible for anything from the government. Lazy-asses and under the table scammers take advantage, and are handed almost blank checks.

Here we go. More nasty moralising from conservatives. The fucking rich skim more off the system than the poor. I'm so sick of conservatives losing their shit over this. Fuck off, the lot of you.

[pErvinalia]

From what I've read, food stamp fraud is at 1% or less.

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3239
http://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/fraud/fraud_2.htm

You should get out more.

Brilliant riposte to a claim based on actual sources.

You should head a debating club...