Posted on 11/28/2009 5:27:37 PM PST by reaganaut1
With food stamp use at record highs and climbing every month, a program once scorned as a failed welfare scheme now helps feed one in eight Americans and one in four children.
It has grown so rapidly in places so diverse that it is becoming nearly as ordinary as the groceries it buys. More than 36 million people use inconspicuous plastic cards for staples [...].
Virtually all have incomes near or below the federal poverty line, but their eclectic ranks testify to the range of people struggling with basic needs. [...]
While the numbers have soared during the recession, the path was cleared in better times when the Bush administration led a campaign to erase the program’s stigma, calling food stamps “nutritional aid” instead of welfare, and made it easier to apply. That bipartisan effort capped an extraordinary reversal from the 1990s, when some conservatives tried to abolish the program, Congress enacted large cuts and bureaucratic hurdles chased many needy people away.
...
[T]he program is now expanding at a pace of about 20,000 people a day.
There are 239 counties in the United States where at least a quarter of the population receives food stamps
...
In more than 750 counties, the program helps feed one in three blacks. In more than 800 counties, it helps feed one in three children.
...
Although the program is growing at a record rate, the federal official who oversees it would like it to grow even faster.
“I think the response of the program has been tremendous,” said Kevin Concannon, an under secretary of agriculture, “but we’re mindful that there are another 15, 16 million who could benefit.”
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
This was a great country. Unfortunately, what made it great started dying a long time ago.
The situation is untenable, and like all untenable situations, it will collapse.
I am doing what I can to speed up the collapse.
What the New York Times article doesn’t do is show how dramatically the number of SNAP recipients increased since January 2009:
http://www.fns.usda.gov/pd/34SNAPmonthly.htm
January 2009 — 14.5M households; 32.2M persons.
February 2009 — 14.6M households; 32.5M persons.
March 2009 — 14.9M households; 33.1M persons.
April 2009 — 15.2M households; 33.7M persons.
May 2009 — 15.5M households; 34.4M persons.
June 2009 — 15.9M households; 35.1M persons.
July 2009 — 16.2M households; 35.8M persons.
August 2009 — 16.5M households; 36.4M persons.
Numbers aren’t yet available for September 2009 and October 2009 but the trend is clear.
hat tip: http://patterico.com/2009/11/28/hard-times/
This is yet another tax draining method for the Obama crowd to keep tabs on millions of additional citizens, plus hand out welfare department jobs to loyal Dem hacks. These kinds of political hack positions are prime for stealing millions in federal tax $$$.
To bad people aren’t educated enought to use coupons. My wife and I save alot of $$$. We’ve been doing this for a year and a half. For example during triples if my bill is $50 I can pay $4.
Welcome, sir. Thank you for doing it the right way.
What I would like to see is a specific brand named "Largesse." Food stamps would only be able to purchase the Largesse brand foods. There would be two things...a Largesse cereal and a highly nutritious Largesse slurry. The moochers would have to choose what they wanted to eat, cereal or slurry.
I think all of us support any program that helps the poor buy food. All those sob stories of “children going to bed hungry” are now behind us (or, they should be!). But, just like all liberal bailout/entitlement programs, there are not enough stopgaps to discourage “cheating”.
Time to go back to commodities.
My thought was more of his purposely not taking positive steps to create jobs....not until the health-care bill is voted upon to make it the law of the land.
The more families that don’t have a breadwinner, the easier it will be to get those elusive votes.
Well, as a (net) taxPAYER, with a dependent wife and children, I respectfully disagree with the idea that a stay-at-home mom should not be given the right to vote, so long as her name appears on a joint tax return with her husband.
I’d rather there be MORE stay-at-home moms, so long as they have husbands who carry the load (as I do).
In our “keep up with the Jones” society, I believe people have become convinced that it takes two incomes to live. It doesn’t, so long as we’re willing to give up certain luxuries.
They don’t have to if it is ratified by referendum.
That’s exactly what we did in the past, and I still play around with it. We now have an accountant, but that’s so we don’t miss anything and we have two small home-based businesses to deal with, too, on top of my salary from my outside job.
But it just amazes me that people let the government fritter away even MORE of their dollars than they already do!
Talk about wealth re-distribution! It’s been going on unchecked since the 1930’s and the first income taxes! Grrrrrr!
Single earners, earning just $33,930 in taxable income puts you in the 25% bracket this year! Gawd!!
http://www.moneychimp.com/features/tax_brackets.htm
http://www.moneybluebook.com/2009-federal-income-tax-brackets-official-irs-tax-rates/
Good for you. Now let’s tag-team and start working on the rest of the Freepers here, LOL!
I have a raise coming up in January. I’ve got to crunch some numbers and tell my boss what I’ll ACCEPT, not what she wants to GIVE me...because you’re right; it’ll be eaten up in taxes, anyway. Grrrrrrr!
“I see your point but I don’t think food stamp recipients actually vote.”
I think some don’t but the ones that do, vote early and often.
she might have all the chips etc as she is over weight but when I see her getting shrimp at the checkout then it really pisses me off.
OIC - when clinton ended “Welfare as know it” back in the 90’s - he gave us “Welfare as you’ve never seen it before”.
I know and it pisses me off.
I have a paid off car but it’s nothing fancy plus it’s getting old.
They have food stamps, a new fancy car like a caddy/BMW/MERC.
When they go to apply for these handouts doesn’t the Govt look out of the window and ask why is she driving that fancy car or at least ask for proof of what she drives/lives/job?.
If they’re paying 300 a month for a car then they don’t need food stamps/welfare/handouts.
This will come as no surprise, but some Food Stamp recipients "buy" food with the stamps and then sell it for cash to their family and neighbors. The fraud is rampant.
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