[vannrox]

Are you advocating that our Federal Government dictate the dietary selections of the population?

Or do you just want it to be dictatd by the State Govenment?

Food Stamp guidelines are much as you would think. The four basic food groups are certainly covered in depth. While there are abuses of the system, it is not the governments role to dictate to anyone what they can and cannot consume.

Personally, I have seen good times and hard times. There have been times when I have had to get some help from the government. I know that there have been onlookers who would say..."look at that fine strapping young man....he is just taking advantage of the system". But nothing could be further from the truth.

The bottom line is this...

Don't judge a person by the shoes he wears....
Walk a mile in his shoes and then think about his situation..

[Jack Black]

Just end it. It's unconstitutional. It's absurd. It's full of fraud.

[Phantom Lord]

Neal Boortz refers to these Electronic Benefit Cards as "Push Button Plunder." I think he has it nailed.

[randog]

I'm under the impression that there are limits to what can be bought with food stamps. Hard liquor comes to mind as one of the no-no's, but there must be others.

[Paradox]

I don’t think that those who are on these programs indefinitely should be allowed to partake in voting.

I'll go one better, I think that people who don't pay taxes shouldn't be allowed to vote.

[2banana]

I used to work as a check out clerk.

The items "purchased" with food stamps amazed me.

High priced items like steak, filet mignon and salmon. Most bought very expensive processed frozen dinners. Many times I had arguments that cigarettes and beer could not be bought with the tax payer food stamps.

Very few bought the basics (milk, sugar, flour) to make their own food cheaply.

I know how to eat cheap, I did it in college for $100/month.

[RS]

Since all of these credit card purchases should show up on some list somewhere - can we force the discloser of these bills by a FOIA ?

A listing of the thousands of bags of Doretos and cases of Jolt Cola bought by our welfare food money might shake some folks up.

[fella]

"Is it really that intrusive to say, “Ok, since you’re getting taxpayer money from the government, we’re going to determine what you’re allowed to buy with it and monitor those purchases?” "

Our local public scools have been federalized by this same line of logic. And just look at the vast improvement in education scince 1950.

[wjcsux]

Bump for later read.

[wjcsux]

Read what Walter Williams says on this very subject this morning. http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/williams.html

[Protagoras]

Food is fungible.

[sandydipper]

Abuse? An immigrant can bring relatives to the US - legally - if he/she can "provide" for the relative. That said - the relative arrives and the legal resident then declares he is unable to take care of the new arrival and the Social Security Admin. puts the new comer on the federal dole at over $700.00 a month. It's called SSI benifits??

[Old Professer]

I'd rather she bought birth-control pills with it.

[John Beresford Tipton]

"In 1964, President Lyndon Johnson passed the first national Food Stamp Act. In it, he outlined a plan to provide adequate nourishment for all American citizens as part of his ?Great Society?"

My recollection is that the real motivation for this and the Food for Peace programs was that government warehouses were bulging with food bought under farm support programs.

[Kieri]

What many people don't realize is there are strict guidelines as to how WIC operates in regards to children's nutrition.

In the state of Michigan, WIC has certain brands and products it covers. For example, it will cover one brand of peanut butter (Jif?) and not Peter Pan. It covers Welchs' red grape juice but not white. If a baby in foster care requires a soy-based formula the parent can get permission for it easily enough, but getting special formulas can be tricky. It also covers limited brands of diapers, milk, etc.

I do find it interesting this system is applied to children in foster care (where the parents are required to go through training), and not to food stamps where no counseling is required by recipients.

[solo gringo]

If you lived along the border of the USA[ie Mexico] you would realy get an eye opener.A person will have two some three and some times one baskets full of groceres.Check out and pull the plastic or food stamps.Pay with them go out to the parking lot and load this in a new car with mexico lic.plates that is abuse you ask the manager why he says we sell grocers not police the people with plastic or food stamps.

[JoeGar]

An honest proposal would be to restrict Food Stamp purchases to the four basic food groups; grains, meats/poultry, dairy, fruits/vegetables.

Before Food Stamps, the Government had a commodity program that distributed flour, sugar, cheese, etc., to the poor. Many did not take advantage of the commodity program because it involved work: getting the food, preparing the food, etc.

[M0sby]

I know what you mean about buying non essential stuff...it is a really tough situation though, at times.
I work with Special Ed folks who work, but make well below the poverty level, even with their SSI assistance.
The really dumb thing about food stamps is that they do NOT allow one to buy necessities like TOILET PAPER and, well, monthly, girl products! I KNOW they are called food stamps, yes, but people need things besides FOOD to make it an their own.
So if one of my "clients" has enough pocket money to get some gum or a soda (as seems ok to me to spend you pocket money on) I will advise them to use their food stamps for these $3-$5 per week expenditures and then use their pocket money for TP and the other stuff.
Light bulbs, TP, shampoo, soap, toilet cleaner, dish soap, laundry detergent...just about anything with tax on it is not available for purchase with food stamps.

I sure know what you mean about the abuse of the system, though. Their are lots of places where you can "sell" you stamps for 5o cents on the dollar. Then you can have CASH to buy your smokes, etc...

Hard call as to what to do about it. I have heard suggestions for "coupons" that have the actual items printed on them..IE "fruit" coupon for $5.00. TP/toiletries coupon for $5.00 etc...

BTW, a single low income person in our state (WA) gets over $100/month in food stamps. Kinda tight for a Special Ed person who needs more prepared type food, but doable with help.

[massadvj]

I don't necessarily disagree, but I'd like to point out a simple fact in order to put things in perspective. The federal government spends about $20 billion or so on the food stamp program. The same government spends about $200 billion, or ten times as much, on Medicare.

The average wealth of the food stamp beneficiary is well below the national mean, even accounting for fraud. The average wealth of the Medicare beneficiary is well above the national mean.

So, while it may be right to criticize social welfare such as food stamps, it seems ludicrous not to also criticize the real deadbeats in our society -- the millions of seniors who suck from the public teat while living in luxurious digs in places like Myrtle Beach, Sun City and Tampa Bay. Some 60 percent of the federal budget goes toward benefits to seniors, who are the richest demographic group in the US. Contrast this with about 17 percent of the budget that goes to the poor.

The biggest welfare chiselers are senior citizens and their AARP lobbyists. In a few short years, I will be one of them, and it makes me sick to think that my bills will be paid by the generations that come after me. But that's what our democracy has wrought: welfare for the old and rich.

[Danielle]

I just read all the comments on this thread and saw that no one stated the true facts. Those being that since 1996 were major changes in the Food Stamp program. One of those being that single people can only get them for three months in any three year period of time, that the amount is based on income, including assets with your car being counted, with set limitations. That those that are married or with children are also held to stringent standards. There is a mandatory employment and training requirement, and other rules, It is not like people just go and decide to get on food stamps and never pay for their own food again. There are many more requirements, but no one is listing them here. The program was set up to help people get back on track, not give them hand outs to live off when they are capable f making it on their own.

Please note that not until October of 2002 were more immigrants allowed food stamps and they are encouraged to apply. www.lawhelp.org/.../itopicID/467/iProblemCodeID/1731200/ iChannelID/76/isubtopicid/1/iproblemcodeid/1731200