Food stamps: The most efficient stimulus?

Food stamps are good for some, but when you are laid off and have two people to support how do you feed 2 on $98.00 a month. Lets get it correct I only have one child, but with these prices out of control what do we do? Right now there are no jobs out there for my field so I depend on food stamps & unemployment, but I also own my own home. $98.00 thats it??????

Reply

For foodstamps to return less that $2 of economic activity for every $1 spent is terrible. Most any other way of spending the money would return a much higher payout than that.

And I'm truly not harsh and cynical, but can you imagine how I feel that my tax dollars are being spent to make sure that you have grass-fed beef and organic brown rice and other overpriced items. Foodstamps are supposed to be a supplement to keep people from going hungry, not a meal-ticket to high-class dining.

Reply

I love how you mention not once, but twice, that you make more money than your husband and that you have to go on public assistance because he is under-employed. What a peach! Your husband will probably feel like crap after reading your ridiculous article. As for me, well, I feel good knowing that although we too are struggling to make ends meet right now, we are not depending on tax payers to buy our groceries. On another note, you don't have to buy expensive grass-fed beef to feed your family in a healthy manner. We go fishing in our local fresh and salt waters for fish and crabs. In the fall, my husband usually brings home a locally harvested deer to help stretch our grocery budget. Our deer are also grass-fed, have no artificial hormones, and have much less fat than beef. The best part, it's free. So you can get back into your huge SUV and drive over to the uber-trendy farmers market with a fist-full of my tax dollars clutched in your greedy little hand and buy all the organics that help your conscience sleep better at night.

Reply

Reply to Frank Watts. People go to these farmers markets to get the bare essentials to survive. The fruits & veggies are cheeper there. Than at your supermarket. And stimulus? The disabled with no income receive 78 dollars a month in our state, no matter how many taxes you've paid during your life. No fine dinning here, buddy!

Reply

I was very taken with this article. Here is a slice of life, and we read of someone who is thankful for the ability to feed her loved ones -- and thankfully pointing out ,as well, how the food stamps are a win-win situation for the economy. I never thought of it or saw it that way. It was most enlightening and edifying.

by contrast, the tenor of discussion on the board is often not at all enlightening and certainly less than edifying. The ranting, the finger pointing, the triumphalism, and the sarcasm are simply detrimental to everyone -- the writer, the readers, and the original author. all are punished.

civil discourse -- has it gone the way of the do-do bird? I hope not.

Reply

Rick, no one has been punished. I'm thrilled that you found the article to be an enlightening and edifying "slice of life". However, in my geographic area, only the bourgeois elite shop at the Farmers Market. There is no machine to swipe your little food stamp card and the produce is outrageously expensive. Furthermore, honest tax-payers such as myself are angry and tired of footing the burden for irresponsible women and men who insist on, "whoops!", not practicing responsible family planning. I only have one child. Not because we didn't want more. We just felt that we wanted to be able to provide her with all those things that make life a little sweeter. Perhaps one day, we will be in a different situation. For now, we are confident in our decision to keep our family small enough to sustain ourselves. The way it should be. Without having to depend on others to provide for our familys welfare. It brings me great joy to know that the blueberries in my daughters belly were bought and paid for by none other than myself. So before you accuse others of ranting, finger-pointing, and sarcasm, please take a moment to remember that there are two sides to every coin. I will never feel triumphant knowing that anyone in our country needs government assistance to provide for their children. I would just feel better knowing that the writer feels at least somewhat humbled by having to use food stamps instead of lauding the point as if she were a national hero for single-handedly stimulating our economy.

Reply

I think its crap that a man can work his fingers to the bone everyday, and not make enough money to provide all the things his family needs and more, because of inflation, price gouging, and ect. I would say that 90 percent of people on foodstamps probably just need to get a job but at the same time even going to college and getting a career does not guaruntee you will make enough to live well. I am a small business owner and I work every day but I am also putting my wife through college to be a nurse we are on food stamps right now until she gets out of school. I hate it im ashamed but most of all im pissed off because I dont try to live outside my means I live in a trailer I have one daughter we drive old cars but we cant make it and by the way we dont have cable tv we do have internet for her school work. what happened to the day when a man could work 40 hours a week and provide for his family no matter what job he had thats not the case today the people who build america everyday are starvimg while greed rules are country like the preacher with the 4 million dollar house our country is going to hell and fast I dont think the little amount of money spent on foodstamps is even worth talking about. we are in such a deep hole as a country, i fear we will never climb out. Its time to hunker down and spend as much time with your family as you can because we are in the last days. life as we know it is over its time for love,understanding,and forgiveness and most importantly getting back to god

Reply

This is a topic I think I need to speak up on. I have been on and off the "system" since giving birth to my daughter in 1998. I was on birth control because I knew I wasn't ready to have a baby, yet I became pregnant anyway, but beside the point. She is here and I have to provide for her. I had no employable skills, at least none that would provide me with anything other then a minimum wage job, so when I went on welfare and received food stamps, I looked into going to school while I received these services. I thought that if I had a decent education, I wouldn't need these services ever again. Right? Nope. The rules when you're on welfare are that you can only go to school if the program or degree you get is finished within a year. A year?? What degree can be done in only a year?? None that I know of. So, I went to one of those career institutes and became a medical assistant. Sure I have a diploma as a medical assistant and the recruiter told me that medical assistants make a decent wage when we get done and that the doctor offices hire MA's more then LPN's or RN's anymore because they can get away with paying less. Fine and dandy, but I couldn't find a job as an MA anywhere. I ended up working as an HHA (Home Health Aide) making barely enough to make rent a month, but hey, I was working. With the family of two I have (myself and my daughter) making barely enough to survive, I too qualified for food stamps. I could finally afford to feed my daughter 3 times a day instead of just twice a day. I decided I wanted to go back to school to become an LPN, but I would have to cut my hours back because of school scheduling and such, but I don't like feeling I have to rely on the system to live. But, it is there for those of us who need it. I get a whopping $230 in stamps per month. It isn't a lot, but it sure does help. I don't shop at high end stores. I shop at Walmart or Save A Lot for food. I can't even afford a car. I have to buy a bus pass every month to get where I need to go. I am trying to pursue my education to provide a better life for my daughter, but how do I do that all by myself?? I think in my case, the system is a good thing to help me pursue my hopes and dreams and attain my goals to provide on my own, and is a stepping stone to get there. I don't think being on food stamps and welfare is meant to be a lifestyle. I think it is meant to be a stepping stone for those who need help out of a bad situation. This economy is bad right now, but food stamps are there for those who need it, not for those who want a free ride thanks to Uncle Sam. I'm glad it is there because I need it for now, but it won't be a forever thing for my daughter and me. I have big plans for us!

Reply

I am ALMOST at a loss for words. This young lady like "totally" doesn't get delayed gratification. If you don't have the money to buy the grain fed beef, then you buy chicken on sale at a supermarket that YOU can afford.

I'm certain that if full financial disclosure were required, furnished and PUBLISHED, it would be obvious that a staggering number of people on Food Stamps use them even though they could be self-supporting ... if they learned the basics of budgeting, practiced self-discipline, worked two jobs and got it that the taxpayer does NOT owe them a living.

The next thing this little Diva will expect to "feed her 'oops' babies" is organic foie gras! And she will probably throw herself on the floor and kick and scream if she doesn't get it. This spoiled brat attitude of entitlement – that I am subsidizing - infuriates me!!

Reply

I work at a grocery store, which is in an area mostly lived in by middle to lower middle class citizens. And we can always tell who is going to be paying with food stamps when they get into line. This has been a topic of conversation in our store many times, because of the kinds of food bought using the food stamps. Crab legs, shrimp, seafood delicacies, rotisserie chickens, and name brand food is what I see come down my register belt. My parents both have worked their entire lives, and we have never been able to afford these foods. Not once can i remember having seafood has a regular, weekday meal. We only buy what is on sale, or what we have a coupon for. When customers use food stamps, they never use coupons, and don't even bother to sign up for a store card to receive extra savings, because why bother? Its not on their dollar. Instead of paying my parents directly for my bills, i use the money to go food shopping. I have found a way to feed my family every week for around $60 a week. And there are five people in my household. It doesn't always last, but we are certainly not starving. In New Jersey, where I live, we have a program called WIC (Women Infant Children) where they can purchase only certain kinds of food, mostly only store brand, and are given a guide to what they can buy. I think that the food stamp program should include a buying guide much like this one. This would eliminate people taking advantage of this service. I know that not every person is like this, but i have seen many rape this service ungratefully. I know that many have just fallen on hard times, my parents have received aid when my siblings and i were young. But i believe it should be monitored carefully so that those who are not shopping smart can stretch it to the limit, and not indulge in unnecessary frivolities.

Reply

Must be nice to have almost 800 dollars for groceries a month. I live with my boyfriend and we spend about 60 dollars to 80 dollars on groceries a week, which comes to be about 300 dollars a month. We live in San Diego which happens to be one of the most expensive cities in the country. Granted we do not shop at Wholefoods or farmers markets because we cannot afford to and the food there are super expensive. We plan our meals weekly and only buy the necessary things for that week's meals and always cook enough to have extra for next day's lunch. Just because we do budget our grocery bills that doesn't we don't eat healthy, in fact we mostly buy fresh veggies, whole grains and fresh meats. We get all the grocery ads in the mail on Mondays so we see what is going to be on sale for the week, then we plan meals keeping those sale items in mind and on Wednesdays we go and pick up those items when they go on sale. It does require a little bit of creativity as we have to work with those sale items but we have trying all sort of new dishes. My parents have a big backyard and planted a nice garden with great varieties. They give us some organic veggies whenever they harvest, the garden save them a lot of money over the years.

I don't think some responders here are mad because the author receive food stamps but rather she exerted a sort of snobby attitude when she is describing how these food stamps are being used. We all understand that life is not stable and no one can see pass tomorrow so social programs like food stamps are great to give a lift for those who needed them. However, the author made it sound like she is living it up on food stamps and eating better than when they were not using them. There is a sense that she is justifying her use of food stamps by pointing out the economic benefits and such. No one is judging her because of the food stamps but she needs to be more humble and not make it seems a ticket to living like the elite.

Reply

>Does this make me a bad parent?
Yes.

>Does this make me a bad planner because I couldn't see into the future and know I can't pay all my bills now?
Yes. cheifly, the act of having kids you couldn't support. Therein lies the bad planning.

begin sarcasm->
But that doesn't mean you should feel bad about yourself! Lord no! no one should ever feel that way, should they? It's just not fair! Certainly, the government would rather you rationlize it until you feel entitled to their help than have you feel guilty and attempt to get off food stamps. Certainly, there could be no gain in that.For those of you who feel that everyone receiving foodstamps is a slacker and should have planned better...
Just wait until your company desides to outsource (my husbands job), or down size, or just plain shut down (my fathers job, after 15+ year with the company)...
Then maybe you will think twice about the rest of us who are just trying to feed our families in what is supposed to be the richest country in the world.

I rather doubt it. But I do agree with your accessment that I pay a great deal in taxes that I don't see back, and hey, maybe you've figured out the good way to get some of it back. It just makes me wish I was more of a slacker and worse at planning like you. It would be sweet to be a baby machine and win genetically while taking more out of the public pot.

Sara's idiot notion that food stamps make people eat local sustainible produce is just incorrect. Her massive amount of research into her own life doesn't prove that others are doing the same thing. I read an article last month about a guy who went on food stamps (technically, he just went on his allotment of them) and he couldn't get very much fresh food. He then joined a food stamp support group and learned that this is common for most of them.

All that aside. Give me the food stamps! I make less than Ms. Sara a month. How many children do I need to have to qualify?

Reply

You know I have to say I am on the fence with this blog. I know what its like to be on assistance and be budgeting but I have also been witness to people who are on "habitual" assistance and are FAT on assistance too.

I too, see this poster as a bit haughty in her response, I would be very proud of my husband if he joined the military. (What she doesnt mention about that is that as a dependant she gets free medical care, I am a vet) Anyhow, I like that she is buying fruits and veggies rather than some of the stuff I see the Habituals here buying. Like the poster in New Jersey who works in the grocery store, I have yet to see any Habitual in my grocery store buy veggies and fruits. Many of them stock up on the sugary treats and crap that I cant afford for my kids. Atleast she is cooking and preparing a meal, which is also another hoop I think habituals should have to jump through when receiving food stamps. Going to classes about cooking and meal preparation. Most of their kids are brick shit houses just like they are. Than they are awarded healthcare and dental care because of their "conditions" and self induced diabetes. The American Indian tribes are worse!

I ask other readers to look through what is a bit of conceitment and listen to her message. The US IS the richest nation on the planet for sure. We just have generations of spoiled people kids who think they should remain spoiled without having to make any efforts to make their own lives better like the people who built this nation!

It's even kinda nice living in the 40's again!

Reply

I understand where people are coming from in their reactions to this article. I am one of those millions of people fired from a job
(MD is an at will state-they don't need a good reason or reason at all) and denied unemployment benefits even though the terms of my firing were not because of any misconduct on my part. I've made maybe a tenth of my normal salary this year. I have applied to job after job after job. No one wants to be unemployed and left without a way to support themselves or their families. In this economy, saying "GET a JOB" means nothing because I have two degrees and am getting rejected from grocery stores and secretarial positions that I can do with my eyes closed. I have been unemployed for a year and there's no one that can say that I haven't been giving it my all for this WHOLE year. I have earned half of my credits toward my masters degree and done volunteer work, though.
It does piss me off to hear how someone else is getting over on the system or buys organic goods that most working people can't buy on food stamps. I woke up this morning hungry and am certain that I will go to bed the same way. This woman has a job AND a husband and still gets a lot of money in food stamps. WOW! Also, one other thing that I'd like to address because I believe that most states are like this-financial assistance is only available for people with kids. People without children pay a lot of taxes and don't get tax cedits for children and daycare, yet we have no source of help in this tough economy. This really sucks. Of course my first choice would be to work, even if it's just barely minimum wage.But maybe, just maybe if I could get some assistance I wouldn't be wondering where I am going to live from month to month and I wouldn't be so gosh darn hungry all of the time.
Also for the record-this is coming from a person who has worked since I was fifteen and has never been unemployed for more than a couple months during transitional periods like going to college and relocating.

Reply

I'm a single mom with 3 children and I work full-time during the school year as a teacher's aide. The school does not pay aides during the summer, so I've always gotten a summer job to get by during those months. However, this summer I haven't been able to find even a minimum-wage job, no doubt because of our crappy economy. So I had no choice but to apply for food stamps for the summer. While I am grateful that my kids will eat, I believe food stamps are stigmatized. When I go to the check out line I feel like I have a big "L" stamped on my forehead. In response to the posters who say that all food-stampers buy crap, I must digress! What I am putting on the conveyer belt is fresh fruit, salad stuff, chicken, cereal, milk and juice, and of course the old standby, lots of ground beef. No organic stuff for us. It's too expensive. Those food stamps have to s-t-r-e-t-c-h. I shop at Meijer, Wal-mart, and ALDI (that place is great). In October I will no longer qualify for food stamps because I make too much, but it certainly helps us out during the summer months.

Reply

You are a loser if you are on food stamps. Plain and simple. You should have a big "L" tattooed onto your forehead.

Reply