Go ahead and Google the "Welfare Queen" Myth. Go on... I'll wait.
What you will find is abuse like you illustrated above is minimal, hardly a speck in the chart. You will also find that the majority of people who use SNAP (food stamps) are off the program in three-six months (because their situation is improved). You will also find the economic benefit for every dollar invested in the SNAP program has a greater than $1-$1 ratio. You'll find that of ALL the government funded programs, SNAP and welfare is one of the LEAST abused systems (painfully low fraud percentage).
But don't let the FACTS or IMPORTANCE of the Social Safety Net keep you from posting myths and garbage about people struggling.
(And because it's the holidays and last I checked we were supposed to be generous, giving, and trying to instill an importance beyond material possessions for our children... I'm going to go ahead and address your little "story" regarding a family on SNAP and in supported housing. Because your paragraphs reek of judgment, negativity, and a profound lack of understanding of humanity.)
According to cubby...Poor people are not allowed to smoke, or drink, or enjoy even small treats of junk food or soda or sweets. Not a single candy bar to enjoy. You will live painfully and without any culinary enjoyment or guilty pleasures!
Smart phones can already be owned BEFORE someone loses their job. Also, try and get a job without a contact phone number to arrange for an interview. Nevermind that the phone could have been a gift, or that the family is locked into a contract established earlier (and cannot afford the $200+ fee per line to cancel said contract and decimate their credit rating).
And those brand name shoes. How dare poor people have quality footwear! Never mind that quality lasts longer and may have been purchased before jobs were lost or medical emergencies drained the savings and checking account. But you *KNOW* that they bought those shoes, cubby, and that you would be paying for food for their family.
And that TV you own? Sell it.
The computer that you could use for job applications that depreciated in value and is now only worth $50? Sell it.
Internet for job searching and enjoyment because you can't afford cable? No enjoyment for YOU. Sell it. Disconnect it.
Clean, nice furniture for you and your family? Sell it.
Nice clothes? Sell them (for pennies on the dollar).
No movies, no games, no enjoyment. Sell it all.
Because when either parent goes looking for a job, they had better LOOK poor, their house MUST appear destitute, their children must not have any items for enjoyment or entertainment and must appear POOR any time day or night (for those little inspections cubby wants).
And cubby KNOWS these people and KNOWS all the back story and history of all these flagrant purchases, so he is justified in his judgment story. And instead of reporting fraud (because he has all the FACTS and knows that they are not being legal with their 3-6 months of assistance), we just get these fallacious stories of ridiculous waste in the system.
Is this how we treat our fellow Americans?
For everyone always saying "God Bless" on here... is this what Jesus would do?
Why is everyone so afraid of poverty in this country?
Why insist that we treat poor people like pariahs?I vote for DIGNITY with my tax dollars, HUMANITY, SERVICE. Everyone in this thread should do the same. I support Children and Families (the true building blocks of this nation) every day-- why don't you, cubby?!
In one of the wealthiest nations in the world, this fact disgusts me:
In 2013, 49.1 million Americans lived in food insecure households, including 33.3 million adults and 15.8 million children.
(Citation:
http://www.feedingamerica...sheet.html)
All of the facts of SNAP completely discredit your Welfare Queen Myth, your Abuse of the System Myth, and your little Shaming Story. Educate yourself and then reach out to your fellow man, woman, and child (not just this holiday season, but every week of the year). Hold your elected officials responsible and help bring our brothers and sisters out of poverty.