SNAP (food stamps) should be restricted to rice, flour, rolled oats, and sugar

[Ray From Cleveland]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

Again if you want Steak and Lobster then get a damn job!

Yeah...that's not happening for $10. You have to take into account your initial investment on buying the cumin powder and pepper, even though you might be using only a small portion of it. A bag of beans $2. Ham hocks... $3-4. Onions $1. Poblano Pepper $1, the chicken bouillon cubes $2. A thing of Pepper $2. Cumin powder $3. More like $14-15. But do you plan on eating the same thing every single day? And I'm sorry... but in all the time I worked in the grocery store I never saw anyone buying lobster or crab legs or anything like that with EBT.

Personally, I stock up on spices during periods when they're on sale. The holidays, for example, or Cinco de Mayo for things like cumin. I also take HUGE advantage of dollar stores and discount stores like Big Lots for such things. It's all in being a wise shopper.

Furthermore, you're probably not making an "initial investment" of all the ingredients for beans and hamhocks all at once. Many of those things, like the spices, are things you buy and keep on hand long-term, for use in many different dishes. It's the same as objecting that it's not cheaper to bake your own bread or cakes, because you have to buy flour and sugar, etc. If you get in the habit of cooking, rather than heating prepared meals, you will keep these things stocked as needed, and therein lies much of the actual cost savings.

It is fairly rare to see people buying luxury items like seafood with EBT, I agree, although obviously, it depends on where they are in the country and how pricey such an item is.

Eligible Food Items | Food and Nutrition Service

 

[Yousaidwhat]

Don't gimme any crap about how poor people need a balanced diet. As it is these snappers spend all this money on junk food. A diet of staples will be better for them. And MUCH cheaper for the taxpayers. Eating just those 4 staples, a person can live on a dollar a day.

MRE's.

Meals rarely eaten. I've had my fill. No thank you. lol.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

Again if you want Steak and Lobster then get a damn job!

There you have it...

The secret formula to end poverty as we know it

It's not a secret at all, only to liberals perhaps.

Conservative point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is the state of not having enough money.
What is the solution to poverty? Money.
How does one obtain money? By working at a job.


Liberal point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is a state where one is a victim of discrimination or lack of education.
What is the solution to poverty? Government.
How does one obtain government? Fill out a form at a local government office.

 

[Yousaidwhat]

Right in my own backyard.

Aug. 30, 2016.

14 arrested in $16,000,000 EBT raid/sting.

Baltimore/cbslocal.com.

Exchanging benefits for cash.

This is what makes people wonder about such programs.

I'm glad they were caught.

Question is.... What happened to those who are enrolled and knowingly received payouts from those involved?

Also. EBT cards used at Casinos, Strip joints and liquor stores.

Seems that USDA is seriously cracking down on searching for violations and these situations are becoming rare since the programs are electronic and they are able to find this fraud, waste and abuse.

It appears that about 4% of the budget is affected.

 

[rightwinger]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

Again if you want Steak and Lobster then get a damn job!

There you have it...

The secret formula to end poverty as we know it

It's not a secret at all, only to liberals perhaps.

Conservative point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is the state of not having enough money.
What is the solution to poverty? Money.
How does one obtain money? By working at a job.


Liberal point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is a state where one is a victim of discrimination or lack of education.
What is the solution to poverty? Government.
How does one obtain government? Fill out a form at a local government office.

Now you are talking....

Conservative point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is the state of not having enough money.
What is the solution to poverty? Money.
How does one obtain money? By working at a job.

Now you are getting close to the problem. What is the common factor in impoverished regions? Whether it is in Detroit or Appalachia these regions have seen the jobs leave and the communities left with nothing. Claiming the solution is "Get a Job" doesn't help when qualified workers find their way of living gone. It applies to former coal miners and auto workers

 

[Coyote]

I have nothing against giving vouchers for certain foods like the old days....rice, beans, puffed wheat, prunes & raisins, milk, cheese, butter, canned meats, etc. What I cant stand is the big white women with skinny black boyfriends buying junk.

My father (now 85 years old) admitted that they were on welfare when he was a kid. Welfare was pulling your red wagon to the fire station five miles away. They would fill it with fruits and vegetables. Then you would pull your red wagon back to the house and help feed the family.

I'm in the process of reading an interesting book called A Square Meal that talks about some of that. It goes into what "welfare" was like before there was a federal program. Some of it was pretty horrific. It was a patchwork of local and state and private relief agencies. Often they couldn't meet the needs of starving people. It varied of course - but in places like Arkansas, with share croppers and tenant farmers, the landowners kept them deliberately underfed and refused to allow relief workers to provide them with food directly. The rations were typically - cornmeal, beans, coffee, salt pork. Little to no fresh vegtables and fruit. The main "relief" agency was the Red Cross, but they stopped short of providing food - they'd provide seed, fertilizer, loans.

 

[Wyatt earp]

Nah give them all the junk food they need, we need grunts that can pass military weights and use them for cannon fodder.


.

 

[leftwinger]

So what's your point? You still calling rolled oats junk food? It's good for you and i eat it all the time.

No. I honestly did not know what it was.

I know this.

 

[Syriusly]

Don't gimme any crap about how poor people need a balanced diet. As it is these snappers spend all this money on junk food. A diet of staples will be better for them. And MUCH cheaper for the taxpayers. Eating just those 4 staples, a person can live on a dollar a day.

That's the recipe for moonshine

I think that is Shootspeeders goal- getting them all to make moonshine.

 

[jasonnfree]

Don't gimme any crap about how poor people need a balanced diet. As it is these snappers spend all this money on junk food. A diet of staples will be better for them. And MUCH cheaper for the taxpayers. Eating just those 4 staples, a person can live on a dollar a day.

A lot of people on food stamps rent rooms and don't have access to stoves, even if they had cookware, which they usually don't. Some don't even rent rooms. They live in parks, under bridges, in motor homes, etc, or crash with friends. For real. Sometimes cup of noodles and potato chips suffice. If you can find the hot water for the cup of soup. And yes, plenty of bums and freeloaders out there as always, granted. How to figure out the honestly needy from the bums not that easy to do.

The area I live in, you can get fined a couple hundred dollars for sleeping in your car too. Not always easy being poor like some think.

Boy, does that ever not make sense. Where on earth do you live?

Southern California. Fine amount depends on the city. Not sure all cities charge fines, but some do for sure.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

Again if you want Steak and Lobster then get a damn job!

There you have it...

The secret formula to end poverty as we know it

It's not a secret at all, only to liberals perhaps.

Conservative point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is the state of not having enough money.
What is the solution to poverty? Money.
How does one obtain money? By working at a job.


Liberal point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is a state where one is a victim of discrimination or lack of education.
What is the solution to poverty? Government.
How does one obtain government? Fill out a form at a local government office.

Now you are talking....

Conservative point of view:

What is poverty? Poverty is the state of not having enough money.
What is the solution to poverty? Money.
How does one obtain money? By working at a job.

Now you are getting close to the problem. What is the common factor in impoverished regions? Whether it is in Detroit or Appalachia these regions have seen the jobs leave and the communities left with nothing. Claiming the solution is "Get a Job" doesn't help when qualified workers find their way of living gone. It applies to former coal miners and auto workers

Nice try, but a lot of those people also live in big cities where employers are almost begging people to work. Trust me, I work in industrial sections all day long and businesses are loaded with HELP WANTED signs all over.

If there is absolutely no work where you are at, move to where the work is. It's not going to get any better by sitting there with your SNAP card hoping and praying.

 

[jasonnfree]

If food stamps weren't subsidies for walmart and big agriculture, there wouldn't be food stamps. Truth is, money we blow on "defense" is nothing but a subsidy for raytheon, boeing and dozens of others. So much money goes to the top, there's not much left over for those on the bottom. Plenty of people working hard still qualify for assistance because of low wages in relation to cost of living. How about taking it easy on the poor , at least till Christmas season's over anyway.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

So now you want mexican bulb onions and cumin powder included in the list of things snappers can buy??? That's why i said rice, flour, rolled oats, and sugar; Keep it simple.

No, my point is you can make a meal cheap and they do not deserve steak and lobster. People believe that the taxpayer is their personal bank account and I say forget that!

These lazy people need to get a damn job and learn to cook and stop expecting the working society to pay for their lazy ass.

I am more agree with shooting the lazy drug addicted pieces of shit than supporting their worthless asses anymore!

Also that goes for every race!

The only segment of society I will pay for willingly is the Native American Population and I know you will disagree that but as for any other segment of society fuck'em!

I also think that one of the requirements should be you are not allowed to own pets. It makes no sense that taxpayers are feeding people and those people are feeding their animals. The government should be allowed to send agents to various homes to see if these people have huge dogs or ten cats.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

And I'm sorry... but in all the time I worked in the grocery store I never saw anyone buying lobster or crab legs or anything like that with EBT.

HAHAHA. You can't lie that blatantly and expect anyone to take you seriously.

Never... not one single time did I ever see someone buy lobster or crab legs with an EBT card. I saw people buy cat fish nuggets with one, but not any luxury items like lobster.

Come on over to my store sometime. What people are allowed to buy with these cards are amazing.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

do the rules vary from state to state on food stamps? i was on wic way back when, it was a good program. but you are limited on what you can buy....has to be wic approved...

starving in america is a total different concept than starving in the sudan

SNAP (food stamps) should be restricted to rice, flour, rolled oats, and sugar

Rice: Good choice. A billion starving Chinese can't be wrong
Flour: Flour needs to be milled. Give them raw wheat and let them grind their own flour like they do in Africa
Rolled oats: Let them roll their own damned oats
Sugar: A luxury they haven't earned. Get a job and buy your own damned sugar

There are those on the Right who won't be happy until our Poor are properly Poor like in China or India or Africa.

Until they start rioting and breaking into their nice homes at an even higher rate. Begging at every traffic light. We feed people for a reason, and it is not just to be nice.

Correct, it's to buy votes.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Good idea....no processed food....

Learn how to handle unprocessed food.....

One more time. Define "processed food".

Yeah I don't get this argument. I had for lunch a few minutes ago a frozen meal that had a slice of meat loaf and mashed potatoes in it that cost $2. There is no way I could get all the stuff to make that meal and do it myself for $2... and especially not waste food since it is just me eating. So why would anyone want to take that away from people on SNAP? I'm not on SNAP, but shouldn't the best value for the budget be what matters the most?

Well, it's rather different when there's only one person eating.

Now, see, I have myself, my husband, my adult son, and my 8-year-old son to feed. A pound of ground meat would be $3, potatoes would be about $2, a half-dozen eggs (because you need an egg to make meat loaf) is about $1.50, and a can of evaporated milk (or a half-gallon, if you prefer regular milk) is $1. So that's $7.50 for meat loaf and real mashed potatoes for four people, plus I then have milk and eggs left over for later. So in my case, fresh is a better value on top of tasting better and being healthier.

You are correct, though, that it's all about what makes the food budget stretch.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Why is it I can make a pot of black beans with ham hocks and the additional ingredients are Mexican Bulb Onions, Poblano Pepper, little cumin powder, pepper, and two chicken bouillon cubes for less than ten dollars!?!

It will feed four people easily, so if I can cook this while not being on the government welfare system why is it the poor can not do this!?!

Again if you want Steak and Lobster then get a damn job!

Yeah...that's not happening for $10. You have to take into account your initial investment on buying the cumin powder and pepper, even though you might be using only a small portion of it. A bag of beans $2. Ham hocks... $3-4. Onions $1. Poblano Pepper $1, the chicken bouillon cubes $2. A thing of Pepper $2. Cumin powder $3. More like $14-15. But do you plan on eating the same thing every single day? And I'm sorry... but in all the time I worked in the grocery store I never saw anyone buying lobster or crab legs or anything like that with EBT.

You are so full of fucking shit you stupid bitch!

I do it all the damn time!

You want to tell the taxpayer they should support your welfare ass and be allow to waste their money on whatever you want to eat!

The fact is the Government has the right to tell you what you can and can not buy and you do not deserve to eat like the rest of Americans if you need the welfare of others!

You should just get the basic and I will tell you that a bulb of Mexican Onions is fifty cents and you can buy Mexican products and not some high end shit either!

You want your cake and eat it too, and do not tell me how much it cost to make Black beans and Hocks because I make them at least once a week and I budget my bills down to the last penny!

Why is that Progressive Liberals like to tell taxpayers what they need to give to society and then demand those like me to mind my own business when you waste my tax dollars on steak and lobster!?!

Also you can not buy a two dollar steak anywhere, so which one of is the real fucking liar here!?!

I buy two dollar steaks all the fucking time. They are cheap round steaks, and they are marked down 75% because they are about to expire, but I throw them in the freezer until I'm ready to eat them.

As I said with your meal, you have to look at the initial cost of buying the cumin and the black pepper because you aren't buying just the little bit that you are using each time, and that effects the cost. So yes, I am saying you are a liar about that. You can not start from scratch with no ingredients, and go out and buy all the stuff you need to make your meal for $10.

Yes, but you almost never start entirely from scratch with absolutely nothing in the house. And even if you do, once you get basics stocked, food budgeting gets that much easier.

However, the perception that food stamp recipients are all living high on the hog with steak and lobster all the time is ludicrous.

 

[Cecilie1200]

i wonder what your typical south chicago thug uses those food stamp cards for.

Oh, they themselves don't usually get the cards. They have an assortment of baby mamas who get them, and they visit them at the beginning of the month when the card is filled.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Not everyone knows how to cook from scratch & wouldn't have the first clue what to do with basic staple ingredients. A person can not only survive on rice & beans, but even thrive. But it does get old fast without variety. Meats & fruits & veggies are necessary too

Well, yeah, without fruit, you end up getting scurvy.

 

[Cecilie1200]

This is the age of detail-data-driven merchandise barcodes and the age of the electronic food stamp card...

Why not devise a balance of food types and then enforce that balance electronically at the cash register?

Why would you want to, even assuming that supermarkets want to spend even more time and effort policing people's diets than they already do?