Buying Steak And Seafood Is Not A Food Stamp Challenge

If it weren't such a sad and trite tale, I'd be amused at the level of near hysteria leveled at SNAP recipients.

That's the food stamp program for those of you who don't know.

"OH MY GOD, THESE PEOPLE WILL BUY STEAK, SEAFOOD AND JUNK FOOD ON THE AMERICAN TAXPAYER'S DIME!  WE MUST GUARD AGAINST THESE TAKERS!"

Read the rest here: http://www.chicagonow.com/i-hate-my-developer/2015/04/buying-steak-and-seafood-is-not-a-food-stamp-challenge/

Working, but need public assistance anyway

A home health care worker in Durham, N.C.; a McDonald’s cashier in Chicago; a bank teller in New York; an adjunct professor in Maywood, Ill. They are all evidence of an improving economy, because they are working and not among the steadily declining ranks of the unemployed.

Yet these same people also are on public assistance — relying on food stamps, Medicaid or other stretches of the safety net to help cover basic expenses when their paychecks come up short. And they are not alone. Nearly three-quarters of the people helped by programs geared to the poor are members of a family headed by a worker, according to a new study...



http://nyti.ms/1CMzjig

Feeding a family of seven on $150 a month

And here's another monthly shopping list. This one is from LT, a 31 year old mother of five; also in their home is her 22 year old sister who attends a day program for cognitively impaired adults. The family receives $109 a month in food stamps (SNAP benefits) and their monthly food budget is about $150. Three of the children get reduced price school lunch; the others are not yet in school. This month they spent $153.17.

pork loin - 3 lbs	$7.26
fruity loops	$3.49
raisin bran	$3.49
sandies cookies	$2.79
corn on the cob - 10	$4.00
milk 1%	$4.49
sliced ham pack - small	$2.89
1 pear	$0.99
apple juice	$2.49
green cabbage - 1 head	$1.49
red cabbage - 1 small head	$2.29
cello bag of carrots	$3.29
canned vegetables - 15	$14.85
spaghetti sauce - 12	$22.86
macaroni noodles - 8	$11.85
spaghetti noodles - 11	$10.89
eggs - 3 dozen	$8.07
bread - 4 loaves	$13.96
cheese block	$3.49
frozen potato fries	$1.99
raisins	$2.79
English muffins	$2.99
dinner sausage	$2.49
peanut butter	$4.49
bologna	$5.49
sandwich rolls - 2 large bags	$8.00

Super-sizing public Costs

According to a study by researchers at the University of California-Berkeley, more than half (52 percent) of front-line fast-food workers must rely on at least one public assistance program to support their families.


http://nelp.org/content/uploads/2015/03/NELP-Super-Sizing-Public-Costs-Fast-Food-Report.pdf