Maine Gov. LePage threatens to halt food stamp program

In reality there is very little in the grocery stores these days that is nutritious and healthy. There are far too many unhealthy choices that advertise as healthy but are in fact unhealthy edible food like substances.

I would think that it would make sense to only allow food stamps and equivalent to be used for seasonings, meat, fruit, nuts, vegetables and other whole foods such as pasta or other similar such things. It is not difficult or expensive to make most dressings or sauces. There are so many processed foods, and or unhealthy choices in stores that have just as much of a negative impact on health as soda.

I applaud the effort, but if the whole picture is not addressed then the problem will never be solved.

Threatening to take away the benefit only shows this mans inability to think rationally and he actions in the other elements of his job should be looked very closely at. I would guess that this is the same way he approaches many of the dilemmas facing his constituants. This is a clown show that is aimed at getting ratings and air time, not a genuine effort to serve his people.

a reply to: Vector99

A cynical politician's idea of 'leadership.'

Again I gotta wonder 'who the heck voted for this guy?'

originally posted by: wantsome

I get it some of you think that everyone on food assistance is buying lobsters and steak. The reality is most people on food assistance need this program to survive.

People on food stamps usually need the food stamps. I don't see how they could buy lobsters and steak and be able to afford to eat the rest of the month. I am on food stamps, and I get $120 a month that all goes to cheap groceries.

What in the world are the 2 foodstamp recipients in Maine gonna do?

The Retail lobby has stopped all efforts at controlling what food stamps are spent on, and squashed any reporting of what is bought (as we all know, this is easily done with scanning systems). Every aspect of our economy is buying politicians, except for the taxpayer.

if guns dont kill people, its stupid people who kill people;
then soda doesnt give diabetes, stupid people give themselves diabetes and high blood sugar etc...

-----

if the racial demographic where they threatened to take away food stamps from users was different , thus would be the comments; different.

And the hypocrisy from that side makes another appearance. Someone buys something they don't like, so let's blame all food stamps recipients.

Just don't use that same logic with guns, Christians/Catholics, or whatever it is they are crying about week after week.

A few points I want to make after reading through....


1) I'm pretty sure corn is a grain. Why is it even considered a vegetable?
2) I live in maine and see the daily abuse of food stamps. People can buy redbull with those things- $2 for 8 ounces of syrup.

One part of me agrees- take them away.
The other part of me knows why we can't just do that.

The system is flawed in a bad way, and needs to be restructured from the ground up... just like the rest of gooberment.

this "basic income" thought is great right up until you realize how it would be implemented... it's just a gateway to straight up communism where you're forced to work for your share. Honestly that's probably a better deal than we've got going now where everyone who does work gets shafted trying to earn enough money to live- but at least now you have the choice to not work and starve.


any way you slice it, the currency we use is more broken than the food stamps.

a reply to: lordcomac

So the most free market economists from the most free market economy school have suggested a pathway to communism?

Basic income hs nothing to do with communism.

www.libertarianism.org...

originally posted by: peter_kandra
a reply to: wantsome

I think the concern is over soda and other cheap foods being considered junk foods, which can lead to obesity and other health issues which are then more expensive to treat. My 16 year old son drinks about a gallon of milk a week. I live in a suburb north of Atlanta, and can typically find it for $2 something at Publix or Krogers.

The problem is, those foods are more expensive than healthy food. If I want a small salad it costs me about $4 to make. I can buy a premade one for $3. In either case I get a small meal. On the other hand I can buy a package of 10 frozen burritos for $3, eat 3 of them for $1 and have the same sized meal but get more calories.

To give another example I can buy a 2 liter of soda for 99 cents, or I can pay $5 for a gallon of milk, $4 for a gallon of water, or $3.50 for a 12 oz orange juice.

Most people like healthy food, it tastes good and it makes you feel good. If you want people on food stamps to buy healthy meals with them start giving them a bigger payout because people are going to choose unhealthy but filling over starving. Just look at McDonalds you can get 2 McGriddles for $4 right now. That's 1700 calories for $4 or $120 to eat for a month. It would be completely horrible for you but it's technically food. That same $4 doesn't even get you some calorie neutral celery sticks and some cream cheese/peanut butter to put on them as a snack.

Let me give yet another example too. Recently I made myself some chicken and dumplings in my crock pot, it was good for about 2 days worth of food. The dumplings cost $4, the vegetables cost $4, the chicken cost $10, the cream of chicken soup cost $2. That's $20 for 2 days of eating (it was my splurge for the month, I too am on food stamps). That same $20 could have gotten me a box of sugary cereal, some hotdogs, some buns, a pack of frozen burritos, a quart of ice cream, and some frozen chinese food. That's 7-8 days worth of food. I would much rather have the chicken and dumplings but it's just not within my financial means to do that all the time.

That is the reality for most people on food stamps.

a reply to: Aazadan

I brought this same thing up. That this would actually have the unintended consequence of raising benefits when the cost of living is done with fresh food.

I am a house of 5 barely ever used processed food and granted I buy organic or local whenever possible but it's about $350 a week. I like to cook so I admit there are ingredients that are unnecesary for nutrition. Then again I am not on benefits.

originally posted by: lordcomac
this "basic income" thought is great right up until you realize how it would be implemented... it's just a gateway to straight up communism where you're forced to work for your share. Honestly that's probably a better deal than we've got going now where everyone who does work gets shafted trying to earn enough money to live- but at least now you have the choice to not work and starve.

Give everyone an annual rebate on their taxes regardless of how much they make of $12,000/year. Remove social safety nets and tax deductions. The rebate is for taxes paid or not paid, it was your money in the first place so now the government isn't getting it.

That's how Ted Cruz sold a basic income to conservatives.

in 2014, main's snap benefit was $116 per MONTH

this was such an overwhelming burden on the state, they didn't even label that slice of the pie




this is disgusting pandering to the hate demographic

I believe I'm morally correct so I can tell you what to do and I will control your thoughts and actions.

--- Neo Liberal

originally posted by: bender151
a reply to: luthier

Actually, you can. You see, it isn't THEIR money. At no point is it THEIR money. So, they don't get to spend it however they like. They can't buy McDonald's with it either.

I totally agree with what you said. The fact is, if one is on food stamps and really "hungry", they sure as heck ain't going to buy soda, a can of sardines, yes, but soda, no. At least that is if they aren't mentally screwed up. Any sensible person on welfare will eat properly, they may fudge a bit on the diet, but they will remain sensible on their food purchases.

We pay for them to destroy their own body

Then we pay doctors to fix them

Then we pay nurses to hold their hand while they slowly die on life support

I don't think he should cut the entire program off. That's a bit ridiculous. They can just disallow certain types of items to be purchased with food stamp cards.

Unpopular opinion time:

The vast majority of people receiving SNAP benefits, are the disabled, the elderly, and the working poor.

This notion of the welfare queen, perched atop a throne made of gubberment cheese, with her tribe of illegitimate, snot nosed children running amok, is incorrect. That's the exception, not the rule.

Who are any of you to tell anyone how to spend those funds? Oh.. You paid into the system? So did most of them. The elderly paid in for their entire working life. The working poor have even paid in, and pay in with every check. The disabled were not all always disabled, and paid into that same system.

If you are going to be mad, be mad at corporate welfare. That takes a far higher chunk of your hard earned dollars than the SNAP program ever will, and it goes to help the wealthy stay wealthy, not to feed the poor and disadvantaged.

Besides. If someone buys lobster or steak with their EBT card, they are out of that money for the month, it's not like they get an endless supply, when its gone? It's gone.

Back in the day soda was not on the approved purchases list. Kinda surprised to see it is now.

Even our ancient cash registers put the non-approved stuff in one total and the approved in another total.

Bit extreme to cut the whole program because of this though. Why not just use lists again of approved/not approved?

Also, everyone is one accident, or one illness, or one injury away from having to apply for help.

Remember that before looking down on those receiving help, from programs that designed to help people.

You don't know what tomorrow might bring, and you may one day, find yourself grateful that these programs exist when you are the one struggling to feed your family.

Stay humble.

a reply to: Neopan100

To look at the clothes my kids wear, you'd think we have money. They wear top brands, tons of Ugg boots.... Crap like that. But here's the thing, 95% of their clothes are hand me downs from some well off cousins. We save everything that is not torn or stained, packing it away for the next youngest child. And what we do buy is never from department stores or lavish. My oldest has a few American Girl dolls, all used, either a gift or purchased with her own money. My nails are almost always "done" in a salon like manicure, because my husband's nail tech aunt left me all her nail stuff when she passed away. I have my hair colored regularly, by my sister who is self trained (using me as a Guinea pig). So I can see people passing judgement on me when I have had to use welfare.

However, we never do vacations, because those can't be hand me downs or diy jobs. My kids just have to understand that.