The Challenge Of Feeding America’s Hungry
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-12-05/challenge-feeding-america%E2%80%99s-hungry
Americans are relying on what we used to call food stamps in unprecedented numbers. According to figures released in September, more than 46 million Americans, about one in seven, are getting government assistance for food, but it’s estimated that millions more struggle with hunger. The nation’s food banks, supported by private dollars and donations, are straining to fill the gap. Federal funding for food stamps is not on the line in the current tax and spending negotiations, but some believe new limits on government food assistance programs are needed. Please join us to discuss hunger in America and what we can do about it.
Guests
Stephen Moore
member of the Wall Street Journal's editorial board.
Deborah Flateman
CEO, Maryland Food Bank.
Stacy Dean
vice president of food assistance policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Eric Olsen
senior vice president of government relations at Feeding America.
Comments
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Pancake Rankin wrote: "micromanagement"
This is the democratic party and liberal agenda on everything. You don't see that?
SamJ wrote:
"What reality do you live in? Clearly you listen to stations such a NPR since you are posting on this board. Obviously by your statements I would assume you also frequent the Fox "News" network and other right wing broadcasts. Have you ever compared what you hear?
As somebody who constantly watches and evaluates BOTH types of media (and is frequently saddened and disappointed by what people such as yourself might call "left wing, liberal, mainstream" media says/does not say or stand up for) There is simply no comparison to the false statements and fear mongering speech that comes out of the mouths of people like Mr. Moore (and all those he is closely affiliated with).
NPR continues to be one of the few networks who have real journalists who are intelligent, honest and CHECK THEIR FACTS. They regularly present both sides of stories and DO NOT ENGAGE IN LIES AND FEAR MONGERING! As always I am astounded by the ignorance and blatant denial by people such as yourself"
SamJ, you may think you are unbiased, but you're not. If you were, you would come away with the same result as a Pew poll that showed that Fox News, is the most truly fair and balanced, based on story after story and the bias they may or may not contain. Pew actually DID "compare what you hear". Better than NPR, better than CNN, better than CBS, ABC, or NBC. I've posted the link here before to the study. You can Google it for yourself. Your problem, and the problem of the other leftists on this board, are that you are in disagreement with the TRUTH. That's why you think that Fox is biased.
Ok, ok. Take it easy. I listened to the show and thought it was well-done. We ought to be able to have a mature conversation about this issue because there IS a problem with abuse. I know it makes a lot of you FEEL good to feign befuddlement as to how ANYONE could be against helping the poor, but fact is, there is abuse and it needs to be addressed. No one is talking about making seniors, disabled or other worthy candidates go back to work. But to suggest there isn't abuse and need for reform is not only ignorant (meant the way the word "ignorant" is intended), it's childish.
ksahlstr wrote:
"From Kris:
"What about setting up government-run locations where only food necessities are available in bulk for SNAP participants?"
Meant to mention. Another idea I heard one time is the "red beans and rice" program. The FG pays a few farmers to grow red beans and rice - a staple in the south. You set up centers across the country to distribute free. No means testing. No nothing. Come in and get all you want. Driving a Cadillac or a beater? Don't care. Pull up, and load up. The food will fill your belly with basic proteins and keep you regular. Could be done for a FRACTION of the cost of the current program. When you are tired of eating red beans and rice ....
Huh? I think the point is that crab-legs, if you TRULY need assistance, would take-up such a large portion of your food stamps, that it would be hard to justify the need for them in the first place
ecgberht:
Despite what you may label me as based on my comments on this board I am not a leftist. I despise any label placed upon me in that sense because I just as frequently am appalled by things that "liberals" say and do. I don't agree or want to be associated with either side because I don't want to be placed in a confining, often contradictory box. At the end of the day I am for PEACE, EMPATHY, LOVE, AND COMPASSION MOST OF ALL.
I believe in and support NPR but this continues to be one of the only major media outlets I have any faith or respect for. I disagree with prejudice, hatred, and the lack of understanding and empathy I see in our world, our media, and the things people (like some of those on this board and individuals like Mr. Moore) say. So I am biased in this sense I suppose, but I have no probably saying I am TOTALLY BIASED when it comes to the things I listed above.
These people should be forced to list what people ARE NOT entitled to. They would add their judgement in that, of course, and all their righteousness. Then you could see them for the Jim Crow, Simon Legree, New Regency, Cardinalists that they are. Oh, so Venal.
So much for free speech
Sorry, you don't know the first thing about this woman's circumstances, and you don't get to judge her according to your ideas just because you happen to learn she's getting temporary government assistance. She already lost her job and may be about to lose her home; she's supposed to sell her car and cancel her mobile contract at a loss just to satisfy your desire to see her suffer as much as possible during the three months she's getting her extravagant $135/month in SNAP benefits?
People getting benefits have to prove eligibility, eligibility is time-limited, most beneficiaries are children and the working poor, and the amount that they get is pitiful in comparison to what they need. How people spend what money they have is not your business. If you're angry that some people on benefits have nicer cars than you have, YOU are the one with the entitlement problem.
What are YOU teaching your children when you indulge your petty desire to further judge and punish people who are already suffering? Your smug superiority is monstrous.
Far better that we should "give free handouts" than let people starve.
Wow, crab legs???????
I would love to see more people on Food Stamps buy seafood. I am shocked, where is the complaint of someone on Food Stamps who buys nothing but Soda, Chips, and Candy?!!!!!! At least the crab legs are healthy!!!! Oh, and if you live on the East or West Coast near the water, the price of seafood is actually priced on par with meat and chicken. What a Fracking Elitist
2nd point
A majority of families and individuals are working who use these programs!
SamJ wrote:
"Obviously by your statements I would assume you also frequent the Fox "News" network and other right wing broadcasts. Have you ever compared what you hear?"
Jesus said, "by their fruits you will know them".
Your dismissal of Fox "News" (as you deem it) and your endorsement of NPR as unbiased, tells me what I need to know, no matter what you SAY.
There is no completely UNBIASED source. I think Fox News is slightly biased right. I think that NPR is biased left. I listen to both. The Pew study demonstrates that, based on looking at content of the actual stories, not filtered through any individual's bias, that Fox News programming is the least biased of all, yet you dismiss them.
"At the end of the day I am for PEACE, EMPATHY, LOVE, AND COMPASSION MOST OF ALL."
Good for you. So are we all. We just have different views of how we get there. Mine is centered in personal-centered responsibility - not just for ourselves, but for our fellow man, not government-centered responsibility. I think government-centered responsibility, in all its forms, enslaves people.
Hunger is such a foreign concept to Americans they believe that it can only be the result of fraud, indolence or some other character flaw. If people really wanted to work they could find a job. Well, hunger hurts and from my experience as treasurer for a emergency food pantry in Jefferson County NY that is part of the Feeding America network, it is not a life style choice that anyone with options would choose. These are desperate times in an area where not only has most manufacturing left for foreign climes, but the most of the small family farms have failed. In an area where there is no public transportation, people routinely have to choose between food and gas to get to work - of course that is only if they have a car to put gas in and it runs and they have been lucky enough to find work.
I think that is a much easier thing to say when you have not been in the position that many of the poor are currently living in and were born into. In order for our society to exist, function and flourish we need one another (not just ourselves) and must realize that the government can organize and support many of the structures the ensure the longevity and well being of the less fortunate.
WHEN EXECUTIVES GO TO LUNCH THEY DINE ON THE TAXPAYERS DIME.I DON`T HEAR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL REP. LAMENTING LOBSTER AS THE MENU ITEM CHOSEN. HOW ABOUT PEANUT BUTTER SANDWICHES AND KOOL-AID FOR CEO`S?
I see people loading up on junk food, soft drinks and expensive birthday cakes, all paid for with food stamps (SNAP). Is there any way to limit the types of food purchases--say only fresh meat, canned goods, and vegetables and fruit?
Mr. Moore....after decades of the total failure of the Chicago "neoclassical" theory it is apparent you will never admit it is a total fabrication that can never work. It's always enjoyable listening to privileged jackasses like yourself pontificate on the problems of the poor.
My husband is a master's student - teaching part time and going to school full time, and I am a stay at home mom of two boys under 3 and am also working part time from home. We are so grateful for the food benefit program and know that this is a temporary solution for many college student families. Upon graduation when we are able to have a better income and will no longer be on food stamps we can't wait to pay taxes for this very important program so that we can give back to those who need this safety net.
Coming from upper-middle class homes, there is definitely a stigma for us being on food stamps. My mother-in-law talks of the times when her husband was in dental school and they went hungry so that their young children could have good nutrition - with PRIDE that she did not apply for food stamps!! She then had problems with one of her pregnancies in part because was not eating enough. This kind of suffering is unnecessary and the stigma that accompanies food benefits needs to be removed from our political discourse!
As a liberal, I think the left has to recognize that we have caused some of the pervasive issues, like food deserts and obesity in low income neighborhoods. When we allowed the Food Stamps program to become the equivalent of a debit card, it made it too simple to run to the corner store and grab Cheetos and Snickers. The EBT card has added to the problem of food deserts, because it's easy for a corner convenient store in a low income neighborhood to carry only prepackaged, processed food. For example, one can purchase a fountain drink soda as long as the straw is not in, in addition to the other junk food that is available. Often the same low income people are typically on Medicaid, where they may have heath problems related to poor nutrition. I agree accountability and other creative mechanism must be a part of the process if we want to fix this problem.
One of the root causes of a high percentage of hunger insecure folks is the knowledge of how to cook from scratch and even access to enough equipment to cook nutritious foods.
What a self-satisfied, cruel man Stephen Moore is. Why do you include such ignorant people on a show which is supposed to be informative? I suggest not including him in the future on the basis of his ignorance of how real people live. For example, work requirements: Diane, you have raised children. Is the proper care of small children (socialization, enculturation is the basis of successful societies) not a full-time job? Obesity: Poor people rely on high-calorie foods to avoid hunger pangs cheaply---doesn't everyone know that? Charitable institutions can handle the job: charitable institutions are not innovations, yet hunger and starvation are the history of the world. His comments are all uninformed propaganda.
I very much resent his implication that the Obama administration encourages relying on food stamps to gain widespread approval---right out of the Romney campaign!
Working in a grocery store in southern california has given me negative feelings regarding foodstamps. several posses more than one card...fraud. some recipients purchase high end meats for their under the table catering business...fraud. some recipients drive off in a luxury car...fraud. most recipients are over weight, rarely do i see fresh raw vegetables and fruits on the ebt bill. most recipients purchase soda, chips, cookies, candy, ect. most recipients purchase frozen meals...great customers for medi-cal. i work and am not eligible. i would love the live off of the government nickle and be a full time mother. unfortuneatly my parents raised me to work for my needs. at the end of the day i feel gratified and glad i am me. there needs to be requirements to receive these hand outs. work for one's needs and if one is over weight there is no need.
If you look at the website map of my town, Winston-Salem here:
http://mapserver.superpages.com//mapbasedsearch/?SRC=portals&STYPE=S&T=W...
You will see that in the lower income eastern city neighborhoods there are about one fourth of the actual grocery stores that you will find in better off neighborhoods. Surprise! That plus about 90 minutes on public transportation to get there explains the reliance on over-priced convenience stores, those nutritional standouts.
On Fox News and NPR: Fox advertises "fair and balanced." What "fair" means is like "all's fair in love and war." "Balanced" means that they include one item of truth for every lie they tell and their truths include sports scores, weather reports, correct call letter for their stations, etc.
NPR also prides itself on being fair, but they are hardly balanced. Talk show ratios of converatives to liberals are often 3 to 1. Neil Conan regularly features a right wing "political junkie." I can no longer respond to their fund drives. I'll never forget that it was NPR who in reporting Howard Zinn's death, included an outrageous rant against him by an enemy.
I applaud Stacey Dean for her calm and informative responses to that Gingrich guy. She completely debunked his misinformation such as about inmigrants allowed to get food stamps. I have relatives in MD who harbor the same myths. The right wing philosophy is 'let them starve and beg on the streets.' Now that the election is over, I wish these people would just crawl back into their holes.
They can buy what they feel the need the real fraud is in the understaffed units that make the SNAP determinations. If they drive off in a luxury call call you state hot line with the tag number. The weight issues is due in part to not being able to afford good food. They eat off filler foods. Also, I get really tired of this same ole story line from folks like you. Everybody knows they are commiting fraud well call them into to your state hotline and stop complaining about it. Also. your store would probably fire you for that because the stores make a fortune off this program.
It is a crime in most American cities to hold up a sign,"Will Work for Food"....... Conservatism is a bust. Busted economy and morals.
Dear Ms. Rehm: I was deeply offended by the comments made by one of your guests, the editor fro the Wall Street Journal. He stated: there is something wrong with the country when 45 million people depend on the government for food aid; in times past this type of aid was a matter of last resort; even students qualify for food aid (in his day, he survived on peanut butter sandwiches); the Obama administration promotes this type of dependency; etc. What is wrong with this country is that chief corporate executives earn tens of millions and hundreds of millions of dollars per year while 45 million people require food assistance; that multi-billion dollar corporations do not pay taxes at all (government aid of another sort); that a Presidential candidate was proud of being a "smart businessman" for avoiding taxes through complex tax loopholes, secret off-shore accounts, and other "perfectly legal" maneuvers. I am fortunate that I have a good, comfortable life and paying taxes is part of my civic responsibility to support our society, community, and government. I am happy that some part of my taxes help feed those who have less than I have and are in need. There is something wrong when 45 million people require food assistance from the government, and your guest exemplified that wrong, though he hardly knew what he was talking about. Shame on him.
Mark Mumford
Mr. Moore belongs on the Rush Limbaugh Show instead. His notion that terminating a program to help the needy would demonstrate America's great compassion makes no sense. I am in favor of alternate view points, Diane, but please set a minimum requirement for reason and logic.
It baffles me when I hear people concern themselves primarily with whether someone, somewhere might be 'gaming the system', rather than worrying first and foremost about whether someone might be hungry. Suppose that 3-5% of the individuals benefitting from SNAP might not be eligible or had somehow 'misused' the program. Establishing rules that reduce that number to 1-2% will almost certainly raise barriers for those who legitimately need help, thereby discouraging people from applying for benefits: not the desired outcome!
As for the notion that we are somehow establishing a 'culture of dependency': most people I know -- including all those who are currently unemployed -- would far rather have the dignity of a job than to ask for what society has taught them are 'handouts.' It seems as if a certain fraction of our population has such disdain for those less advantaged, or perhaps so much fear of falling into that category, that they prefer to punish and stigmatize rather than help without question.
Stephen Moore is making false declarations about the food stamps system left and right. He does not appear to know anything about the current system. It is not easy to admit when you don't have enough income for food...but many people who have been unemployed through no fault of their own reach that point. Recipients submit detailed information about their assets and income.