Food Banks Worry About Potential Federal Cuts
A major overhaul of the country’s nutrition and farm program is stalled in Congress. That legislation is set to expire this month. It accounts for close to $1 trillion worth of government spending over 10 years. And the biggest portion of that is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps. As KUT’s Nathan Bernier reports, local food banks are worried about proposed cuts to the program.
Comments (3)
David Spratt
So the poster child for expanding food stamps just happens to be an Anchor Baby which has been abandoned by her parents. The churches seem to be perpetuating these people being able to stay here and survive ,,,,, much like the neighborhood cat lady who takes in and feeds feral cats.
We have an "undocumented worker" actually working and complaining she cannot get more from a government of a country in which she resides in illegally. In addition we are told there are many " Valuable Contributing Taxpaying Immigrants" who qualify for food stamps but are afraid to ask for them.
Add to that the many Legal American Citizens who do not ask ,,, but are the target of the food stamp program that is trying very hard to convince them to put aside their concepts of self sufficiency personal responsibility and self reliance in exchange for reliance on a governmental program which once on,,, they will be pointed towards more programs and encouraged to take part in them also.
This is only an attempt to sign up more people in order to cook the numbers and justify ever increasing expenditures for these programs. There are billboards,, radio ads, T.V. ads and print ads encouraging people to sign up ,, as if 99% of the population does not know these programs exist. There probably are not many people who at one time or another in their lives have not been able to qualify,, but chose instead to rely on their perseverance and self determination to get them through to better days.
This is the American way and representative of the American spirit.
Rather than spending millions trying to seek out more people to give free stuff to,,,, more effort should be spent in providing skills and jobs so they can provide for themselves. It does not serve well to take away a persons self esteem and sense of self worth and accomplishment to be replaced by a sense of simple existence at a basic level being provided for by a benevolent government. Once you surrender your identity and your ability to provide for yourself and your family ,,, all self worth goes out the window and the numbers prove that few ever get true independence back.
A large part of how people see themselves and how they identify themselves, quantifying their importance and self worth is through employment and their jobs. None of us should live to work,,, but instead work to live.
Demand jobs and the ability to work and accept nothing less. Demanding free food, free health care, free cell phones, free housing, free education, does nothing to promote or propagate a free society. Nothing is truly free ,, freedom is not cheap, and there is a price to pay.
Steve Cook via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Oh now were trying to scare people into believing that they wont be able to eat.. Everyone here in Texas talks about how Great we are until it comes to supporting yourselves.. This is a Aide and many have used it as a way of life.. They need stricter rules and Texas needs more jobs.
Christine Lund
I'm considering moving to another state because Texas refuses to give me more than $16 a month in food stamps and I cannot even afford to eat. I don't know about anyone else but getting food stamps requires hours of driving around the city getting documentation that can cost more than they give you in food stamps. If someone knows how to get enough to actually eat more than a few days, please tell me. I raised my kids, worked over forty years and paid taxes. Disability pays about one third of my previous income and I can't figure out how someone is supposed to live on it. My check is less than my mortgage payment was, before I lost my home to foreclosure. It's insane! And I talk to people all the time who live on even less.