Hungry Children

[Caster]

I can believe some children being hungry due to parental neglect, and some adults being hungry due to mental or drug problems.

But I don't believe anything published in the media.

Well shoot man, that goes without saying;)

[Guest nicemac]

Priceless:

Tennessee boomers face growing threat of hunger | The Tennessean

The picture illustrates what is wrong with the system. The star of our story, standing in front of her flat screen tv, smoking, complaining that she can't make it the full month on food stamps. I wonder if she could make it if she dumped the cigarettes at $4-$5 per pack? Of course, the plasma could have been a gift…

[FUJIMO]

Priceless:

Tennessee boomers face growing threat of hunger | The Tennessean

The picture illustrates what is wrong with the system. The star of our story, standing in front of her flat screen tv, smoking, complaining that she can't make it the full month on food stamps. I wonder if she could make it if she dumped the cigarettes at $4-$5 per pack? Of course, the plasma could have been a gift…

She's pretty much a spokesperson for the people I encounter everyday. I probably wrote about this somewhere before but I will type it out again because so many people out there are sheep and are easily fooled.

I had a buddy tell me the other day where he and his wife were coming home from the mall. as he exit's the interstate and he see's the "help war vet, homeless, hungry, etc etc" guy that sits at the off ramp. This is not uncommon at this off ramp but what strikes me as odd is you only see him in the afternoons and on certain days. Begs the question where is he on the other days ???

But anyway, so my buddy is 20 or so cars from him and can see him trying to pan handle across the lanes. Well they sit through one light and are now a couple cars back. Well he figures he better get ready to ignore the guy because the light is now red and he should start his routine anytime. But instead he sees the guy holding the sign up real close to his head and he's looking down, and in behind it. My buddy is thinking "what is this guy doing". Just then his wife spots it, the guy is TEXTING, lmfao. Needless to say it took everything my buddy had not to throw it up in park and hop out and confront the guy. I stopped looking at signs a long time back because after years of handouts I had heard every story and the problem just increases when people see they can get something for nothing.

Channel 10 has a story on their site about the restaurants wanting a piece of the foodstamp pie but I can't find it.......

[monkeylizard]

nicemac beat me to it. I was just about to post that link.

The irony in that photo is priceless. Who wants to take odds that there's satellite or cable hooked up to that LCD TV?

[Guest TresOsos]

And probably has high speed internet access also.....don't look in the cabinets you'll probably find some HO HO's in there too.

[strickj]

Priceless:

Tennessee boomers face growing threat of hunger | The Tennessean

The picture illustrates what is wrong with the system. The star of our story, standing in front of her flat screen tv, smoking, complaining that she can't make it the full month on food stamps. I wonder if she could make it if she dumped the cigarettes at $4-$5 per pack? Of course, the plasma could have been a gift…

She's only been laid off since February.

Yeah, let's ostracize the woman for buying an $80 tv while she was working

[Guest nicemac]

You gotta love this picture from the article sidebar as well:

Meta Liddell, 50, gets help with groceries from volunteer Ed Layland at the Smyrna-La Vergne Food Bank. / John Partipilo / The Tennessean

She has a bluetooth earpiece for her cell phone in her ear…

[strickj]

Gotta have a phone to get a job....

[Guest nicemac]

Gotta have a phone to get a job....

My son recently got a job without a cell phone. Millions of people have done it. A cell phone is NOT a necessity. Certainly not before food.

And yes, Ms. Mars could have gotten her tv before she was laid off. Before complaining that she can't make it on food stamps, she could visit a pawn shop. She could turn that plasma into some pasta.

[Jonnin]

Gotta have a phone to get a job....

Breaking the contract can cost more than keeping the phone, depends on how much time was left on the contract and what the fee for breaking it is, if it was one of the pricy contracted phone services. Having it may help get a job, or not, it varies some. Its a face value thing, its easy to say "he has X, he isnt too bad off" but have you ever tried to sell a used phone or TV in a world of disposable electronics? No one wants it, unless they can get it for very, very cheap... so cheap the seller wouldnt be fed for long off the proceeds. If I sold all my TVs and phones and such I doubt I could eat for 2 weeks off it (granted, I do not have a lot of fancy gadgets, my tv still has a tube and is like 15 years old).

[strickj]

My son recently got a job without a cell phone. Millions of people have done it. A cell phone is NOT a necessity. Certainly not before food.

And yes, Ms. Mars could have gotten her tv before she was laid off. Before complaining that she can't make it on food stamps, she could visit a pawn shop. She could turn that plasma into some pasta.

Did his employer mail him a letter letting him know he got the job?

I don't know how old your son is, but going off of your age, he has to be in his prime? The story you posted is about baby-boomers. The people in this age group are the least employable. Can you imagine applying for a job as an older man, competing against the young with strong backs, and saying to the HR manager "sorry, but I do not have any way for you to contact me if you decide to hire me."? That will take your slim chances of getting hired and turn it into a zero chance of getting hired.

And like Jonnin said, selling electronics in a world of disposable electronics is not not that easy. Why would someone want to buy a used tv when they can pick up a new one with a warranty for a few dollars more?

My brother, after loosing his house back in April, tried like hell to pawn his tv to help with moving costs. Not one single pawn shop would take it. It's a 32 inch and only a few months old. And I don't mean they wouldn't give him a fair value for it. I mean they would not take it at any price.

Pawn shops are stocked full of unsellable TVs and they do not want any more.

[FUJIMO]

I will give you the tv, the cell phone, the Bluetooth,cable,etc.

But the smokes ??? Apparently she still ranks smokes above food for someone but

judging from that FUP she isn't denying herself a meal or 2.

[strickj]

I will give you the tv, the cell phone, the Bluetooth,cable,etc.

But the smokes ??? Apparently she still ranks smokes above food for someone but

judging from that FUP she isn't denying herself a meal or 2.

I make my own cigs at around 75 cents a pack. The cheap stuff can be had for even less...

As far as her fatness goes, a tomato costs more then a box of Twinkies. It's easy to become overweight by eating one bad meal per day while not working.

[FUJIMO]

People like her will always rationalize their way out of taking the tougher road. And you rolling your own is what I consider

being thrifty for your own sake. But ask her to do it and she will claim its too much work,lol. Just like that tomato satisfying her junk food craving.

[Guest TresOsos]

Regardless....fuel and food are the 2 things that the Gov"t does not use when calculating thier inflation numbers.

If you've been to the grocery store or the gas pump you know we've seen real inflation in these 2 catagories. I know next to our mortgage payment food is our biggest expense, we try to eat health and buy a lot of organic food. We also have a samll garden every year to help with the fresh vegies. With the economy continuing to worsen and the devaluation of the currency food is going to do nothing but go up. Being able to eat and eat health may become a real probllem in the future.

However this lady needs to give up her smokes and cut other none essenstial services if she has them and concentrate as Dave Ramsey would say on Rice and Beans and Beans and Rice.

[enfield]

She can move that TV at a pawn shop. After you've seen an out-of-work mechanic pawn his tools, it doesn't seem like much to pawn a TV. Of course, if you just HAVE to see Dancing with the Stars . . . .

[Guest pfries]

Well folks I don’t know what my two cents is worth but here it is,

I was just laid off (plant closure) within the past two weeks, we are a one income family as the misses has been doing school.

She has just graduated and we had to make some pretty serious sacrifices to pay for the trip to and the fees for the state boards.

From what I am seeing it is a 2-2½ month process for her to get hired on. In my line of work, well I

am not seeing much out there and am now considering furthering my degree to help open up my options in the work force.

I have only drawn unemployment on one other occasion and that was back up north when I was doing construction (seasonal lay off). We have filed a claim with DHS as I was worried about the health insurance for the kids. We will be receiving food stamps and for the life of me, if the amount we are going to be receiving is an indication of the standard amount for a family the size of mine I do not understand how people are not making it work.

The programs out here available to help me further my education and make me more desirable in the work force are phenomenal. I was not aware of the amount of assistance that was made accessible to those in need. The resources’ that are available to someone that wants to better themselves far exceeds what I had anticipated. At this point I am not complaining but see no excuse for someone to be on assistance for any length of time beyond what it takes toget a certificate or degree. With all the programs in place I think a better course of action would be to require those that are able, to use the system as the tool it is designed to be.

In closure the misses already has résumés out there and interviews pending the receipt of her licensures. We will obviously not be accepting the assistance for any longer than we need; I see no excuse for someone to milk the system. This is what needs to be monitored; if you are not progressing toward being as productive a member of society as you can your benefits should be cut. I am glad these tools are available to me at this juncture in my life. I do feel however that some of the “benefits” are more than needed.

And p.s. mandatory drug testing well I am all for it.

Pat

Edited September 13, 2011 by pfries

[klamb5]

What Washington needs to do but they wont because they are to worried about themselves , is to STOP ALL aid, projects ,etc to other countries except Israel. Bring our troops home to defend our boarders,build upthe miltary which can put people to work , stop letting our factories go over seas with out taxing the crapp out of it when it comes back in makeing it cheaper to make here ( more jobs ) Invest in the USA and feed our young & old that have no other recourse. Stop handouts that last forever, welfare is not a goverment entitlement , thats the Churchs and neighbors jobs to help their fellow man . Then with all the money we save not given to people who want to kill us, help ourselves and build up ourselves so strong that when any one mess's with us go kick butt

and come back home let them rebuild themselves not us. Be like a bear with a sore tooth mean and wanting to be left along . Stop trying to be the world police , we have to help ourselves before we throw the American dream down the drain. Sorry for the rant.

[Guest nicemac]

I bet this lady isn't rolling her own (note tan filter). You can excuse everything she does and maybe she is an exception and is truly needy. I hope she was lucky and had just paid her cable bill a year in advance just before her layoff. I hope someone is donating her cigarettes, so she can direct all of her energy on getting another job.

But there are plenty of people gaming the system. If there weren't, we wouldn't have 70 million people on Social Security and 44 million getting food stamps. Between those two programs, over 1/3 of the population is on the public teat. Eventually the other 2/3 is going to cut off the milk.

Who is John Galt?

[dlm37015]

what adults do is one thing but when i see a kid put food back for someone else it breaks my heart .in my bank in ashland city we have a food program where small buisness give money 100 %goes to buy food for them.some of us travet a lot i carry my own soap ans shampoo but pick up what the motel leaves every day i bring it home to be given out at schools in cheatham co .not much but something because kids dont get to make those decisions .