Posted on 08/06/2012 6:32:43 AM PDT by smokingfrog
At the corner of Milby and Navigation in Houston's East End, business at Randy's Fine Foods is booming.
Never heard of them?
Then you're not a Lone Star Card user, the food stamp-enabled debit card that has soared in use over the past two years, with a million more Texans added since 2008. As of July, more than 3.6 million had Lone Star Cards.
For about 20 years, Randy's mobile food trucks have traveled under the radar of the privileged, circulating in neighborhoods and delivering food here and across the state. Randy's and a handful of companies like it - Boxes and Bags Mobile Grocery and Bag Lady on Wheels - go to areas where people are without a car and a local grocery store or both.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
In this part of Houston, many of them are probably illegals too.
“The prices can be so high that it hurts families struggling to make ends meet in the long run.”
Unexpectedly.
And when taxpayer teats are offered to the public...they’re not the Twiggy kind of mammary glands.
Think Dolly Parton.
(No disrespect meant, Dolly.)
Think Katrina.
Probably not that many N.O. refugees in that part of town.
I use www.peapod.com for grocery delivery. They charge $8 for delivery which I am happy to pay for someone to haul the bottle water and sacks of groceries into the kitchen. Safeway has the same service. But these two are full service grocers not just junk food and you pay the same price you would in the store. I can’t imagine only junk food delivery, they must price the delivery charge in the price of the food because Shirley food stamps wouldn’t pay for that right? Right? Please don’t tell me they know how to scam the system right? Right?!!!
That is a tragedy in and of itself. And that's just ONE state! 3.6 million would be a bad NATIONAL statistic, much less one state...........
Yesterday, the local gas station had signs all over the place, explaining that the EBT system was down, and apologizing for the inconvienence.
Apologize for the ‘inconvienence’?
Maybe people on public assistance should pay for food, and not convienence.
Do they not have enough time to go to a grocery store, where the food costs 50% less money?
I occassionally buy a drink at the gas station, but I could never afford to ‘eat’ at a gas station, on a regular basis.
Yeh, English is not the primary language in that area.
I tried checking out this company and it has a very flim flam type website. Well, when you can find the website since the one painted on their trucks doesn't exist. When you do find the site, it's not navigable unless you're registered. Even where they brag about having national exposure in the Black Enterprise Magazine, they don't show a quote nor do they give a link. And puleeze, as if there isn't a junk food convenience store within walking distance from anywhere in Dallas, Houston or San Antonio or grocery stores along every public transportation route? Hmm, maybe, just maybe it's not about Moochelle's vast wastelands without grocery stores (never mind that I somehow manage to get to the nearest store here that's 20 miles away, thank you very much and all without a EBT) but gee whiz, I'm beginning to think this might be, dare I say it, a scam against the tax payers?!?
Is it any wonder Dewhurst got slapped down last week.
The EBT card allows the purchase of gas as well as food.
“The EBT card allows the purchase of gas as well as food.”
Really?
I still think alot of food is purchased at the gas station. What I have seen is food from the hot food counter is refridgerated, a red ‘EBT Approved’ sticker is place on it....and they provide a microwave to heat it up.
Seriously, $4-$5 for a few deep fried chicken strips.
In California they have big signs on the Fast Food places, saying they except EBT
I was listening to Michael Berry and heard all this too. Absolutely disgusting.
The reason that regular grocery stores moved out of the hood is because they got tired of being robbed over and over.
My mistake the gas card given by the Dept of Labor is not the EBT card. From my understanding, the method of electronic benefits are similar.
My mistake the gas card given by the Dept of Labor is not the EBT card. From my understanding, the method of electronic benefits for the gas cards are similar.
I'll bet the trucks carry beer, wind, and cigarettes - aside from junk food. And that some will allow those items to be 'charged' to taxpayers.
That's the only reason the trucks aren't robbed. Yes, the thugs are why many stores have moved out but there still are some. It chaps my hide that the rest of us have to foot the bill for them getting their groceries put in the pantry. Talk about graft. If we had a legislature that had any guts, they'd put such severe limits on the freebies that the low lifes would run for the closest border they could find and we'd be so much the better.
This isn’t any different than the discount grocers who target hood neighborhoods to take advantage of the prevalence of food stamp dollars.
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