And life in Ubama's America..?
Posted on 10/13/2013 12:37:42 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
KNOXVILLE (WATE) - A temporary increase in food stamps expires October 31, meaning for millions of Americans, the benefits that help put food on the table won't stretch as far as they have for the past four years.
Food stamps, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, go to 47 million Americans a month. Almost half of them children and teenagers.
The monthly benefits, which go to one in seven Americans, fluctuate based on factors including food prices, income and inflation.
Those could affect people right here in East Tennessee as 1.3 million Tennesseans receive food stamps at a cost of about $176 million every month. Money the state gets from the federal government.
Sevierville resident Michelle Bearden is a single mother to her 2 year old daughter.
Despite living with her sister and mother to help save mother, she still struggles making $8.25/hour as a full-time lifeguard at an indoor water park.
"Working 40 hours a week, and then trying to pay bills, trying to pay for a 2 year old and everything without government. I can't even make with the government for what they're paying me, much less take a cut," Bearden said.
Bearden is one of more than 400,000 East Tennesseans and millions of Americans relying on monthly food stamps that will see across the board cuts by the end of the month.
Bearden receives $195 each month, which would be reduced by 5 percent or $10 less from her monthly payout.
"Ten dollars does help, because I don't even have enough at the end of the month to gas. I used my last 20 dollars today to get gas and I don't get paid till next Friday," said Bearden.
Bearden says any reduction to her food stamps would take away the little money she has to pay for bills and other necessities.
"If it wasn't for the government, I would be stuck. So if they cut it, it will hurt me more," Bearden said.
The food stamp program is facing even more cuts.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted last month voted to cut $4 billion from the program each year, which doesn't give many options for someone like Michelle Bearden.
"It definitely worries me, because I don't have time to get a second job raising a 2 year old. There are so many hours in a day, so it does worry me quite a bit if I lose it all. I don't know what I'm going to do," Bearden said.
Tennessee's seven republican representatives voted in favor of more cuts to food stamps.
The program could face another shortfall if the government is shuttered past November 1.
You tell that to young people today and they wouldn’t believe you.
When I was in school kids that couldn’t afford the lunch did the same thing.
They also did some of the yard work around the school.
For the kids that couldn’t afford to buy shoes, a different family that could afford it would be asked buy a pair of shoes for the kid.
I shop at 99c stores. We have a boat and lots of times I go stay on it for a week, just me. I stop at the 99c store and spend $20 and still take half the food back home.
“...the benefits that help put food on the table...”
And digital TVs in the homes, lobsters and steaks in the freezer, cash back for illegal drugs before shopping for groceries, blah, blah, blah. What a joke!
I’m sure a lot of people on food stamps are happy to let someone else sweat to feed their lazy ass.
I know that, you smart ass.
Before we slam the mother in this story too much, remember the reporter is crafting this story.
In the end, the woman is losing just $10 a MONTH. She can easily make that up by not eating out ONE day, or many other ways.
This also assumes the shutdown will go on for another month.
No, the cut in “benefits” has nothing to do with the government shutdown, it was already baked into the cake as the stimulus ends or some such.
I would have taken them in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, had they been offered to me, as we were literally starving. I was in Biloxi, by the way, not New Orleans.
So few kids today would look at it that way. Someone would probably call child protective services.
"If you want more of something, subsidize it."
And life in Ubama's America..?
A friend worries about name-brand knockoffs.. well if true that would be exactly what the major supermarkets would be shouting 24/7.
Just about everything a supermarket has except a butcher; but they do have packaged meat products.
No worries about expiration dates on any item in the store but I always check.
The stores are selling gallons of milk ($2.99) for a lot less than supermarkets. Other items like that are starting to appear. (A quart of milk is $1.)
I buy green tea (80 - 100 bags, exp. date two years in the future) for a $1.00. I see the same item on the 'Net being sold for $4.95. It's not Lipton or the brands you normally see in supermarkets.
How long can they remain 99-cents or dollar stores? I recall brand name bread for $0.25 a loaf, Coke and Pepsi $0.05. Alright, so when bread is $25.00 a loaf the stores can be $9.99-Only and Ten Dollar stores. Anyone remember five-and-dime stores?
Neither look to be starving. Judging by her tan, she seems to have idle time too.
The free school meals just sets me off.
My hometown schools also give free condoms. What a disgusting and blatant attempt to forego morals.
That photo was taken by a family member. I know for a fact it wasn’t a photography session , because I know her. But I am sure who ever did take the photo would be glad to hear you say that but a real photographer would hit you in the face and say the photo is not taken correctly at all.
I think you meant to message kcvl too, as he was the person that commented originally about the photo, right? Secondly, I couldn’t care less about your friend’s situation, except for the fact that my wife and I are paying for it, while we DO NOT receive any hand-outs from Uncle Sugar. Now do you see the point of the thread?
Has Michelle ever considered giving private swim lessons? She could easily charge $20 per hour and pay her mom or sister $8 an hour to watch her daughter. I'm really sick of people expecting the government to bail them out. I'm sorry she's apparently a single mother. Maybe this should be a lesson to her not to create any more children when she's not in a position to care for the one she already has.
When I worked at the state unemployment office in the 1980’s and 90’s, we sent welfare and food stamp recipients to college for free, paying for EVERYTHING while they attended a two or four year school. I’m guessing that program still exists.
Why does she not give private swim lessons? Why is she not trying to better her situation in life, for her daughter, if not for herself?
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