Food stamps

ZVUGKTUBM wrote:

Nekochan wrote:Military and DOD employees have taken a big hit over the last few years.  The military has been tested to its limit for a dozen years now, with many members on deployment after deployment in war zones.  (No, this is not all Obama's fault, like some smarty pants will come on here and claim I said).  But it's true.   Funding for training has been cut for our military.  Civilian DOD employees have taken hits in their pay and hits in training as well.  But all we see on the news is IRS employees  and other employees of government agencies living it up, wasting taxpayer money.  It makes me mad too, when I see this crap.   But it's not the average federal employee or military person engaging in this wasteful spending.   Most are out there just doing their jobs to the best of their ability.    There is a BIG money problem.  Our government is broke.  Cuts have to be made.   I understand.    I'd like to see federal employees who are wasting taxpayer money and abusing their positions FIRED.  I'd like to see people abusing the food stamp system,disability system and other government systems put in place to help those in need, cut off.    And I'd like to see Congress furloughed, without pay.
The last thing we need to be doing to our military right now is cutting their benefits.  I believe that there is plenty of waste to cut in the DOD and in OTHER government agencies, without attacking service members' benefits.

Unfortunately, when the misery ultimately does get handed out, it will be shared by all. Wait until Boomers get their SS shaved. It is likely in the cards.

Mr Ichi wrote:At one time, the Military was not a good job. Some people had to be forced to serve ie "the Draft".  You knew that the pay was poor and the living was harsh and dangerous.  Many troops lived out of a duffel bags, no dependants, limited medical care and less than adequate  housing.  Living in a open barracks room with 40 other men with double and tripe bunks is not  pleasant.   My first pay was 67 dollars a month.  They did not use checks in those day, you got paid in cash at a pay call formation.

My out of country deployment was for 2 years, 24 months. I dont know of any of us that were able to come back to U.S. for a visit.  It was no big deal, that is just the way it was.

I had it very easy compared to my fellow veterans who served during WW2 and the Korean war.  They were paid even less and had to endure much much more than I.

Times have changed.   Now troops are in a panic because they can not afford new tires for their Mustang or their wife has to wait in line at the commissary.

Nekochan wrote:

Mr Ichi wrote:At one time, the Military was not a good job. Some people had to be forced to serve ie "the Draft".  You knew that the pay was poor and the living was harsh and dangerous.  Many troops lived out of a duffel bags, no dependants, limited medical care and less than adequate  housing.  Living in a open barracks room with 40 other men with double and tripe bunks is not  pleasant.   My first pay was 67 dollars a month.  They did not use checks in those day, you got paid in cash at a pay call formation.

My out of country deployment was for 2 years, 24 months. I dont know of any of us that were able to come back to U.S. for a visit.  It was no big deal, that is just the way it was.

I had it very easy compared to my fellow veterans who served during WW2 and the Korean war.  They were paid even less and had to endure much much more than I.

Times have changed.   Now troops are in a panic because they can not afford new tires for their Mustang or their wife has to wait in line at the commissary.

Ichi-san, so true.  Not to mention that communication lines are pretty much open with today's military families.   When my husband was active duty, I'd go weeks, even a month or more without hearing anything at all from him.  Then I finally might get 6 letters in the mail from him on the same day.  Times have changed.  Not that our military families today have it "easy".  They don't.  Especially during war time.  And long separations are difficult on a family and a marriage,  even if you are able to call and email each other daily.   But the pay, the housing, the allowances and the support for families is MUCH better than it was 40+ years ago.

PkrBum wrote:

2seaoat wrote:You all should be ashamed. Really.


Agree, and that shame should not be limited to just military families, but we should reserve our generalizations and judgment because many families are simply trying to do the best they can to raise children and make a contribution to society. Our judgment should focus on the abuses of the system. Those abuses should be corrected, and we should invest the resources to do the same.

http://www.amren.com/news/2012/07/usda-combats-mountain-pride-self-reliance-to-boost-food-stamp-rolls/

One in seven Americans are on food stamps, but the government is pushing to enroll more—in many instances working to overcome Americans’ “pride,” self-reliance or failure to see a need.

“Our common goal is to increase participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” the United States Department of Agriculture explains on its “Outreach Toolkits” page. “Our purpose is to ensure that those going through difficult times can feed their families healthy, nutritious food. By working as a team, we can accomplish these goals.”

The USDA has adopted a range of strategies and programs designed to bring more people to SNAP, including taking on “pride.” A 2011 Hunger Champions Award document reveals that local assistance offices have been rewarded for “counteracting” pride and pushing more people to sign up for benefits.

The Ashe County Department of Social Services in Jefferson, N.C., for example, received a “Gold” award for confronting “mountain pride” and increasing food stamp participation by 10 percent.

“Hearing from the outreach worker that benefits could be used to purchase seeds and plants for their gardens turned out to be a very important strategy in counteracting what they described as ‘mountain pride’ and appealed to those who wished not to rely on others,” the document explains. “Eventually, many accepted assistance from the Low Income Energy Assistance Program, the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary program, and others, in some cases doubling a household’s net income. In 1 year, SNAP participation increased over 10 percent.”

The agency adds that there are many hurdles—including reticence to accept government aid—that SNAP advocates must overcome in order to make eligible people accept the government’s help.

According to the USDA, 65 percent of those eligible claim SNAP benefits, a number the agency has been working to increase.

Mr Ichi wrote:At one time, the Military was not a good job. Some people had to be forced to serve ie "the Draft".  You knew that the pay was poor and the living was harsh and dangerous.  Many troops lived out of a duffel bags, no dependants, limited medical care and less than adequate  housing.  Living in a open barracks room with 40 other men with double and tripe bunks is not  pleasant.   My first pay was 67 dollars a month.  They did not use checks in those day, you got paid in cash at a pay call formation.

My out of country deployment was for 2 years, 24 months. I dont know of any of us that were able to come back to U.S. for a visit.  It was no big deal, that is just the way it was.

I had it very easy compared to my fellow veterans who served during WW2 and the Korean war.  They were paid even less and had to endure much much more than I.

Times have changed.   Now troops are in a panic because they can not afford new tires for their Mustang or their wife has to wait in line at the commissary.

. wrote:

Mr Ichi wrote:At one time, the Military was not a good job. Some people had to be forced to serve ie "the Draft".  You knew that the pay was poor and the living was harsh and dangerous.  Many troops lived out of a duffel bags, no dependants, limited medical care and less than adequate  housing.  Living in a open barracks room with 40 other men with double and tripe bunks is not  pleasant.   My first pay was 67 dollars a month.  They did not use checks in those day, you got paid in cash at a pay call formation.

My out of country deployment was for 2 years, 24 months. I dont know of any of us that were able to come back to U.S. for a visit.  It was no big deal, that is just the way it was.

I had it very easy compared to my fellow veterans who served during WW2 and the Korean war.  They were paid even less and had to endure much much more than I.

Times have changed.   Now troops are in a panic because they can not afford new tires for their Mustang or their wife has to wait in line at the commissary.

don't forget walk uphill for 20 miles in the snow barefooted

Mr Ichi wrote:

. wrote:

Mr Ichi wrote:At one time, the Military was not a good job. Some people had to be forced to serve ie "the Draft".  You knew that the pay was poor and the living was harsh and dangerous.  Many troops lived out of a duffel bags, no dependants, limited medical care and less than adequate  housing.  Living in a open barracks room with 40 other men with double and tripe bunks is not  pleasant.   My first pay was 67 dollars a month.  They did not use checks in those day, you got paid in cash at a pay call formation.

My out of country deployment was for 2 years, 24 months. I dont know of any of us that were able to come back to U.S. for a visit.  It was no big deal, that is just the way it was.

I had it very easy compared to my fellow veterans who served during WW2 and the Korean war.  They were paid even less and had to endure much much more than I.

Times have changed.   Now troops are in a panic because they can not afford new tires for their Mustang or their wife has to wait in line at the commissary.

don't forget walk uphill for 20 miles in the snow barefooted

Many of our troops in the Korean war came very close to doing just that.  Like I said. I had it easy...  

2seaoat wrote:Government speak for...SPEND MORE MONEY!


So folks are not going to speed.....personal responsibility.......So folks are not going to cheat on their taxes......personal responsibility.......So folks do not need a cashier at a store....people will just pay what they owe before they leave.

How do you find and prosecute a person or group who are systematically cheating with food stamps?   I am curious as to your solution which does not involve spending money, and your honor system for folks to display personal responsibility...........gosh.....I bet you tell your clients there is no need to take earnest money.....it is unnecessary because purchasers will show personal responsibility and never wrongfully back out of a deal........get out of your Ivory tower......join the real world.

Nekochan wrote:I think sometimes that the nearly constant contact that deployed military people have today with their spouses might sometimes make things harder than when it used to be weeks without a letter.  I'm not so sure that the distractions from back home on almost a daily basis are good for our service people who are in war zones.