Food Stamps ***Rant***

[gollygee]

27. It's pretty complicated

Last edited Sun Sep 2, 2012, 07:20 PM - Edit history (1)

If someone is working two part-time jobs and picking up and dropping kids off hither and yon, those folks are eating prepared meals. Sure, it's better to cook from scratch, and cheaper, but it just isn't practical for people in some situations. And yes, you can have two horrible part-time jobs and still be on food stamps. Also, a lot of poor people live in a "food deserts" and don't have many healthy food options available. If you don't have a car and the only place within walking distance is a convenience store, you're eating convenience food.

I don't care too much about the pop/candy issue, but I'm not sure how much that'll really help. It seems like it is more about stigmatizing and shaming people than saving money or protecting health. I think most people when they shop might use some FS money and some of their own money, since food stamps don't provide enough to actually feed a family, so it would be more about separating stuff and having two receipts than saving money or eating better.

I hope I edit this before you read it: I'm not actually opposed to not letting candy/chips/soda/etc. be bought with food stamps. I just question whether the expense to change the set-up is justified, as I don't know how much it would cost to change and I don't know how much of a difference it would make.