US ends food stamp benefits

[Jazzy]

US food aid benefits are being cut from Friday as an extension of the government programme expires, while legislators fight over further cuts.

Benefits to the supplemental nutrition assistance program (Snap) will be lowered by $36 (£22) a month for a family of four, officials say.

Some 47 million low income Americans will be affected by the cuts.

Food aid in the US has grown to $80bn a year due to higher unemployment and rising food costs.

About one in seven Americans relies on Snap, also known as food stamps.

The benefits were originally expanded during the recent economic recession to stimulate the economy and help the poorest Americans.

Republicans in Congress are seeking further reductions to the programme and say it should be better targeted at the most needy.

Retailers and grocers around the US are concerned about the possible negative impact the reduction will have on consumer spending.

Source

Negative impact on consumer spending? That makes me laugh. These people on Snap are receiving benefits that the working American people are paying for. I'm not saying some people don't really deserve to receive Snap benefits but there are thousands of other who abuse the system. Time for the slackers to get a job!

That's my opinion. What's yours?

 

[JetWing34]

The low income Americans will be starving themselves, while you see 47 million people hold custom "Hungry signs made out of cardboard.

The US Government is so pathetic that I want to convert from Democrat to Republican.

 

[Evil Eye]

One in seven?
There's no way that many people need this... is there?

 

[DrLeftover]

find the article about how there are now more people on some sort of Government Assistance than there are full time employees, depending on just exactly how you "cut the numbers" and post it


if I did that, I would be called a "hater"

you could start here with some "spinning" to suit the mood

http://www.factcheck.org/2013/01/death-spiral-states/

 

[Nebulous]

Hmm, I want me some free food! I spend way too much money on food and I am even broke'r because of it, government please help me out!

 

[DrLeftover]

you're too late

and of the wrong demographic

 

[Sk8]

I'm a full-time student working two part time jobs and I cannot afford all of my bills, so it is not difficult to believe individuals are having a difficult time finding resources to pay for food. SNAP also depends upon the state, so I would caution you into saying "these slackers" do not put anything into the system for the food.

In Missouri, food is taxed in order to supply funds for SNAP, therefore anyone who buys food is supporting the SNAP program in Missouri. The grocery store where I work, along with several other businesses, will not work individuals full time because of the newly enacted "Obamacare." Despite the program being repeatedly delayed and such, companies began cutting workers back to 28 hour weeks long before the Act became effective.

Companies will not employ individuals above 30 hours if they can help it because then those individuals become eligible for insurance provided thru and by the company. The grocery store I worked for even forwarded a letter stating the cut in hours can be blamed upon the government and there's nothing they can do, when in reality the company does not want to pay for insurance.

The most ridiculous thing is I've been uninsured since I was 16 and at no point have qualified for help thru the government making this whole deal more confounding when confronted with a cut in hours.

My family uses SNAP and we're a family of three but those food stamps are utilized by my entire family which includes my grandparents, so while the funds are awarded for three people the money in total actually feeds five mouths.

I am a hard worker, but even I cannot afford everything. Even though my family gets food stamps, I haven't bought groceries (I life part time on my own while I attend classes during the week) since the second week of September this year, so I'm practically not eating Monday thru Thursday.

It's too easy to say SNAP users are "too damn lazy to provide for themselves," but that's the easy (and lazy) way of assessing the situation.

 

[Nebulous]

I was serious, I work hard and can barely pay my bills. Why can't they help me out with some food assistance. I wonder if I qualify.
I suppose it doesnt matter if they are cutting the program.

 

[Sk8]

Not cutting so much as trimming the program, assistance still exists and depending on where you live there are always ways to go about getting food assistance outside of the government. I also was not saying you were not serious, I am only saying I literally haven't bought groceries for myself since mid-September and I only spent $30.00, which I've stretched to keep food in my pantries so when I can't resist hunger, I got something so to say cutting $35.00 isn't a big deal is minimizing the issue without considering it.

Any bit of money for food is a lot, especially when it makes the difference between eating and not eating. You likely qualify but you'd have to go through the process of applying, etc.

The thing is SNAP isn't the only governmental program being mooched off of, and the government itself is to blame for far worst spending habits than the American populace mooching for food.

Though I think the number of people unable to afford sufficient food should be an indicator something is wrong, but that's a divergent topic from the one at hand, really.

 

[Flurry]

Well this is liable to strain things around here. They already somewhat lowered the amount of food stamps my mom gets. If hers gets cut off even more.. Then well yeah.