Republicans Want to Cut 76 Million Meals from the Poor

According to MSNBC, Republicans in Congress plan to more than double the upcoming cuts to the Food Stamp Program.

Margarette Purvis, the CEO of one of the largest food banks in America, states that this cut would wipe out more than 76 million meals from poor families.

Read the full story, here.

Food Stamp Cut Backs: Living off of $3 a Day

So, I'm sure you've all heard the news, Congress is planning to cut back on Food Stamps. According to an article in the National Journal, people who are receiving SNAP Benefits might have to deal with trying to feed their families on $3.37 a day.

 If you and your family have to rely on food stamps, please know that Congress IS going to cut back on the program. Prepare your family for the upcoming crisis, consider some of these options:

• Get a Second Job Check out a Legitimate Way to Make Money Online (like Mechanical Turk) 
• Check out Legitimate Work at Home Opportunities Create a Strict Budget and Stick to It 
• Get Short Term Job Training (increase your pay with a better job) 
• Have a Garage Sale 

Folks, it's going to get even uglier out here, and we have really got to get on our grind if we want to make it through...

 Check out the article on the National Journal that speaks to the fact that people are already trying to feed their families off of less than $4 a day. Check it out here.

CA Food Stamp Program Routinely Denies Eligible Applicants

According to the Los Angeles Times, people who apply to the Calfresh program are purposefully denied food stamps, even when they are eligible.

The State of California employs tactics like purposefully confusing online applications, inhospitable benefits offices, and mountains of paperwork to discourage eligible applicants from applying and appealing unfair denials.

In addition to all of that, county benefits office workers are overworked, under-educated, and encouraged to deny applications….

California used to require fingerprinting to get food stamps, but public outrage killed that practice, even though then governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (Republican, of course) was all for it…

Review the L.A. Times article, here.

Ohio Food Stamps to be Cut for Thousands of Participants

Ohio Governor, John Kasich plans to cut down food stamps for over 100,000 people in most cities in the state.  Only areas that are extremely economically depressed will be unaffected by the cuts to the SNAP Benefit program.

The new change will require that single, able-bodied adults will have to work at least 20 hours a week or spend 20 hours in job training or volunteering.

Some people are balking about the issue, but I think it’s actually a good idea, IF the job training option is actually realistic and in working order. 

Most people who are receiving any form of government assistant would love to have access to free job training programs that could boost their ability to earn a living wage…that’s the whole reason why they are on food stamps in the first place.

Ohio’s governor Kasich will need to get it together and make sure that this “job training” include training for short-term, decent wage jobs like CNC Machinist, Dental Assisting, EMT, etc.

 

If the job training is actually worth something, perhaps struggling Ohio residents will be able to afford to not have to rely on the federal government for help.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/07/ohio-to-limit-food-stamps-for-some-adults/

Big Budget Cuts for the Federal Food Stamp Program

The Republicans are at it again.  Once more they are attempting to heal the financial woes of the country by attacking the poor.

This time, the plan is to chop off $4 billion dollars a year from the SNAP Benefits program by requiring stricter eligibility requirements, drug testing, and work requirements.

Nowhere is there anything being said about job training programs or any other measure that might help people get out off and stay off of the food stamp/government assistance merry go round.

It is easy to attack poor people and say “let them go get jobs,” but the issue isn’t quite that simple… but somehow, Republicans keep missing that one little detail.  I swear, they (Republicans) act like they’re stupid or something.

Nobody, including me, wants politicians to keep throwing money and food stamps at poor people.  For the most part, poor people want access to jobs that pay a living wage.

Perhaps the government should start looking at a federal job training program, similar to Job Corps, which would offer free, high wage, job training to adults of any age.

True enough, there are some people who want to take advantage of the system, like our friend the California Surf Bum, who only wants to get his “Food Stamp Lobster’s” every month, but that type of thing is definitely more the exception than the rule.

http://www.suntimes.com/opinions/21688754-474/americans-struggling-with-hunger-cant-afford-big-cuts-to-food-stamp-program.html