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(WIBA 1310 Madison)   Wisconsin to force food stamps recipients to spend money on fruits and vegetables. And probably cheese since it's Wisconsin   ( wiba.com) divider line
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    More: Interesting, Wisconsin, Wisconsin State Assembly, junk foods, party-line vote, food stamps  
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6928 clicks; posted to Main » on 30 Apr 2013 at 10:21 PM (4 years ago)   |   Favorite    |   share:  Share on Twitter share via Email Share on Facebook   more»



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12349876
2013-04-30 11:07:42 PM  

doglover: Can't we just farkin' feed people?

We send billions in rice and grain to other countries. Let's just give people some farkin' food. Stop paying farm subsidies for fallow fields and ask them to kick out a few billion bushels of bush beans and such. Every poor family gets X beans and rice per week and some flinstones chewable vitamins. Don't like it? Find a way to make money.


But how are Kraft and General Mills and Kellogs and Nestle and Conagra etc. etc. supposed to profit off that?
 
Spanky_McFarksalot
2013-04-30 11:08:37 PM  

Molavian: Oh, no.  How terrible!  I enjoy paying for people to eat shiat and get sick, and then pay for their healthcare, too!


people  say that like they personally get a bill each month.

IF, you pay taxes and don't any kind of refund (assuming you don't take any of the credits offered and actually get back MORE in federal taxes than you pay in) you portion of the bill is like what? a few dollars  a month?

compare that to the trillions in guaranteed loans to wall  street or the tax payer money that went to their bonuses  alone.

Family getting food vs, wall street douches getting their kitchen remodeled.

Which one do conservatives hate more? hmmmm
 
skullkrusher
2013-04-30 11:08:48 PM  

Protricity: I didn't read the part about the new law their gonna pass to prevent merchants from doubling the price on any such produce when this goes into effect.

I mean, they are going to do that right?


they're gonna double the price of produce to take advantage of this increase in the proportion of 15% of  the population's food money that must be spent on produce? Dubious.
 
FARK rebel soldier
2013-04-30 11:09:21 PM  
Wisconsin to force food stamps recipients to spend money on fruits and vegetables. And probably cheese since it's Wisconsin

I'm not from Wisconsin but I endorse this idea. Every time my refrigerator has both fruit and cheese this is me...
ragemaker.netView Full Size

...with the fruit and the cheese.
 
take_flight
2013-04-30 11:09:40 PM  

lolpix: take_flight: lolpix: take_flight: hides bf-now-recently-husband's self-employment income

How do they do that? I ask because my Schedule SE murders me each year.

Yeah, my husband was self-employed in the same business as he is actually, and it killed us too.

He just doesn't report it, and what he does report he takes every single deduction possible. Somehow he claimed a deduction for a $13,000 skid steer, yet only reported $10,000 in income for the year. It seems like they would catch on to that sooner or later. No one even questions how he can afford anything on the less than $200 he claims he makes a week.

I don't think I could get away with that. 90% or more of my income is reported on corporate 1099 forms. They'd catch me sooner or later.


Those pesky 1099's...

I'm positive that the IRS can't be that stupid. They'll figure it out. This is mostly direct sales, there's virtually no middle man and no 1099's. The people who buy, however, do usually ask for social security numbers and they also have to pay royalties to land owners, who in turn probably report their income.
 
freetomato
2013-04-30 11:10:32 PM  

Summercat: take_flight: Mock26: lawboy87: Some of you think that fresh fruit and veggies are expensive?  Compared to what?

I've seen the carts loaded up at the store (and I'm not trying to stereotype, but it's exactly the same as it was 35 years ago when I was sacking groceries and people had to use the old "script") now paid with the state debit card and it is almost always 90% pre-made/pre-cooked "convenience" foods.  Lots of soda, chips, pop tarts, pastries and the like, but almost never anything bearing a resemblance to something healthy.

Sorry, but paying $5.99 for an 24 oz serving of fried chicken (when a good 8 oz's of that is breading and oil) while fresh chicken is available at $.89/lb is not a good use of resources.  Buying a can of corn for $1, when you can buy 3-4 ears of fresh corn for $1 is also a waste.  There's lots of examples I could probably provide, compare the cost of the convenience and junk food product being currently purchased and it dwarfs what is being spent on actual nutritious and healthy foods.

I do the family's shopping and cooking, and I am going to seriously challenge anyone's assertion that fresh fruits and vegetables are "too expensive." Simply because they are often downright reasonable, compared to the cost of calorie-laden convenience and snack food items devoid of even the most basic nutritional value.  Factor in the cost to the state for treating obesity, childhood diabetes, etc. and I have no problem whatsoever with this mandate.

Where the fark are you living that you can get fresh chicken for $0.89/pound?

I can find fresh chicken for 89¢ a pound all the time, and fresh boneless skinless chicken breast for $1.79 a pound. I just slow cooked a 6 pound pork shoulder that I got for $1.79 a pound.

89cents a pound sounds like a decent sale price for bone-in chicken. Boneless, comes out to 2 to 2.50 a pound on a decent sale.


Boneless, skinless thighs are cheaper than breasts and taste better. I think I paid about a buck fifty a pound for them recently.
 
Mija
2013-04-30 11:10:55 PM  

Any Pie Left: Cheese and any dairy are good for people, you get calcium and vitamin D, at least. As a snack food, it could be better than say, candy and cookies.


Lactose intolerant people can't have dairy.
 
skullkrusher
2013-04-30 11:10:57 PM  

FARK rebel soldier: Wisconsin to force food stamps recipients to spend money on fruits and vegetables. And probably cheese since it's Wisconsin

I'm not from Wisconsin but I endorse this idea. Every time my refrigerator has both fruit and cheese this is me...
[ragemaker.net image 474x476]
...with the fruit and the cheese.


apple slices with Swiss and a bit 'o peanut butter? Giggity
 
phaseolus
2013-04-30 11:12:02 PM  
FYI, the text of the bill:


The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:

1 Section 1. 49.79 (7m) of the statutes is created to read:
2  49.79 (7m) Pilot program limiting foods. (a) Subject to par. (b), the
3 department shall conduct a pilot program under which the department allows the
4 benefits under the food stamp program to be used only for foods, food products, and
5 beverages that have sufficient nutritional value. The department shall identify
6 specific foods, food products, and beverages, or general categories of foods, food
7 products, and beverages, that do not have sufficient nutritional value and shall
8 prohibit the use of benefits under the program for those foods, food products, and
9 beverages.
10 (b) If the department determines that it may not implement the pilot program
11 under par. (a) without a federal waiver, the department shall request a waiver from
12 the secretary of the federal department of agriculture and may not implement the
13 pilot program under par. (a) unless the waiver is granted and in effect.
14 Section 2. 227.01 (13) (tm) of the statutes is created to read:
15 227.01 (13) (tm) Relates to a pilot program under s. 49.79 (7m).
16 (End)

- from http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/proposals/ab110
 
skullkrusher
2013-04-30 11:12:09 PM  

Mija: Any Pie Left: Cheese and any dairy are good for people, you get calcium and vitamin D, at least. As a snack food, it could be better than say, candy and cookies.

Lactose intolerant people can't have dairy.


well I for one am tired of people demanding that I be tolerant of their intolerance.
 
Jarhead_h
2013-04-30 11:12:12 PM  
Why make them eat healthy?  Make them instead only eat processed sugar and tobacco.  Preferably anything unfiltered and full of additives and carcinogens.

LessO2: factoryconnection: The government need not be in the business of subsidizing diabetes, heart disease, strokes, and other dietary killers among the poor, for whom the limited healthcare they receive is often paid for by... the government.

The Government likely does that already.   Silly Farker, Capitalism will ALWAYS trump health or safety.

If you want to get bootstrappy, strip the folks like Kraft, Pepsico, Nestle and Tyson of their tax subsidies.  Do they get subsidies?, hell if I know, but they're big enough to have buddies on Capitol Hill, so it's very likely they do.

Make the price of a two-liter bottle of soda five bucks, the "Family Size" bag of Doritos 10 bucks, see how fast those will stay on the shelves longer.


Food stamps are not a subsidy to the people.  Food stamps are a subsidy to Goldman Sachs which makes money off of every stamp processed.  They are also an indirect subsidy to big brewery and big tobacco, as those that get food stamps usually buy junk food with the stamps and then use their cash to buy cheap beer and cigarettes.

Also, tax breaks are not subsidies.  A tax break is when the government decides not to steal as much as it might otherwise have stolen.  A subsidy is the government handing out a check that can be cashed for a portion of that stolen money.
 
j__z
2013-04-30 11:13:54 PM  

Godscrack: This doesn't make sense. Forcing the masses to eat right will only make them healthier. And smarter.

Republicans don't like thinking people. Who are they going to fill the jails with?


Wait, I thought Republicans wanted all the people on welfare to starve. I'm so confused

/your newsletter, I want to subscribe to it
 
TheGregiss
2013-04-30 11:14:38 PM  
I'm actually ok with this.
 
lolpix
2013-04-30 11:15:31 PM  

12349876: o5iiawah: Yeah about that. Staple fruits and veggies are not that expensive.

Apples: $2/lb
Onions: $1/lb
Grapefruit: $1/ea
Mango: 2 for $3
2lb Bag of carrots: $2.99
Oranges: $1/ea
Limes: 3/$1

and I live in the northeast. my local grocer is one of the nicer ones in the area.

If you don't have a car and don't live close to a real grocery store, it's a real hassle to get it.  And the gas station that's nearby is only selling fruits individually at 89 or 99 cents.


Price per pound is only part of the equation. Fresh fruits and vegetables do not keep as long. This requires you to either spend more time preparing them for storage, or shopping more often.  Typically a bit of both. This takes time and energy expense, be that expense muscle, electricity, or bus fare, which are commodities in and of themselves.  Poor people don't necessarily lack for work either. A lot of poor work 40 to 60 hour weeks like the rest of us slobs. They just don't make enough to get by in the jobs they have. If they were smart, they'd quit their Wal-Mart gig and become investment bankers.
 
demonfaerie
2013-04-30 11:15:37 PM  

Ed Willy: FlashHarry: hypocritical. nobody in wisconsin eats fruits and vegetables. i spent many a weekend at road america back in the 90s - 3-days, paddock pass - and the only things consumed were brats, cheese and beer.

Ahem, no fruit? Explain this!

[assets.bizjournals.com image 304x431]


Leinies is pretty damn cheap in my area, because the Brewery is like one town away from me. You can get a 12 back bottles for around 10 bucks most of the time.
 
echomike23
2013-04-30 11:16:16 PM  
i.qkme.meView Full Size
 
Bumblefark
2013-04-30 11:16:19 PM  

Now That's What I Call a Taco!: We can all pretend like Republicans suddenly care about healthy eating.

Or, we can look at their responses any time Michelle Obama suggests kids should eat their vegetables, and recognize this for what it is: "lets stick it to those stupid poors!"

/This will create lawsuits under the 5th Amendment
//I suspect that's part of the WIGOP's plan


mediatrackers.orgView Full Size


Just care so darn much about healthy eating...

/assuming that's the fat bastard in question.
 
Ken VeryBigLiar
2013-04-30 11:16:34 PM  
How about simply ruling that if it's taxable in Wisconsin grocery stores it's not eligible for SNAP? Not a ton of things falling through the cracks that way.
 
ColKurtz
2013-04-30 11:16:38 PM  
LOL at the comments about budgets and hunger. Does anyone really think a lack of cheesy poofs and soda is going to make people starve? You'd have to eat a whole bag of cheetos to get full.

A can of corn or green beans is less than a dollar. No one is saying it has to be fresh/perishable. Conservatives preach individual liberty and anti-nannyism, but this is a pretty decent idea IMO. Change is hard.
 
Ranger Rover
2013-04-30 11:17:05 PM  

lawboy87: I do the family's shopping and cooking, and I am going to seriously challenge anyone's assertion that fresh fruits and vegetables are "too expensive." Simply because they are often downright reasonable, compared to the cost of calorie-laden convenience and snack food items devoid of even the most basic nutritional value. Factor in the cost to the state for treating obesity, childhood diabetes, etc. and I have no problem whatsoever with this mandate.


Completely agree, and that's why education about price comparison and food preparation should be stressed in these programs and perhaps even made a mandatory condition of the benefit. A lot of people making these mistakes and buying convenience foods or the can of corn as opposed to the fresh ears don't know how to shop smartly (it can be a downright science) and/or prepare food at home well or simply at all, and fall back on the shockingly overpriced convenience equivalents of relatively affordable food. You can feed a kid well for a week for the price of a couple of Lunchables or Hidden Valley ranch kits. The mark-up is exorbitant and avoidable to the point that anybody spending tax dollars on those items should be ashamed - if they know better. And knowing better is easy to fix.
 
take_flight
2013-04-30 11:17:24 PM  

phaseolus: FYI, the text of the bill:


The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:

1 Section 1. 49.79 (7m) of the statutes is created to read:
2  49.79 (7m) Pilot program limiting foods. (a) Subject to par. (b), the
3 department shall conduct a pilot program under which the department allows the
4 benefits under the food stamp program to be used only for foods, food products, and
5 beverages that have sufficient nutritional value. The department shall identify
6 specific foods, food products, and beverages, or general categories of foods, food
7 products, and beverages, that do not have sufficient nutritional value and shall
8 prohibit the use of benefits under the program for those foods, food products, and
9 beverages.
10 (b) If the department determines that it may not implement the pilot program
11 under par. (a) without a federal waiver, the department shall request a waiver from
12 the secretary of the federal department of agriculture and may not implement the
13 pilot program under par. (a) unless the waiver is granted and in effect.
14 Section 2. 227.01 (13) (tm) of the statutes is created to read:
15 227.01 (13) (tm) Relates to a pilot program under s. 49.79 (7m).
16 (End)

- from http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/proposals/ab110


This seems a little vague, and how will they enforce it?
 
KarmicDisaster [TotalFark]
2013-04-30 11:19:16 PM  
It is just going to be a pain in the butt that costs money for stores to manage this, especially for small stores that don't use a computer system or can't afford an upgrade to their software. The party of small government strikes again with a law that adds expensive regulations.
 
Frank N Stein
2013-04-30 11:19:56 PM  

Hermione_Granger: Any Pie Left: Cheese and any dairy are good for people, you get calcium and vitamin D, at least. As a snack food, it could be better than say, candy and cookies.

Dairy is not good for everyone. Most people who aren't white are lactose intolerant, although this can definitely apply to a lot of white folks as well.


"Dairy is not good for anyone except the large number of people that it's good for"
 
Peki
2013-04-30 11:21:10 PM  

phaseolus: FYI, the text of the bill:


The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:

1 Section 1. 49.79 (7m) of the statutes is created to read:
2  49.79 (7m) Pilot program limiting foods. (a) Subject to par. (b), the
3 department shall conduct a pilot program under which the department allows the
4 benefits under the food stamp program to be used only for foods, food products, and
5 beverages that have sufficient nutritional value. The department shall identify
6 specific foods, food products, and beverages, or general categories of foods, food
7 products, and beverages, that do not have sufficient nutritional value and shall
8 prohibit the use of benefits under the program for those foods, food products, and
9 beverages.
10 (b) If the department determines that it may not implement the pilot program
11 under par. (a) without a federal waiver, the department shall request a waiver from
12 the secretary of the federal department of agriculture and may not implement the
13 pilot program under par. (a) unless the waiver is granted and in effect.
14 Section 2. 227.01 (13) (tm) of the statutes is created to read:
15 227.01 (13) (tm) Relates to a pilot program under s. 49.79 (7m).
16 (End)

- from http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/proposals/ab110


I can't really say I have a problem with this. I was on food stamps (the card) in Cali for awhile; we couldn't buy Monsters (we didn't think it would, just wanted to see). Fiancé and I both thought it was perfectly reasonable.

The only concerns I have are the same as those already mentioned. Fresh food generally costs more unless you've got a coop or farmer's market nearby, and most farmer's markets don't take food stamps. There are also transportation costs (do you really want a hour-long bus ride full of people with old lady carts full of groceries in 90+ degree weather?), storage costs, prep work (both time and money), so on and so forth.

If you really believe in economic freedom, give them the cash. If they starve, their own damn fault.

/really getting tired of the "poor = irresponsible with money" meme
 
Ken VeryBigLiar
2013-04-30 11:21:16 PM  

take_flight: This seems a little vague, and how will they enforce it?


They won't, nor will they provide funding for more oversight.  So when the Milwaukee news does more undercover stories on food stamp recipients buying things outside the guidelines we get another round of faked outrage.

/And asparagus grows wild in half the country ditches in this state if you want cheap veggies.
//Of course you'd have to go to places like Adams and Juneau County for some of it...
 
lolpix
2013-04-30 11:21:19 PM  

KarmicDisaster: It is just going to be a pain in the butt that costs money for stores to manage this, especially for small stores that don't use a computer system or can't afford an upgrade to their software. The party of small government strikes again with a law that adds expensive regulations.


They're not really about small government. They just think big government should occupy itself with different things.
 
Don't Troll Me Bro!
2013-04-30 11:21:32 PM  

albatros183: I keep hearing about Wisconsin cheese but I've never seen it here is it only available in  Wisconsin  ?


It's available pretty much anywhere.  Next time you're at the supermarket take a look where some of the good cheeses were made.  I'd bet you'll find something from WI.  We've even got some cheese spread that gets out of state, like Kaukauna.  I know I've seen that stuff in many states.

You could also check out this list of WI cheese companies.

Contact one of them and ask how to get hold of their product. Many of them do mail orders, or can at least send you to another cheesemaker that does.

Also check out http://www.wisconsincheesemart.com/
 
Barbecue Bob
2013-04-30 11:23:41 PM  
Somebody has to buy that stuff.

The GOP is just pissed the isles are empty of Funyons all the time.
 
Peki
2013-04-30 11:24:30 PM  

Ranger Rover: A lot of people making these mistakes and buying convenience foods or the can of corn as opposed to the fresh ears don't know how to shop smartly (it can be a downright science) and/or prepare food at home well or simply at all, and fall back on the shockingly overpriced convenience equivalents of relatively affordable food


How do you know this?

Because everyone on food stamps I know knows exactly how to cook and budget appropriately. The problem is cooking when you work 60 hours at two jobs and your partner works 40 hours at his.

/right, I forgot, everyone on food stamps is an unemployed lazy bum who is just too stupid to do it right
 
Precision Boobery
2013-04-30 11:25:58 PM  
I hope this coincides with Obamacare kicking in because there will be a huge influx of salmonella and e.coli cases due to people not understanding they have to wash those things.
 
skullkrusher
2013-04-30 11:27:39 PM  

take_flight: phaseolus: FYI, the text of the bill:


The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:

1 Section 1. 49.79 (7m) of the statutes is created to read:
2  49.79 (7m) Pilot program limiting foods. (a) Subject to par. (b), the
3 department shall conduct a pilot program under which the department allows the
4 benefits under the food stamp program to be used only for foods, food products, and
5 beverages that have sufficient nutritional value. The department shall identify
6 specific foods, food products, and beverages, or general categories of foods, food
7 products, and beverages, that do not have sufficient nutritional value and shall
8 prohibit the use of benefits under the program for those foods, food products, and
9 beverages.
10 (b) If the department determines that it may not implement the pilot program
11 under par. (a) without a federal waiver, the department shall request a waiver from
12 the secretary of the federal department of agriculture and may not implement the
13 pilot program under par. (a) unless the waiver is granted and in effect.
14 Section 2. 227.01 (13) (tm) of the statutes is created to read:
15 227.01 (13) (tm) Relates to a pilot program under s. 49.79 (7m).
16 (End)

- from http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/proposals/ab110

This seems a little vague, and how will they enforce it?


once they have a list, enforcement is pretty easy if they use EBT cards
 
lousyskater
2013-04-30 11:28:05 PM  

basemetal: Government cheese was good stuff, best grilled cheese ever.


Me and my brother weren't able to get our government cheese to melt when we were growing up. I feel like I missed out on something great.
 
Hobodeluxe [recently expired TotalFark]
2013-04-30 11:29:25 PM  

Bumblefark: Yeah, because politicizing public assistance down to the level of a person's diet isn't at all petty or spiteful, and is sure to make for some sound policy...


the politicians are probably getting some kickback from the vegetable growers
 
Stoj
2013-04-30 11:30:51 PM  
MY BODY, MY CHOICE!

*burp*
 
Molavian
2013-04-30 11:30:53 PM  

Spanky_McFarksalot: people  say that like they personally get a bill each month.

IF, you pay taxes and don't any kind of refund (assuming you don't take any of the credits offered and actually get back MORE in federal taxes than you pay in) you portion of the bill is like what? a few dollars  a month?


I was going to joke around a bit, but you do realize that a lot of people actually have to pay taxes, right?
 
drjekel_mrhyde
2013-04-30 11:31:53 PM  

SCUBA_Archer: As long as the poors can keep trading these veggie stamps for packs of smokes outside of bodegas, I don't think anything will change with the world.


Pretty sure no one in Wisconsin call corner stores that. If you see someone doing that REPORT it instead coming here and parroting the GOP line
 
freetomato
2013-04-30 11:31:59 PM  

Peki: Ranger Rover: A lot of people making these mistakes and buying convenience foods or the can of corn as opposed to the fresh ears don't know how to shop smartly (it can be a downright science) and/or prepare food at home well or simply at all, and fall back on the shockingly overpriced convenience equivalents of relatively affordable food

How do you know this?

Because everyone on food stamps I know knows exactly how to cook and budget appropriately. The problem is cooking when you work 60 hours at two jobs and your partner works 40 hours at his.

/right, I forgot, everyone on food stamps is an unemployed lazy bum who is just too stupid to do it right


I'd be okay with a short class on smart shopping and budget management being made available to those who need it, even mandatory possibly. Many people didn't get that kind of common sense education from their parents like they should have. Many are not necessarily going to magically just "get it" if their benefits are more restricted.
 
bborchar
2013-04-30 11:32:20 PM  

penthesilea: Fresh foods are great, but don't keep well for very long.

Fresh foods also mean going to the grocery store more often.  Which means more time wasted and spending more money on gas or public transportation.  They hardly get anything to put towards food as it is and the politicians are trying to make it even more difficult to survive.

If the politicians really want to make fresh foods a big part of the plan then they need to give a lot more money.  They should triple it.
They never will, but they should.


Going to the grocery store more often? It's really that hard to go once a week, maybe even two? I completely understand what it's like to live on practically nothing (I worked two jobs in college, and ended up taking showers and staying at school until late at night to keep my electricity bill under $20 a month because I was that poor), but I live within walking distance of a grocery store, and within 3 miles of three more. If you live in a city, use cheap public transportation.

How do you economize on fresh fruits and veggies? Buy what's in sale or in season. Hard fruits and veggies will last up to two weeks or longer if they are stored properly. A bag of apples can be as cheap as $1.99 and bananas $.37 cents a pound. Buy the more expensive veggies frozen or canned (artichoke hearts are a much better value frozen). Most people don't even know how to shop or cook, and don't realize how far a few cheap, fresh ingredients can be stretched.
 
o5iiawah
2013-04-30 11:33:13 PM  

12349876: If you don't have a car and don't live close to a real grocery store, it's a real hassle to get it.


I walk to the grocery store.  1/4 mile away. Its also has a city bus that stops out front and a train stop thats 1/4 mile away as well.  Each offers low-fares for needy individuals.  Take your SNAP and your low income bus voucher to the store and pick up some fruits and vegetables.  I'm sorry, but feeding yourself is a responsibility of being a human.

Snarcoleptic_Hoosier: a parent comes home after a long and/or crappy shift, it IS easier to throw mac and cheese together than actually do the cooking for a more nutritious meal. Give the kid a PB&J sandwich + a pack of poptarts for lunch because it's fast and mornings can be a rush as it is.


If all of a sudden, the people in these urban "food deserts" started demanding fresh fruits and vegetables, stores would stock them.  Aside from catching people on their way to work and shoving an orange down their throat, what do you propose?

lolpix: Price per pound is only part of the equation. Fresh fruits and vegetables do not keep as long. This requires you to either spend more time preparing them for storage, or shopping more often.  Typically a bit of both. This takes time and energy expense, be that expense muscle, electricity, or bus fare, which are commodities in and of themselves.  Poor people don't necessarily lack for work either. A lot of poor work 40 to 60 hour weeks like the rest of us slobs. They just don't make enough to get by in the jobs they have. If they were smart, they'd quit their Wal-Mart gig and become investment bankers.


And again, i submit that fresh fruits and vegetables are not only better for your health, keep you full longer, are less expensive than and are more nutritious than crappy pre-packaged foods and meals.  The most pathetic argument I've heard as to why people eat crappy is due to fridge space.  Seriously. For $12, I buy a bunch of veggies, a lb of chicken and a box of multigrain pasta (Which is about $.70 more than the white, enriched pasta) and make a salad.  usually lasts me til Thursday.  You could sub beans for chicken and probably get 8 nutritious meals for $10.

If your argument is that someone with 5 kids, who works 80 hours a week doesn't have time to sit in the kitchen and make food all day, chances are they should have stopped at one kid.  You ask society to subsidize your life, dont be surprised when society feels that it has a vested interest in telling you how you should live it.
 
factoryconnection [TotalFark]
2013-04-30 11:33:28 PM  

LessO2: The Government likely does that already. Silly Farker, Capitalism will ALWAYS trump health or safety.

If you want to get bootstrappy, strip the folks like Kraft, Pepsico, Nestle and Tyson of their tax subsidies. Do they get subsidies?, hell if I know, but they're big enough to have buddies on Capitol Hill, so it's very likely they do.


You do have a point, because we do subsidize the corn/soybean production in this country that makes calories cheap but leaves nutrients expensive.  Not to mention the rogering we're giving our farmland through monoculture practices.  However, need we further subsidize its consumption through SNAP purchases of processed and refined carbohydrates from corn and soy?  Nay, I say.  Nay.
 
dennysgod
2013-04-30 11:35:00 PM  
So the Party that complained about changes the Obama administration made to school lunches to make them healthier is OK with passing legislation to makes those on Food Stamps eat healthier.
 
PsiChick
2013-04-30 11:36:35 PM  

Any Pie Left: Cheese and any dairy are good for people, you get calcium and vitamin D, at least. As a snack food, it could be better than say, candy and cookies.


Up until you're getting sick from the estrogen they pump the cows with to keep them pregnant, sure. I'm not supposed to eat that shiat anymore, or bread, because both are actually making me fat as fark. And that's  whole-wheat bread and low-fat milk. Not even some kind of super-sugar milk concoction and white bread.

The big problem with this bill, though, is that healthy foods cost more. Nowhere in TFA do they mention SNAP  paying for how much more it costs...which means if that's your only food income, suddenly you might not have enough food anymore.
 
12349876
2013-04-30 11:37:23 PM  

o5iiawah: I walk to the grocery store. 1/4 mile away. Its also has a city bus that stops out front and a train stop thats 1/4 mile away as well. Each offers low-fares for needy individuals. Take your SNAP and your low income bus voucher to the store and pick up some fruits and vegetables. I'm sorry, but feeding yourself is a responsibility of being a human.


Good for you.  You don't fit into my qualifiers.  Not everyone lives 1/4 mile from the grocery.  Not everyone has good direct public transportation from their house to the grocery.  But keep pretending everyone is as fortunate as you are.
 
Bathia_Mapes [TotalFark] [BareFark]
2013-04-30 11:37:24 PM  

Summercat: SCUBA_Archer: As long as the poors can keep trading these veggie stamps for packs of smokes outside of bodegas, I don't think anything will change with the world.

In California, SNAP benefits are now on an electronic card.


I'm not even certain paper food stamps exist any longer. Most states use EBT cards for TANF & SNAP benefits.
 
Dingleberry Dickwad
2013-04-30 11:37:53 PM  

Don't Troll Me Bro!: albatros183: I keep hearing about Wisconsin cheese but I've never seen it here is it only available in  Wisconsin  ?

It's available pretty much anywhere.  Next time you're at the supermarket take a look where some of the good cheeses were made.  I'd bet you'll find something from WI.  We've even got some cheese spread that gets out of state, like Kaukauna.  I know I've seen that stuff in many states.

You could also check out this list of WI cheese companies.

Contact one of them and ask how to get hold of their product. Many of them do mail orders, or can at least send you to another cheesemaker that does.

Also check out http://www.wisconsincheesemart.com/


Very rarely I find myself loving living in buttfark central WI. I live within an hour of at least 4-5 of those dairies in your link, and I love me some fresh squeaky curds and some good aged sharp cheddar.
 
Ranger Rover
2013-04-30 11:39:29 PM  

Peki: Ranger Rover: A lot of people making these mistakes and buying convenience foods or the can of corn as opposed to the fresh ears don't know how to shop smartly (it can be a downright science) and/or prepare food at home well or simply at all, and fall back on the shockingly overpriced convenience equivalents of relatively affordable food

How do you know this?

Because everyone on food stamps I know knows exactly how to cook and budget appropriately. The problem is cooking when you work 60 hours at two jobs and your partner works 40 hours at his.

/right, I forgot, everyone on food stamps is an unemployed lazy bum who is just too stupid to do it right


If your slashy is suggesting I said or implied that, you're just looking for a fight that I didn't start and don't want to give you.

As for where I'm getting the assertions I made, from about four years now of working with (and hanging out with) low-income populations in various capacities. I was a teacher first and then have spent the last couple of years in a legal clinic serving indigent clients and working mainly with families of young children. We talk about these things. Also, I'm learning the process myself. I grew up very comfortably, am now on a very limited budget (mostly because that's what you have to deal with when your job is helping poor people) and several of the things I talked about apply to myself as much as anyone else, and many friends in similar situations from similar backgrounds.

I was not meaning to imply at all that there are not varied populations of people receiving benefits for varied reasons. It looks like our experiences are different, but nowhere did I assert that people like the ones you're talking about don't exist.

But I guess the fact that everyone that you know budgets perfectly and are all fantastic chefs mean that the people that I know that aren't are irrelevant. One person's anecdotal evidence.....cancels out another's.
 
KarmicDisaster [TotalFark]
2013-04-30 11:40:07 PM  
Since Republicans are doing this, there is probably some reason. This won't save taxpayers a dime, since people will still get the same amount of aid but will just spend it on other stuff, so cost savings is not the reason. I think that the real reason is the Republican desire to "punish" people that they don't like, just like their parents punished them. In this case, by making it harder for stores to comply with the program they will  force a lot of them to drop out of the program. That will make it harder and more time consuming for  the poor to travel to stores to buy things to eat, which is considered good in the Republican mindset since as they "know" the poor are all Blacks or Liberals that have been on welfare for their whole lives and need be punished and encouraged to move away. Did you know that Wisconsin imprisons more Blacks (by their proportion in the population) than any other state? That's the reason they are doing this.
 
Peki
2013-04-30 11:40:26 PM  

freetomato: I'd be okay with a short class on smart shopping and budget management being made available to those who need it, even mandatory possibly. Many people didn't get that kind of common sense education from their parents like they should have. Many are not necessarily going to magically just "get it" if their benefits are more restricted.


Deal.

o5iiawah: If your argument is that someone with 5 kids, who works 80 hours a week doesn't have time to sit in the kitchen and make food all day, chances are they should have stopped at one kid.


Okay. Let's make it someone who works 80 hours a week and has one kid. Now what's your beef?

/hint: It's not about how many kids they have, or how much they work. You just don't want them on your dime, and you'll do whatever you want to make it as uncomfortable as possible.
 
fusillade762 [TotalFark]
2013-04-30 11:40:47 PM  

1000 Ways to Dye: This is a problem, only because the Feds subsidize crap used in crappy foods, making healthy foods comparatively expensive. The primary reason people on food stamps buy crap is because that's all they can afford. All this will do is make it harder for more people to buy enough food to not be hungry.


This right here. Stop subsidizing crap at the source.


o5iiawah: If your argument is that someone with 5 kids, who works 80 hours a week doesn't have time to sit in the kitchen and make food all day, chances are they should have stopped at one kid


This from the party that wants to make abortion illegal and contraception harder to get.
 
lolpix
2013-04-30 11:42:19 PM  

o5iiawah: And again, i submit that fresh fruits and vegetables are not only better for your health, keep you full longer


Fat and bulk are he principal triggers for fullness (or satiation). Carbs, which generally have a lot of mass, and high fat foods will make you feel full sooner for longer. You can try this experiment for yourself. Try eating the fattiest part of your meal first for a few weeks. You will very likely to come find that when you do so, you don't finish your entire meal. Fat is not healthy, but it satiates.
 
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