The "food stamp fridge"

[Three and Done]

I have been seeing the "food stamp fridge" meme repeatedly on FB recently, and it finally pissed me off enough to address it on my page (something I rarely do).

For those of you that haven't seen it, the left side of the picture shows a fridge literally crammed full of food, and the right side is the "taxpayer's" side, which is fairly empty.

I posted some facts and statistics taken directly from the USDA website, (such as in 2013 the average HOUSEHOLD benefit for most of the US was under $300) and... Crickets...

Why do people insist on believing the hyperbole surrounding food stamps and completely ignore reality?

[browncoatslytherin]

when i was on foodstamps, i personally never got over $200. i think the most i got was $196. for an unmarried, childless person. that was in pa. in ohio, i couldn't even get any, under the same circumstances as i was in pa. it's ridiculous. i was actually told, point-blank, that i couldn't get any food stamps unless i was pregnant. uh, yeah, no, i'm not going to go get pregnant just to get food stamps and assistance.

[Howl]

I really do think a lot of this type of thinking originated with Ronald Reagan, and his stories of a woman in Chicago who abused the welfare system. The underlying assumption then and now is that poor black women are living a life of leisure off welfare and are robbing us of something that is rightfully ours. The reality as you know is quite different. Ronald Reagan never used the term "welfare queen", but the ugly stereotype that he implanted in the national consciousness persists to this day.

Also, when you consider that many poor people live in a food desert (no availability of decent grocery stores close by) and have only access to relatively expensive, low nutrient processed food, the situation is even grimmer.

This attitude that ________ (insert poor people, immigrants, people of color or your favorite target group) are taking something that belongs to you really pisses me off. Did poor people, immigrants, people of color invent credit default swaps, write hundreds of thousands of bad mortgages, or create too-big-to-fail banks that made terrible investments that toppled our economy and nearly destroyed the global economy? These are the real thieves.

Really, I hate this blaming of the most vulnerable people in our society (poor women with children, the elderly, the disabled).

OK, rant over. I'll chill-ax for now.

[Coco]

i saw that yesterday, from my mother in law. She posts the most racist, right-wing spin memes, usually several every time she's on FB. She really has no cause to do it, since she was on assistance when my hubby was very small. It doesn't make sense. I guess some people just need someone to hate and blame for their own struggles. If she needed it again and qualified i doubt she would hesitate. :shrug:

Besides that, it's not accurate. Yes the food stamp program loads once a month and some people abuse it by buying a lot of not-so-great food, and their fridge might look like that for one week or so out of the month. BUT most people on food stamps have almost nothing, and are smarter about their purchases. The once a month sum allows them to buy flour, rice, beans, eggs, milk, in bulk and save.

I've posted these videos before on FJ but they're the best quick breakdowns of this problem that i've ever seen.

thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/v9wjc4/fox-news-welfare-academy

thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/mlw5q1/2014--a-waste-odyssey

[Three and Done]

I really do think a lot of this type of thinking originated with Ronald Reagan, and his stories of a woman in Chicago who abused the welfare system. The underlying assumption then and now is that poor black women are living a life of leisure off welfare and are robbing us of something that is rightfully ours. The reality as you know is quite different. Ronald Reagan never used the term "welfare queen", but the ugly stereotype that he implanted in the national consciousness persists to this day.

Also, when you consider that many poor people live in a food desert (no availability of decent grocery stores close by) and have only access to relatively expensive, low nutrient processed food, the situation is even grimmer.

This attitude that ________ (insert poor people, immigrants, people of color or your favorite target group) are taking something that belongs to you really pisses me off. Did poor people, immigrants, people of color invent credit default swaps, write hundreds of thousands of bad mortgages, or create too-big-to-fail banks that made terrible investments that toppled our economy and nearly destroyed the global economy? These are the real thieves.

Really, I hate this blaming of the most vulnerable people in our society (poor women with children, the elderly, the disabled).

OK, rant over. I'll chill-ax for now.

To the bolded: I agree that this is likely where the myth originated (in fact, I was just discussing that exact point with my mother and daughters yesterday), but what I cannot understand is why supposedly intelligent people perpetuate this myth without performing even the most basic of research.

Reagan introduced the stereotype during his presidential campaign in 1976 and almost 30 years later, it has not only endured, but become a fixture in the evisceration of food stamps (and other social programs).

It's sickening.

[Walking Cat Bed]

Also consider that, due to vehicle access, many recipients only have a chance to make one substantial grocery trip each month; they might use as much of that money as possible as soon as they can, which means they'd get a more food in one trip. And they may be supplementing with as many food pantries as they can. Without knowing the specific person's situation (and even knowing that) we can't really judge them.

And, well, I'd prefer that *MY* taxes keep people fed and educated and safe rather than keep CEOs rich, but ymmv.

[trailmix2014]

WTF? Single mom, 2 kids, living on child support(for the moment.). I get $200 a month n food stamps. By the end of the month, I'm hitting food banks! People are idiots.

[browncoatslytherin]

And they may be supplementing with as many food pantries as they can.

we did this as well. one of our friends used to know when all the food banks were open, so she'd take me along on different days of the month. there were times i waited 2 hours in freezing weather, just to get canned goods, some cheap meat, shelf milk, and some few odds n ends type of things.

[fun2beme]

I think that, like most stereotypes, this is a case of one bad apple spoiling the barrel. You might have 10 people in line at the grocery store who use food stamps, but the one you'll remember is the one who had a cart full of what you consider to be "junk/luxury food" (in quotes because the concept of junk food varies from person to person and that's another debate). But most people won't remember the other 9. That tends to be human nature in general.

[Three and Done]

I think that, like most stereotypes, this is a case of one bad apple spoiling the barrel. You might have 10 people in line at the grocery store who use food stamps, but the one you'll remember is the one who had a cart full of what you consider to be "junk/luxury food" (in quotes because the concept of junk food varies from person to person and that's another debate). But most people won't remember the other 9. That tends to be human nature in general.

Or even the one time in 10 trips to the store when you see that one person.

I would agree with you that some people focus on that ONE "bad apple" then use that incidence to extrapolate "food stamps = steak and lobster".

[browncoatslytherin]

Or even the one time in 10 trips to the store when you see that one person.

I would agree with you that some people focus on that ONE "bad apple" then use that incidence to extrapolate "food stamps = steak and lobster".

qft.

when my ex's uncle got his disability finally approved (which he needed, as his copd was getting bad and he couldn't work anymore), he splurged and had a steak dinner with "all the fixins" (for him, baked potato, vegetable salad, jell-o salad, and a pie alamode for dessert). that was very atypical of him, he usually stuck to hamburger and other, cheaper foods. but it was an occasion he wanted to celebrate, which i think he was totally entitled to.

[FeministShrew]

One of my best friends is on total disability in NC & gets less than $100 a month in foodstamps (he told me how much, & but I can't remember, but it seemed ridiculously low). He eats oatmeal (not instant) for breakfast, lunch every day in a local soup kitchen, & they give food to take home on Fridays, so he gets dinners/salads to eat as dinner. The rest of the time he buys fresh fruits & vegetables at a discount grocery, and cheap cuts of meat on sale. He's the most frugal person I know, & he can't make it to the end of the month without the EBT card running out.

It's interesting to be with him when he buys something with the card, because we get mean looks, especially if I bought something with my money too. I've seen checkers looking to see what vehicle we drive off in. I'm sure my Trans Am convertible gets nasty comments.

[Three and Done]

One of my best friends is on total disability in NC & gets less than $100 a month in foodstamps (he told me how much, & but I can't remember, but it seemed ridiculously low). He eats oatmeal (not instant) for breakfast, lunch every day in a local soup kitchen, & they give food to take home on Fridays, so he gets dinners/salads to eat as dinner. The rest of the time he buys fresh fruits & vegetables at a discount grocery, and cheap cuts of meat on sale. He's the most frugal person I know, & he can't make it to the end of the month without the EBT card running out.

It's interesting to be with him when he buys something with the card, because we get mean looks, especially if I bought something with my money too. I've seen checkers looking to see what vehicle we drive off in. I'm sure my Trans Am convertible gets nasty comments.

At an earlier point in my life, I was receiving food stamps due to a back injury that put me out of work and had borrowed a relative's new car to go to the store. I had to have help with the groceries, and the bag boy had quite the look on his face... He DID make a comment about the car, and although I told him it wasn't mine, he went back inside with an obvious attitude.

Yeah, everyone on assistance drives new cars. :angry-banghead:

[Mama Mia]

Or even the one time in 10 trips to the store when you see that one person.

I would agree with you that some people focus on that ONE "bad apple" then use that incidence to extrapolate "food stamps = steak and lobster".

Or it might be a one time splurge purchase for a birthday or special occasion. Or you're buying a steak, but cutting it up to spread out in stir-fry and soups and what not.

I remember once, back when I was on food stamps when my kids were little, I did - gasp- buy a steak, once, along with a bunch of more "acceptable" foods. For one of my kids birthday dinners, cause that's what my 6 year old really, really wanted. And some jerk-off standing behind me in line made a bunch of obnoxious comments. It was so humiliating.

Completely agree about the stereotyping and food deserts and all of that. When I was on aid I didn't have a car, and there was one, pricey, corner store across the street, and a big supermarket a couple miles away. A couple of miles doesn't sound like a bad walk. But it was along a very busy road, with no sidewalks, uphill on the way back, so I'd have my double stroller and the four kids and on the first of the month, when the food stamps came, we'd load up on food on sale at the bigger, cheaper store. And I'd be pushing that incredibly heavy stroller, loaded with groceries, uphill, with the baby in a front-carrier and the toddler in a backpack with the two older kids holding on to the side of the stroller. And yeah, when we got home our fridge had a lot of food --but it would be portioned out for use for the month. Because I sure didn't want to make that shopping trip more than absolutely needed -- but couldn't afford to pay the extra 25 cents per item that the corner grocery charged.

I'm really glad that now at least the food stamps aren't noticeable. They come on a debit card that looks like any other debit card, so that helps with the embarrassment at the grocery store. Although I remember calculating purchases at the corner store based on how much change would come back from the food stamps, so we could get toilet paper or soap, I guess you can't do that now.

I think some of the people who complain have a legitimate beef, if they don't qualify for help because of incredibly narrow definitions of who is needy enough. I know in my area this is a huge problem with assistance programs in general. It's one of the least affordable areas in the country, do many, many people work at jobs that would make them at least lower middle class in most places-- but here they are lucky if they can find a tiny cramped hole in the wall to rent and still buy food.

The ragers on Facebook drive me nuts. The ones I have are all middle-aged/older people who I've known since we were kids, and were all on some type of aid at some point, or work for a union -- and some of them still are on aid -- but they have been infected with this weird tea party libertarian type mentality. At least they are pro-marriage equality and stay away from the anti- birth control type issues -- but other than that they spew every offensive Facebook meme possible. So weird.

And to the new car comments people get -- after being on aid, I worked in income based social services, and sure you would get a few people with nice cars-- but those nice cars were a huge hindrance. People would buy or lease them BEFORE they lost their job/ their kid got cancer/ their spouse ran off with the neighbor and their life fell apart. So they would be stuck with huge car payments and little money, but selling the car, if the situation was likely to be temporary, would be pointless-- because they wouldn't get enough to even pay off the finance company, and they'd have no way to get a car to get to work/take their kid to chemo etc....or they would be stuck in a lease. Or they had already paid it off and the resale would be just enough to kick them off of aid and not enough to get a new old car and make the rent.

Of course you get some cheaters and grifters. There's always cheaters and grifters in every situation -- whether it's CEO's or Food Stamp receipients. That's just life.

Eta: being really poor did make me learn to be really good with money. Even years latter when my husband and I were working full time and making good money ( well good if it was a cheaper area with less children) I would still feed my family on what we would have received on food stamps. And they ate well. But I was a very, very careful shopper - once I had a car.

[utter solitude]

I live in Ohio, and I get $189 a month in foodstamps, as I have 0 income and am considered a one person household. I am also required to prove that I am looking for a job, every month. I buy things like chicken breast, rice, and veggies, and it does not cover all my food for the month, and is not supposed to.

I just got a job, and will lose my foodstamps after this month because of it. It's not even a full time job, but it will put me over the threshold. This time next month, I don't know what I'll be eating.

My mother has a mentally ill friend who lives completely on government assistance - she gets money every month for her disability, and her rent is paid via section 8 - for her tiny efficiency apartment in a kind-of-bad neighborhood. She gets $10 a month in foodstamps.

It's been my experience that the people with "Cartloads" of "junk" who are "abusing" the system usually are not alone- they live with people who do work and/or otherwise have income coming in that is not reported, so they can afford to spend their foodstamps on junk. Most of us don't do this. I would much rather pay for my own food, but it's a fine line I walk.

[Swamptribe]

Respond with this image.

[Firiel]

My grocery budget is $100/month, which I guess is pretty low, and I (rightfully) don't qualify for food stamps. If I wanted to, I could afford more, but I chose to aggressively pay off student loans (done, so now I'm aggressively saving!), tithe to my local church, and put aside money for travel (boyfriend lives about five hours away).

There have been moments where I am frustrated and just want to be able to buy groceries without thinking about cost (again, I know it is a choice for me, so that frustration is much easier to deal with). Every once in a while in those moments, I wonder how someone can complain that $150-$200 for food in a month, just for them, is not enough.

Then, because I'm a reasonable person, I remember that everyone's situation is not mine. Not everyone has a car. Not everyone has a SUPER cheap grocery store biking distance from their apartment. Not everyone has the time it takes to prepare inexpensive food. Not everyone has family that has them over for dinner once a week or so. Not everyone can get free meat because their parents raise a cow every year. Not everyone lives in a low-cost area in general. Not everyone is okay with eating boring food, day in and day out (I eat A LOT of eggs...). And then I remind myself how fortunate I am that my low grocery budget is a choice because I would rather have a big safety net and see my boyfriend and that I don't actually face the possibility of not having money in my bank account to buy food.

And that's it. A judgmental thought dealt with in a (fairly) healthy manner. And I didn't even need to post untrue, mean memes on Facebook!

[utter solitude]

My grocery budget is $100/month, which I guess is pretty low, and I (rightfully) don't qualify for food stamps. If I wanted to, I could afford more, but I chose to aggressively pay off student loans (done, so now I'm aggressively saving!), tithe to my local church, and put aside money for travel (boyfriend lives about five hours away).

There have been moments where I am frustrated and just want to be able to buy groceries without thinking about cost (again, I know it is a choice for me, so that frustration is much easier to deal with). Every once in a while in those moments, I wonder how someone can complain that $150-$200 for food in a month, just for them, is not enough.

Then, because I'm a reasonable person, I remember that everyone's situation is not mine. Not everyone has a car. Not everyone has a SUPER cheap grocery store biking distance from their apartment. Not everyone has the time it takes to prepare inexpensive food. Not everyone has family that has them over for dinner once a week or so. Not everyone can get free meat because their parents raise a cow every year. Not everyone lives in a low-cost area in general. Not everyone is okay with eating boring food, day in and day out (I eat A LOT of eggs...). And then I remind myself how fortunate I am that my low grocery budget is a choice because I would rather have a big safety net and see my boyfriend and that I don't actually face the possibility of not having money in my bank account to buy food.

And that's it. A judgmental thought dealt with in a (fairly) healthy manner. And I didn't even need to post untrue, mean memes on Facebook!

I was prepared to "check" you, so to speak, before you rationalized your own judgement XD

I would kill to have a cheap grocery store nearby, or free cow meat! (so jealous!)

I actually had a "friend" ask me, "what exactly do you spend those foodstamps on that 190 is not enough? Pop and premade microwave dinners?" I think that assumption is pretty rampant and needs to die. I end up spending about $220 a month, usually borrowed money. I don't buy pop, or candy, or microwavable meals. I buy meat, rice, dried beans, fruit and veggies, bread, pasta. Making my own food with ingredients ends up being cheaper than buying premade shit. That might be because it's just me, and not me + several kids, but that's how it works out for me. I make tuna casserole and chicken and rice in batches and eat it over several days. I eat salads and eggs and drink juice. The assumption that I get "tons" of money for food really irks me, and it's something I hear from assholes a lot of the time. Not always about me directly, but often in general. Foodstamps are not meant to cover your entire food budget. They are a supplement. How you choose to spend them is a personal choice, and people hear that monthly number and, underestimating the true cost of good food, assume it's a lot.

Edited because I do know which homophone to use when

[FJismyheadship]

We got about 350 after my daughter was born. They changed it at some point to go down to 225, around the time I renewed it in April. I usually make it last. By the end of the period we are eating eggs, oatmeal, and sandwiches, but by then we are usually going to get more in a couple days.

I do have an issue with buying soda sometimes... I really need to stop that. I also have other issues with money that I am working on... anyway, I try my hardest to make it last through the month. It really is enough to feed me and the baby just fine for the entire month. If I can cut out the soda, I might have extra at the end of the month.

[browncoatslytherin]

i really like this article, although technically it's wic and not food stamps, despite the title, because it goes to show that you don't always know someone's circumstances.

not breaking, cuz it's washington post.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/postevery ... od-stamps/

[nomoxian]

We got about 350 after my daughter was born. They changed it at some point to go down to 225, around the time I renewed it in April. I usually make it last. By the end of the period we are eating eggs, oatmeal, and sandwiches, but by then we are usually going to get more in a couple days.

I do have an issue with buying soda sometimes... I really need to stop that. I also have other issues with money that I am working on... anyway, I try my hardest to make it last through the month. It really is enough to feed me and the baby just fine for the entire month. If I can cut out the soda, I might have extra at the end of the month.

You're allowed to have extra? That's good... with social assistance in Ontario, Canada you can't save much money - like enough to get dental work done - or you get cut off. I heard one worker say "keep money under your mattress" if you need to save up for medical stuff (Many people outside of Canada assume everything is covered, but dental is not covered by the government health plan)

[utter solitude]

You're allowed to have extra? That's good... with social assistance in Ontario, Canada you can't save much money - like enough to get dental work done - or you get cut off. I heard one worker say "keep money under your mattress" if you need to save up for medical stuff (Many people outside of Canada assume everything is covered, but dental is not covered by the government health plan)

I believe headship meant extra foodstamps at the end of the month. In the US, any extra typically rolls over.

I'd heard Canada doesn't cover dental work... wasn't aware that having savings there had that much of a negative impact. They've always looked at my savings and seemed to assume I was using it to pay my rent while unemployed.

[Firiel]

I was prepared to "check" you, so to speak, before you rationalized your own judgement XD

I would kill to have a cheap grocery store nearby, or free cow meat! (so jealous!)

I actually had a "friend" ask me, "what exactly do you spend those foodstamps on that 190 is not enough? Pop and premade microwave dinners?" I think that assumption is pretty rampant and needs to die. I end up spending about $220 a month, usually borrowed money. I don't buy pop, or candy, or microwavable meals. I buy meat, rice, dried beans, fruit and veggies, bread, pasta. Making my own food with ingredients ends up being cheaper than buying premade shit. That might be because it's just me, and not me + several kids, but that's how it works out for me. I make tuna casserole and chicken and rice in batches and eat it over several days. I eat salads and eggs and drink juice. The assumption that I get "tons" of money for food really irks me, and it's something I hear from assholes a lot of the time. Not always about me directly, but often in general. Foodstamps are not meant to cover your entire food budget. They are a supplement. How you choose to spend them is a personal choice, and people hear that monthly number and, underestimating the true cost of good food, assume it's a lot.

Edited because I do know which homophone to use when

Oddly, I haven't taken advantage of free meat in ages because, due to dating a vegetarian, I'm used to going meatless.

But yeah, I bet the folks who are ragging on you for spending "that much" money on food probably aren't tracking what they spend monthly... or if they are, they are only counting what they spend at the grocery store and not what they actually spend on food.

[anniebgood]

I applied last fall when the husband was out of work and we got $15 a month. Try that. Pissed me off so much, and then they cut me off when I missed a question on the questionnaire. By then he was back to work. I was so disgusted with them. :evil-eye:

[micatite]

I actually had a "friend" ask me, "what exactly do you spend those foodstamps on that 190 is not enough? Pop and premade microwave dinners?"

Ugh.

People also tend to forget that not all food-stamp users are the same. In my area we have a lot of 'rent by the month' hotels where whole families can be crowded into one smallish hotel room. Since these aren't apartments, these hotel rooms usually do NOT have kitchens (or kitchenettes) and may not even have a mini-fridge. Maybe they have a microwave and/or a hotplate. They simply don't have any real place to store perishables, or a means to cook the cheaper, more nutritious foods that take time and/or equipment and/or space. That adds a whole extra level of suck to the whole business of poverty and food.

But you hear lots of people whining if they see someone using EBT to purchase a deli rotisserie chicken, never contemplating that it may be the only meat these folks get because someone ELSE was able to cook it in a grocery's kitchen since they have none, and they can parcel it out to feed a whole family.