Argument I just got in re: Food Stamps

• power i

  

  Has anyone seen the show Downsized? I think it's on Oxygen. Anyway, it's about a blended family with 7 kids who were obviously pretty well off in the beginning, then the husband's construction business went under. It's followed them thru their home being foreclosed on, getting on medicaid and food stamps and totally changing their lifestyle. The second season just started and they've gotten off the public assistance. It's taken alot of hard work for them to get to that point, but it shows what I believe the system is actually meant for.
• Scarlet_Buckeye

  

  Skyhook79;873403 wrote:Maybe both Parents had jobs when they had the children and then found themselves unemployed during the 4 year recession like millons of people did??

  That's a different story. That would be okay. But then again, the program is to provide relief, not to sustain the couple on welfare for years to come.
• Skyhook79

  

  Sonofanump;873429 wrote:I don't care if they have a cell phone, it's their choice how they spend their money, just don't ask me to pay for their food if they can afford a luxury item.

  So should people who receive other Gov't aid such as unemployment benefits,Pell Grants etc... that you pay for, not be allowed to have what you deem as a "luxury" item?
• Skyhook79

  

  Scarlet_Buckeye;873432 wrote:I would say no. People who receive Pell Grants should NOT have flatscreen TVs, should not be sporting smartphones, and probably shouldn't be having children either since (a) they are busy with attending school (and likely working too) and (b) they obviously do not have the means to take care of the child.

  
  Then I think you would be very disappointed if you checked out some College Dorm rooms and other College housing units.
• rydawg5

  when someone feels superior to someone because they make less, using arguments like pell grants wont help because college folk are their equals and its not a cold blooded view on them. The slimey scum needs no handoutd.
• Gblock

  power i;873434 wrote:Has anyone seen the show Downsized? I think it's on Oxygen. Anyway, it's about a blended family with 7 kids who were obviously pretty well off in the beginning, then the husband's construction business went under. It's followed them thru their home being foreclosed on, getting on medicaid and food stamps and totally changing their lifestyle. The second season just started and they've gotten off the public assistance. It's taken alot of hard work for them to get to that point, but it shows what I believe the system is actually meant for.

  is oxygen not paying them?
• Sonofanump

  LJ;873431 wrote:Is a home phone a luxury item?

  
  Yes. I am of the belief that poverty does not exist in The United States. No way is it 20% of the population, maybe 3% to 5% live in poverty, I’d bet most of those live in Appalachia. Real poverty exist in Haiti, Guinea, Chad, Zimbabwe and the like and that is where I send my money so children can have something besides mixing dirt with water for lunch.
  
  People asking and people receiving handouts with luxury items in their apartment or even house is appalling when real poverty exist elsewhere, but that is the society that we live in.
• power i

  

  Not during the first season. At one point one of the kids sold his baseball glove so they'd have enough money for the rent. They did say at the beginning of this season that they had paid off all their debt w/ the money from the show and had 18k in the bank. They had made an offer on a house then one of the kids had an asthma attack and was hospitalized for a few days and the insurance didn't cover it. So it's like back to square one.
• LJ

  

  Sonofanump;873451 wrote:Yes. I am of the belief that poverty does not exist in The United States. No way is it 20% of the population, maybe 3% to 5% live in poverty, I’d bet most of those live in Appalachia. Real poverty exist in Haiti, Guinea, Chad, Zimbabwe and the like and that is where I send my money so children can have something besides mixing dirt with water for lunch.
  
  People asking and people receiving handouts with luxury items in their apartment or even house is appalling when real poverty exist elsewhere, but that is the society that we live in.

  Good to know your viewpoint. I have nothing to discuss with you....
• Skyhook79

  

  Sonofanump;873451 wrote:Yes. I am of the belief that poverty does not exist in The United States. No way is it 20% of the population, maybe 3% to 5% live in poverty, I’d bet most of those live in Appalachia. Real poverty exist in Haiti, Guinea, Chad, Zimbabwe and the like and that is where I send my money so children can have something besides mixing dirt with water for lunch.
  
  People asking and people receiving handouts with luxury items in their apartment or even house is appalling when real poverty exist elsewhere, but that is the society that we live in.

  
  Did you ever stop and think that if our Gov't acted like those in Haiti,Guinea,Chad,Zimbabwe and many other places that the USA would have those same kind of poverty levels? Thank God our Gov't doesn't...
• Sonofanump

  LJ;873458 wrote:Good to know your viewpoint. I have nothing to discuss with you....

  Excellent. Sounds like a solid plan.
• QuakerOats

  queencitybuckeye;871348 wrote:Basic economics tells us what you subsidize, you get more of.

  
  
  BINGO. We have 'purchased' 3 trillion dollars worth of 'poverty' since the beginning of the Great Society in the '60's ...... and the welfare state is worse today than ever. That's government for ya.
• Sonofanump

  Skyhook79;873460 wrote:Did you ever stop and think that if our Gov't acted like those in Haiti,Guinea,Chad,Zimbabwe and many other places that the USA would have those same kind of poverty levels? Thank God our Gov't doesn't...

  Agree, dictatorship is the worst like a government. A free state is the best kind. Too bad that the USA is a hybrid of social welfare and free market, we would not be in this financial mess if we have a true free market state.
• bigkahuna

  Sonofanump;873451 wrote:Yes. I am of the belief that poverty does not exist in The United States. No way is it 20% of the population, maybe 3% to 5% live in poverty, I’d bet most of those live in Appalachia. Real poverty exist in Haiti, Guinea, Chad, Zimbabwe and the like and that is where I send my money so children can have something besides mixing dirt with water for lunch.
  
  People asking and people receiving handouts with luxury items in their apartment or even house is appalling when real poverty exist elsewhere, but that is the society that we live in.

  In this country, NO a telephone devise is not considered a luxury item. It is the basic means of communication that we live by. Communication has evolved over time. By your logic, paper and ink was a luxury item in the 1700/1800s because that was the basic form of communication. In the first half of the 20th century, I would agree with you that a phone was a luxury item. Today, when people can email, IM, Skype, text... a basic home phone that dials in and out for local calls only or a track phone bought a wal-mart is not a luxury. Some sort of smart phone with a data plan, ABSOLUTELY.
  
  Also, comparing the U.S. to 3rd world countries is apples to oranges. Look at GB, Canada, Germany... and see what their basic standard of living is. If the majority of them living in poverty DON'T have access to a phone then maybe.
  
  Is running water in the US a luxury?
  What about a furnace or a fireplace even?.... A/C is a luxury item, so let's get that out of the way.
• LJ

  

  bigkahuna;873487 wrote:A/C is a luxury item, so let's get that out of the way.

  Depends on health and where you live. A 70 yr old ex refinery worker with emphazema living in Houston? A/C is definitely a basic need.
• Scarlet_Buckeye

  

  Skyhook79;873442 wrote:Then I think you would be very disappointed if you checked out some College Dorm rooms and other College housing units.

  Oh, I'm well aware of this. And that is why I'm bitching about it here.
• Scarlet_Buckeye

  

  Sonofanump;873451 wrote:Yes. I am of the belief that poverty does not exist in The United States. No way is it 20% of the population, maybe 3% to 5% live in poverty, I’d bet most of those live in Appalachia. Real poverty exist in Haiti, Guinea, Chad, Zimbabwe and the like and that is where I send my money so children can have something besides mixing dirt with water for lunch.
  
  People asking and people receiving handouts with luxury items in their apartment or even house is appalling when real poverty exist elsewhere, but that is the society that we live in.

  Hear, hear.
• Sonofanump

  bigkahuna;873487 wrote:Also, comparing the U.S. to 3rd world countries is apples to oranges.

  Disagree, they (3rd world countries) don't have access to either apples or oranges.
• bigkahuna

  Scarlet_Buckeye;873291 wrote:As a college graduate, I could walk into a McDonalds (without a mobile device) and land a job in a heartbeat.
  
  As a product of a project development, it would probably be more difficult (i.e., landing a job instantly just by walking into a McDonalds and applying for one), but I'm sure if this person spent an entire day walking in-and-out of lower end places, they could find something to get them started (without the need of a mobile device).

  Growing up in a family owned restaurant, I can tell you first hand that the people that spent the entire day walking in and out of every food joint/gas station/grocery store didn't have much success. I remember one guy "I don't have a car or a phone, so can I just walk in tomorrow to see what's going on?" He wasn't hired because he came off as unprofessional/unreliable. Using a neighbor/relative's devise is fine, but that kind of proves the statement that a phone is needed to get a job.
  

  Sonofanump;873414 wrote:Please expand. I am pretty sure you have no grasp on the principles this country was founded on.

  If you need someone to expand, then you failed US History.
• bigkahuna

  Sonofanump;873500 wrote:Disagree, they (3rd world countries) don't have access to either apples or oranges.

  They live in the jungle, bananas then haha.
• bigkahuna

  LJ;873489 wrote:Depends on health and where you live. A 70 yr old ex refinery worker with emphazema living in Houston? A/C is definitely a basic need.

  I'll give you that, but I'm talking generalities here.
• Belly35

  

  I love welfare cheese..
  
  Testing the posting format ... cool I can be more graphic now...
• Sonofanump

  bigkahuna;873502 wrote:If you need someone to expand, then you failed US History.

  
  Not me, It was one my minors, most of my classes where of US concentration.
  
  James Taggart believes that this country was founded on communal social welfare, not individualistic hard work. I was giving him a shovel to see how deep he could bury himself.
• Sonofanump

  bigkahuna;873505 wrote:They live in the jungle, bananas then haha.

  We are humans, I should be able to compare a person from Niger or Chad to someone living in Martins Ferry or Plymouth, why does where we live make the poverty level change. </SPAN>
• sej

  

  Scarlet_Buckeye;873303 wrote:But that's what's wrong with this economy... why are we entering ourselves into contracts that we can't afford?! You're saying it would cost you $400 to cancel your two cell phones. Why would you put yourself into that situation if there's even the chance that you might be forced to cancel and you couldn't afford it?

  I'm drawing unemployment, and I have a smart phone. When I signed the contract, there was little chance I'd lose my job. Now it's still more cost efficient for me to keep the contract than pay the fee to get out of it. Even when the contract is up, I still won't go without a cell phone. We have no land line, and I'm unaware of any neighbors that are home during the day. I'm sure as hell not going to not a phone if an emergency arises.
  
  I have a flat screen TV, too.
  
  I was also a Pell Grant recipient throughout college. I'm just an awful person all around.