Food Stamp Usage Falls to 37 Million for First Time Since October 2009

1) I pointed out the continuing trend before and after Trump to show lack of correlation, not to credit Obama.

2) We all know that right wingers think that people going on unemployment and food stamps after the great recession was because they were too lazy to work. We also all know that the GOP wanted to cut unemployment benefits for those people at the worst times, in 2011 and 2014, for exactly that reason. Without Obama, they may have succeeded in doing it, hurting many future Trump voters in the process.

 

Your post actually supports my post, rather than refuting it. It was the Republicans who wanted to reduce the out-of-control food stamps program, and the Democrats (and Obama) who fought it, so that instead of reducing food stamps by $40 billion Republicans were only able to reduce food stamps by $9 billion.

 

Then I stand corrected on your motivation for pointing out the timing of the trend.

And I wouldn't assume your gross generalizations are a sufficient substitute for facts.

It was very clear a significant number of people took advantage of the generous unemployment and other assistance programs made available at the beginning of the recession.

Articles like this one were the norm:

https://angrywoodchucksblog.com/2010/08/28/five-reasons-to-stay-on-unemployment/

 

Every bleeding heart free sh*t supporter on this board should read that. Anyone who isn't angered at how broken our system is is either mentally retarded, a genuine government parasite, or both.

 

angrywoodchucksblog? Really?

I guess after the great recession, people were just imagining that they had to send out 100 applications to just get an interview. Or that the number of applications per job opening had more than quadrupled:



It must have been that millions of people all of a sudden became very lazy and decided to live off government benefits.

Give me a break.

BTW: You talk about gross generalizations, but I never see YOU post any numbers or facts.

 

There should be a cap at 10 million people. If you apply and you are 10,000,001, tuff titty, you get nothing.

 

Or, what the hell, I've got months to go before I need to get a job so...….

When Clinton signed Welfare Reform back in the 90's, with it's work requirements, it's amazing how many people were able to get jobs.

People learn to dial back life and live within the limitations of poverty welfare, food stamps, etc., provide. What's the incentive to do anything different.

I think public assistance absolutely has it's place. A safety net is important.

But creating a way of life? That's BS.

 

People in 2008 and 09, many of them Republicans, took unemployment because they lost jobs and couldn't find new ones, not because there was no incentive to work. It's hard to find a job when all of a sudden there are 5 million more job seekers, like it was in 2008-09, while the number of open jobs declined by 2 million. What's so hard to understand?

I realize that there always needs to be a scapegoat. It is easy to blame the unemployed, when the REAL reason was reckless supply side and monetary policies under GWB.

 

the cost benefit doesn't look that great for our economy: http://www.usdebtclock.org/

 

did you not really notice the Recession?

 

I wouldn't disagree but that doesn't change who is responsible, as each player in the equation is responsible for their actions with those actually doing the inflating and predatory lending which directly caused the crash bearing, by far, the most responsibility.

 

I've made no political distinction regarding people on food stamps or welfare.

I've stated I believe in a social safety net. I don't believe people should be able to turn it into a lifestyle.

As to your finger pointing, thanks for sharing your opinion.

 

Obama was the worst when it came to keeping our nation on food stamps. Terrible.

 

What would possibly have you think I didn't?

 

Very true. He was our first food stamp President.

 

a Recession would drive up social services usage.

 

Of course it would.

The Recession ended in 2010. The peak usage was in 2013.

 

a lagging indicator?

 

Perhaps to some extent. But States started to pull the plug and put work requirements on these programs, which forced the long term off their couches and back into the workforce.

 

why blame the Poor? a fifteen dollar an hour minimum wage would be better and more capitalistic not socialistic.

 

Where have I blamed the poor?

Artificial wage requirements harm the economy, limit job opportunities for first time job seekers, and remove the stimulus to improve one's skills and value in the work force.

 

what do you mean by artificial? Government fixes Standards within which capitalism "floats".

besides, it is a cost of living adjustment so Labor can afford our first world economy.

 

When you used $15 as the wage level, I assumed you were referencing the artificial minimum wage that many States have foolishly adopted.

I'm not sure why advocates of this speciously labeled "living wage", have no compassion for first time employees, especially the youngest of them.

 

a simple cost of living adjustment, that is all.

 

Raising the minimum wage to $15 is not a simple cost of living adjustment.