Cliff-Diving into Dependency, and Trolling for Democratic Votes
While writing up this month’s column on Oklahoma’s relatively strong economy, I came across many sets of troubling statistics about the growing dependency culture.
It started when I noticed at this USDA table that average monthly enrollment in “SNAP,” which the rest of us still know as food stamps, had risen by almost 13% in the Sooner State during the most recent federal fiscal year after going down the previous two years. I noticed that this increase was much lower than the national average of 19%. Then I remembered seeing a headline telling me that food stamp enrollment had almost reached 40 million as of February. It turns out that this is an increase of 25% over the number enrolled in December 2008, just 13 months earlier.
After further research, I’ve learned that welfare-related “entitlement” program enrollment and spending are up in virtually every major federal program. Eligibility rules are looser. Individual and family benefit amounts provided have shot up. Costs are going through the roof. The menu of available benefits continues to expand.
It would be one thing if we had individuals and families starving in the streets by the millions before this wanton expansion began. But of course we didn’t. Welfare rolls were continuing 12 years of decline until about a year ago. Food stamp enrollment was growing, but in current context not by much. In August 2007, about a year before the floodgates opened, Robert Rector described the status of those deemed as being “in poverty” in the U.S. as follows:
Overall, the typical American defined as poor by the government has a car, air conditioning, a refrigerator, a stove, a clothes washer and dryer, and a microwave. He has two color televisions, cable or satellite TV reception, a VCR or DVD player, and a stereo. He is able to obtain medical care. His home is in good repair and is not overcrowded. By his own report, his family is not hungry, and he had sufficient funds in the past year to meet his family’s essential needs. While this individual’s life is not opulent, it is equally far from the popular images of dire poverty conveyed by the press, liberal activists, and politicians.
What happened?
In the case of food stamps, it has become easier to qualify for them. As I noted in March of last year, a Warren County, Ohio, couple was able to qualify for benefits even though they had $80,000 in the bank, a paid-off $300,000 home, and two fairly up-to-date vehicles (one a Mercedes). Matt Hurley at Weapons of Mass Discussion, the blogger who originally exposed this situation, also “received additional emails … (from people) who provided two other (similar) case stories.”
You can even be a college kid with rich parents and qualify for food stamps, as long as you strike an impoverished pose:
… the USDA has made it easy for them, regardless of their socioeconomic background, to qualify. Many college kids are “poor” on paper even if they’re from well-to-do homes.
And if they live at home with Mom and Dad, they still may qualify — so long as they can show that Mom and Dad prepare only half of their meals.
And how about those benefits? Well, what’s known as the maximum monthly allotment, or the amount you or your family will receive if you have no available income or resources with which to buy food under the program’s rules, went up by 9% and 13.5% in fiscal 2009 and 2010, respectively. If you don’t recall food prices increasing by 23% or so during the past two years, you’re not alone. “Food and beverages” as measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics went up 3.3% during the 12 months that ended in April 2009; the new category “food at home” has not gone up at all in the past twelve months. Until two years ago, benefit levels closely resembled USDA’s estimated budget for what it called its “thrifty meal plan.” Now I guess it’s just too much to expect eligible food stamp recipients to be frugal with taxpayers’ money.
Totally bogus article. Not one single use of the word “Illegal Alien”. You know
the 30 million (not 10 million) Future Democrats that the Democratic Party knows
is the key to its future existence. 30 million permanent members of the underclass
who will reliably vote for the Welfare State for at least the next 5 generations.
To this end they have been given food stamps, cell phones, subsidized housing, and new identities via Drivers Licenses which in turns allows them to vote
But to be fair..this is not a bash against illegal immigration its a bash against
(gasp) Immigration. Because to immigrate into the USA in 2010 rather tnan 1910 is
to be shuttled into a English optional/social serviced/grievance based social strata
from which there is no incentive to escape.
For example since 2000 there have been 23,000,000 wonderful new immigrants to our already over crowded land. 11,000,0000 of these people are now on some form
of welfare. Furthermore these Diversity Enriching additions come from cultures
that are profoundly hostile to whats left of traditional America. You know Mulsim
car bombers, Jamaican Druglords, Mexican DrugSmugglersBeheaders, Salvadoran gangs, Lebanesesubway poisoners, Nigerian airplane bombers, Somali suicide bombers, Red Chinese graduate student spies, and on and on and on.
And now US Cities are Boycotting other US Cities so that (wait for it) the “rights”
of illegal aliens can be protected.
What else is this but National Suicide?..And all so that those administering the poison can stay at the top
of the Third World heap that is the New America.
Right on. I want to congratulate you on a wonderful post and encourage you to speak out whenever possible. We are in need of strong voices.
ehunter:
Thanks for the info on 11 million of 23 million. I’d be interested in a link to that info.
Of course, given the openings documented in the column, it’s quite possible for illegals to get government benefits, and many certainly are. It’s more than a little out of line to assert “totally bogus” when readers can easily infer that getting benefits without documentation or with bogus documentation isn’t very tough.
Beyond that, even if there wasn’t a problem with illegals getting bennies we’d still be in a heap of fiscal trouble.
Sorry Tom..the “totally bogus” comment was wrong on my part. But nothing can contain
my rage at whats being done to my beloved country, nor my disgust at those who are doing it, nor my despair at the brainwashing that we have all submitted to.
For the link see:
http://www.numbersusa.com/content/node/5260
ehunter:
Thanks for that link and the ones that it up. They’re keepers.
I share your frustration, esp with the Wall Street Journal and others who STILL insist for all practical purposes that open borders is fine and dandy, and with church officials who in effect assert that anything short of open borders is anti-Christian. We don’t have a duty in the name of commerce or charity to commit national, financial, or constitutional suicide.
You might notice the current manhunt for Somali Al Queda members that crossed the
Mexican border in February and are now loose inside the USA. 220 Somalis entered Brazil on airplane tickets provided by nice helpful Christian evangelists who have been working over the Somali refugee camps looking for souls to save.From Brazil they took
a bus to the Mexico and our open border. All it takes to impress
these nice chairitable Christian missionarys..is for some muslim to say that he has
found Jesus and do it with a sincere look..perhaps a few tears, and voila that
person is tied into a rescue network. Al Queda heard about this and couldnt
believe how stupid America is. Anyway when the bombs go off here in the USA you
will know who to thank.
I don’t know, seems like they’ve locked down the part of the vote they already had. I doubt those who were going for this were all that much into Republicans to begin with.
I guess what they’re really doing is giving these people an incentive to show up to vote.
But if the Dems want these people to show up, they need to make sure free transport to the polls are somewhere in their planning.
Don’t overlook the ILLEGAL aliens getting those food stamps too. I stood in line behind a 30 something well dressed non-English speaking couple, that yes used food stamps to pay for their NAME BRAND food purchases… me the tax paying chump has to buy generic… can’t afford what the illegals buy with MY money. This made me even madder than the OBESE people I see stocking up with food stamps… excuse me? You got that FAT on food stamps? Some of them could go without food for 6 months without starving… but I’m just mean for thinking that.
Yes, the crash of ’07 was devastating for millions in America, and across the planet. However, it appears the crash has finally stalled a bit, but where is the job growth? There is a long way to go. Meanwhile, people have to eat so for some, food stamps is the only alternative. At least there will be some health care assistance and the congress has finally addressed the financial mess. I do not think you will see any more big changes this year, at least until after the mid-terms. Partisan politics will once again gridlock the government after September. The only agenda/wrestling match between the dems and the party of no will be the supreme court nominee, and that looks a bit of a yawner now. But who knows?
I always look at comments like this & think one of two things: (1) is among the 47% who never pays a dime in federal taxes; (2) is being sarcastic. I’m hoping it’s the second.
I find it remarkable that the GOP is branded as “the party of no” when the Dems did exactly that during the Bush administration and were considered the principled opposition.
On second thought, I guess not so remarkable given the selective memory of the “progressives” and their MSM enablers.
To paraphrase Col. Alan West, they don’t want a safety net, they want a fishing net. This vote buying system is far more advanced in Europe; look where that got them. They subsidized themselves into insolvency. If you go to a lot of the less well off parts of Hamburg, government welfare buildings are the largest and most prominent thing dotting the landscape. The German welfare system officially refers to recipients as “clients” and provides a standard of living most of them could not afford if they chose to work. It’s not surprise that most of them decide not to. Who would really want to work for significantly less money than they receive for doing nothing? When the benefits were lowered slightly, many of them decided to sue based on the fact that their benefits should provide a standard of living equal to that of the German taxpayer.
If anything gives me hope, it is that people have successfully beaten back the welfare state a couple of times. The next time we fight it, we should do more than pruning the hedges.
Wow, great quote. I never heard that one before, but it fits. I might modify it by saying that these days, they don’t just want the fishing net, they want someone else to do the fishing for them with it, too.
I greatly fear that by the time Nov. rolls around, the point of no return will be but a distant memory.
Study the way Wilson’s edicts were reversed after WW1. Political prisoners released, legislation cancelled, pres orders rescinded, appointees dumped, etc. We need to do that and more to reverse a century of Progressive damage.
Poor Citizen, ‘thanks’ for your comment. You brought absolutely nothing to the discussion/ forum. Again..
what do we do about it? do we just let it happen?
Frank, We do what we’ve been doing these last 12 + months. Hold your Reps, Senators and Congress’s feet to the fire. When it turns out they’re not working for the people (you know, the motivated, provide for their family types), 86 ‘em at nominations, elections and such.
Party no longer applies. If they’re an incumbent, self serving turd or believe in the ‘spread YOUR wealth around’ mantra, buh-bye.