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Fast Food Stamps?

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Post by Arx Ferrum Mon Oct 24, 2011 8:20 am

This could fall under either Social or Political. Feeding the hungry is certainly a social subject but it will, invariably, pass through the political digestive system so...

Some of the 40 million Americans currently receiving food stamps from the nation's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program may soon be able to use them at participating fast food restaurants.

Yum! Brands – the parent company of Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC, Long John Silver's and A&W – is lobbying to have food stamps be accepted at their restaurants.
...

"Prepared foods" are generally not accepted under SNAP, according to the USDA's website. However, an option from the 1977 Food Stamp Act allows states to permit restaurants to accept food stamps from people who are homeless, disabled or elderly.

Currently, there are three states that implement this program on a large scale: California, Arizona and Michigan. Florida and Rhode Island currently have pilot programs for accepting food stamps at restaurants.
...

Yum! is currently doing fairly well without the lobbying. According to Yum! Brands' 2011 third quarter earnings release, company sales increased from almost $2.5 billion in September 2010 to $2.85 billion in September 2011.

The number of people receiving food stamp benefits has swelled in recent years. Participation increased from 25 million people in 2005 to 40 million in 2010. The cost has too – in 2005, the program gave less than $30 billion in benefits, and by 2010 it had reached almost $65 billion, according to the USDA.

The number of places accepting food stamps is going up as well. Locations accepting food stamps have increased from 156,000 in 2005 to almost 210,000 in 2010 and include non-conventional places like gas stations and discount stores.
...

For many nutritionists and dieticians, news of Yum!'s lobbying does not sit well. Lori Jones, a dietician and instructor at Saint Louis University's Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, says expanding the food stamps program to fast food restaurants could be detrimental to the nation's health.

"This is not a good move in relation to obesity," she said.

Jones says many low income people have trouble stretching their dollars to buy nutritious foods, especially when many restaurants serve high fat and high calorie food for cheap. She says restaurants also have issues trying to display their menus' nutrition facts available to the public.

"The concern is they don't do a whole lot of advertising or education about their menus' nutritional value," she said.

At Taco Bell, a bean burrito is 390 calories and 3.5 grams of saturated fat. Tack on an order of nachos and a 16 oz Pepsi, and the total calories of the whole meal climbs to 920 and saturated fat stands at 5.5 grams.

At KFC, an order of Original Recipe Breast and Drumstick, mashed potatoes with gravy and a 16 oz Pepsi stacks up to 780 calories and 7.5 grams of saturated fat.

At Pizza Hut, one slice of a 12" medium pan pepperoni pizza is 250 calories and 4.5 grams of saturated fat. If you have a meal of two of these slices, a breadstick and a 16 oz Pepsi, it adds up to 840 calories and 10 grams of saturated fat.


Excerpted from: "Fast food giant lobbies for food stamps"
KSLA.com - 22 October 2011

I have a few thoughts on the matter... and they're a-coming.
Arx Ferrum
Arx Ferrum

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Post by Arx Ferrum Mon Oct 24, 2011 2:36 pm

Damn! I thought yall would be on this like ticks on a yard dog.

Okay, here's my take...

1. Look at the numbers. There is only two possible conclusions that can be reached; we are in a genuine economic depression or there is just a whole lot of work-able folks sucking from the national breast.

2. The fast food lobby genuinely wants to help the starving masses or... they want to hook up to that same breast via food stamps.

In the end, the outcome can only be one of two things...

1. We allow food stamps to be used to purchase precooked foods... meaning some portion of those federal dollars go to those who prepare the meal.

2. We keep this simple and leave it as strictly a grocery store affair where the genuinely hungry can buy food and prepare it themselves, thus saving them and the rest of us some money in this whatever-economy.

This is a good example of special interest buying laws that profit them but not so much the taxpayers who elected the ones who write them.

Okay guys...

TESTING: 1- 2 - 3

Hello?
Is there anybody in there?
Just nod if you can hear me
Is there anyone at home?
Arx Ferrum
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Post by TexasBlue Mon Oct 24, 2011 2:38 pm

My thoughts? Fast food to make you fat and I'm helping to pay for it. Then after these people get fat, they'll sue the fast food joints for making them fat. Then some activist judge will side with them, pouring more taxpayer money into the social web.

Translation? It's all bullshit.
TexasBlue
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Post by TexasBlue Mon Oct 24, 2011 2:39 pm

Arx Ferrum wrote:Damn! I thought yall would be on this like ticks on a yard dog.

Just got home from work. Big Grin
TexasBlue
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Post by TexasBlue Mon Oct 24, 2011 2:43 pm

Arx Ferrum wrote:1. Look at the numbers. There is only two possible conclusions that can be reached; we are in a genuine economic depression or there is just a whole lot of work-able folks sucking from the national breast.

Both. Genuine economic depression and lots of able bodied people sucking away at the teat. But most can't find work then those that can.


Arx Ferrum wrote:2. The fast food lobby genuinely wants to help the starving masses or... they want to hook up to that same breast via food stamps.

The latter... gov't dollars for the food lobby. A never ending teat.


Arx Ferrum wrote:In the end, the outcome can only be one of two things...

1. We allow food stamps to be used to purchase precooked foods... meaning some portion of those federal dollars go to those who prepare the meal.

2. We keep this simple and leave it as strictly a grocery store affair where the genuinely hungry can buy food and prepare it themselves, thus saving them and the rest of us some money in this whatever-economy.

This is the route to go down, not number one.


Arx Ferrum wrote:This is a good example of special interest buying laws that profit them but not so much the taxpayers who elected the ones who write them.

Crony capitalism. As blatant as it gets.
TexasBlue
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Post by Arx Ferrum Mon Oct 24, 2011 4:40 pm

Like I've said before, abusive (crony) capitalism is a two way street and the only way to fix it is to close the avenue to both directions. Representative government should answer to the electorate first, if not entirely. The free market should respond to the consumer, not the government. In this way, there is a healthy cycle where the people don't lose control of their government, the market doesn't take control of government and government doesn't play to the highest bidder.

On the issue of food stamps?

I don't have a problem helping those in genuine need. Life isn't fair or balanced. Sometimes good people get crushed under the weight of rush-hour traffic. But as it stands right now... and considering the potential for further abuse, I'd suggest restructuring the entire food stamp program to be handled almost entirely by the states... with public, not government oversight.







Arx Ferrum
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Post by TexasBlue Mon Oct 24, 2011 5:48 pm

Representative government should answer to the electorate first and foremost. Not even party line.

I'm with ya on food stamps. I don't object to them at all. I object to many being on them that shouldn't be on them. Then we have the illegals who try (and sometimes do) exploit it. I read it weekly here about Jose being arrested by the county for illegally trying to "obtain" assistance.
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Post by dblboggie Mon Oct 24, 2011 10:30 pm

Sorry I'm late to this dance.

I'll make this short... the inclusion of cooked foods ala fast food, blatant crony capitalism. Kill it now!

I like Mike's suggestion, restructure the program to be handled by the states under public not government oversight (though even non-politicians have political viewpoints and agendas, so you'll want to ensure a left-right balance there and make sure they actually pay taxes on both sides).

Finally, I KNOW without a doubt that there are people exploiting the food stamp program, I actually qualify for food stamps, and yet I'm not starving - not by a long shot. The program is being abused on a massive scale, there is just no question about it.
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