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I am enjoying the banter here because so many frequent posters on this forum think I am extremely liberal.
I do know that many mothers and children live in motel rooms and eat a lot of cereal. Some acquire crock pots and other electric appliances to cook meals. And some do not.
If I found myself living in a motel room I am not going to blow my money dining out, entertaining or pampering myself. I am likely going to hoard my money and benefits for the repairs my car will need, sooner or later so I can get to my crappy part time job or run my kids to the doctor because they have pink eye or something.
I am going to be humbled and grateful for the temporary hand and do whatever is necessary to take back control of my life and get out of the hell hole. In other words, I would decline the opportunity to be a victim.
Hoard WHAT money? Did you even read the example I gave you? The post where I explained that $383 doesn't even pay for a motel room for a month? These women have a very difficult life, at least the ones I met were not drunks or drug addicts they were just stuck in a really bad situation and one that is very hard to claw your way out of. Unless a recipient is lucky enough to be able to live with friends or family there is no way that they can make ends meet, let alone go on cruise ships. As far as moving to another state, how do you move without money?
If I found myself living in a motel room I am not going to blow my money dining out.....
If you are living in a motel room, you certainly are going to be eating out because offhand, I can't think of any motels that let you cook in your room.
For anyone that's interested, the city of Bremerton just opened its Section 8 list again after a couple of years of being closed. It originally closed because I believe there was a 7 year waiting list. This time, you could only apply within a 3 day window. Over 3000 people applied. There was a lottery drawn for 300 to benefit. Once those people are housed, another lottery for the next 300 will begin.
Are you people sure you have seen TANF and SNAP recipients drawing cash off their card? I have my state disability on my card, right along with my food stamps. On the first of the month, when disability goes on, I buy something small from the store, like toilet paper or paper towles, and then draw off $100 in cash. I use this cash to purchase MOs. If you have never gotten a MO outside your bank before, rest assured, you can only buy them with cash. I use the MOs to pay my computer bill and my rent. I rent a room in subsidized housing and my rent is due the 1st. MOs only. No cash, no checks.
Going back to SNAP, I shop for my groceries and try to buy in bulk. For this I need to buy things like freezer bags, so I can cut up and store meat. Do I need to tell anyone here that the low price you see in newspaper ads is for meat that is sold in bulk and that if you buy only a pound or so, you'll pay a higher price? At any rate, what you will see is me standing there with my EBT card in hand and a clerk who rings up my purchases. The amount may be $50 for the food and $3 for the freezer bags. The food comes off the SNAP portion of my EBT card and I then swipe my card a second time to pay for the freezer bags with the cash portion of the EBT cards. At that point, I can take out cash on the cash portion. I'm sure there are many people who see only the card and me getting the cash and think I'm taking cash out from my food stamps. Nothing could be further from the truth.
It's the carbonation in the drinks that help the most, plus the 7-Up and ginger ale settle my stomach when I do toss my cookies. And don't tell me about the carbonated or flavored water - been there, done that. Not only are they nasty tasting, but they're more expensive as well. I hate what this sugar is doing to me and how I feel and I can't wait to not have to buy them anymore. Only 3 months and 2 1/2 weeks to go.
Maybe it's their ONLY meal of the day.
I do sort of find it funny about how all these poor people on welfare should do what normal people are supposed to do, work and pay bills, etc. but are held to a much higher standard than those not on welfare, same as when you're homeless. No alcohol, no cigs, no treats, no soda, no fun,.........well, as we all know already, when you are the part of society that isn't poor, you can do anything your little heart desires and get away with it. I wonder how many people on here putting down all the poor people smoke and stick the rest of us with their health care problems.
I hate smoking and rarely drink. Nope, if you can't afford it you don't buy. I've been broke and I didn't buy treats, I bought real food. Why should they be allowed to if those not on welfare can't?
Buying a pair of shoes for yourself is NOT what TANF is for.
Buying yourself something at the all you can eat buffet is NOT what TANF is for.
Buying yourself something on a cruise ship is NOT what TANF is for.
ETC.
If you are so poor that you need taxpayer money to help you feed yourself, if you need money to care for your child, then no, you do NOT get to have these "nice meals" and "brand new shoes" and "tattoos" and whatever other excuse people come up with.
Plenty of people in this country work their tails off, support themselves, and know that you don't always get what you want. I work hard, but I can't get everything I want, and a welfare recipient doesn't have money to get everything they want...so what's the difference? With some of the attitudes expressed here, that means that I "deserve" a nice new car, nice new clothes, nice new place to live, nice cruise, and an evening out once in awhile. So feel free to start writing those checks. Better yet, send it to my PayPal, it's quicker.
Yeah the entitlement is astounding. If one is on welfare they don't deserve luxuries.
I know that the allegation about using debit cards in Casinos isn't always what it looks like. When I lived in Reno the Casinos would have food specials, sometimes buy one meal get one free, or serious discounts on lunch buffets. If you went and ate there and used a debit card it would show up as a casino transaction but getting a nice meal for a few dollars was actually a very rational choice for a TANF family
So families with underage children are allowed into casinos?
Anyone on public assistance has no business spending taxpayer dollars on prepared meals. Taxpayer dollars should be spent on groceries, and the meal should be prepared by the consumer, so that the taxpayer doesn't have to pay the labor cost and markup.
So families with underage children are allowed into casinos?
Anyone on public assistance has no business spending taxpayer dollars on prepared meals. Taxpayer dollars should be spent on groceries, and the meal should be prepared by the consumer, so that the taxpayer doesn't have to pay the labor cost and markup.
I've never been to Nevada but from my understanding, yes kids can be in certain areas (restaurant), just not in the gambling areas. Having said that...yes, preparing and eating at home is the smart thing for anyone on a budget, whether on TANF or not. But it's not like a family on public assistance gets a do over if they go over budget by eating out. It might annoy people like you and I, but it doesn't cost us more. If they spend it foolishly (stories of steak and lobster), they are screwed. We are no more screwed than if they ate PB&Js for the entire month.
some of the Casino's have deals where you can eat enough to sustain yourself all day for $5 or so. Do you realize that a good number of TANF recipients live in weekly hotels where there are no cooking facilities other than a mini fridge and a microwave?
I just don't get the attitude- it's YOUR money so you have decided that if it's not in the Bill of Rights then a TANF recipient isn't entitled to it? wow...
The underlying rationale is this: it's not their money, thus, they are obligated to spend it as prudently as possible so as to minimize the burden on the people upon whom they depend for support.
Maybe they are only buying coffee in the morning. Maybe they don't have a place at work to store their lunch. Maybe they normally bring their lunch but once in awhile they don't bring lunch. Maybe they DID bring their lunch but they are still hungry and want to buy a banana from the cafeteria to go with their lunch? Maybe they get a very inexpensive lunch because they get an employee discount and buying the lunch at the cafeteria is cheaper than bringing their lunch from home?
Maybe those are just excuses for them to spend more than is necessary for them to survive.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sware2cod
Are we now going to tell them they cannot buy a coffee at work or can't get a bagel for a snack at work? Only allowed to bring food and drink from home?
Yes, we are.
If they can't afford to feed their families on their own income, then they can't afford to buy extras.
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