Looking Into $57 Worth Of Food Stamps

I came across an interesting factoid the other day. I forget what I was looking at, but whatever it was mentioned that over 43 million Americans currently receive food stamps. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for folks not going hungry and all. But I was struck by that number. That's just less than 1 in 6 folks in this country. Let that sink in for a moment. Now, I've never to my knowledge witnessed anyone using food stamps at the Food Slug near my "home." Or anywhere else for that matter. But I think maybe I have and didn't even realize it. What I did to find this out was a little web surfing. I googled food stamps and what came up was some some startling information. The federal government has a site where you can use some progam to figure out if you're eligible for food stamps (I'll get to that in a second). This site also notes that the food stamps aren't actually stamps at all - which is confusing and dare I say false advertising. Instead of little stamps what you get is a debit card type thing that is funded monthly through this handout program (and yes, I am using handout in a pejorative way in this case). When I saw that piece of info it dawned on me that I could have observed hundreds of folks using "food stamps" at the Food Slug over the years and just assumed they were using their bank debit card (or credit card as the case may be -although the thought of purchasing food with a credit card is really depressing...). Being as though I was on the site where the food stamp eligibility program was, I went ahead and truthfully answered the questions they ask potential recipients. Lots of stuff about income, rent cost, car value, number of kids around, utilities, etc. The whole thing took about 7 minutes to complete. I was astonished, to say the least, when this computer program, again available on a government controlled website, informed me that I was indeed eligible for $57 a month in food stamp assistance. I may go ahead and take the government up on this offer - hell $57 is a carton and 2 extra packs of smokes for one thing. And wouldn't it be ironic if Barry and his liberal friends subsidized (at least to a degree) some of the very unhealthiest behavior for one of his meanest and most sarcastic critics? I'm tempted to sign up for this food stamp program. But I don't think I will. I'm sure it involves going somewhere and speaking to a government worker for a few minutes. And having some experience in the government worker field, I'll pass. I'm sure I'd be suicidal in seconds.

Lots of labor news, not out of the NFL, but out of the state of Wisconsin. It seems like the governor there in Badgerland has had the gall to ask state unionized employees to put more of their salaries into health care costs and funding their pensions. What a concept! And these commie state union workers not only balked at being treated like all their fellow Wisconsinites who happen to work for private companies, they actually started good old fashioned rallies and sit-ins and whatever other pitiful means from the 60's they could think of to protest. I find the whole thing laughable. These unionized state workers have had it so good for so long, that they came to feel entitled to unlimited freebies at taxpayer expense. And finally, some reasonable folks are running the Cheese state. People who realized that this freebie practice can't go on any longer. What they should do, not only in Wisconsin but every other state, is start letting go all the massive amount of dead weight that occupies needless government positions (most likely the fetal...). I know very little, but I can tell you in detail about state workers. In fact I blogged about it last year in January (go back and read it). And let me just say, if the taxpayers of whatever state had 10% of a clue what really goes on in state government, they would be so pissed off that they'd start demanding massive layoffs. These state workers have had it too good for too long. They had a good run. It's over. They should get used to living like the rest of the country.

I paid no attention to the big silly Oscar deal last night. I figured they'd give all the awards to that movie about that fake, stuttering monarch - and I was right. It's a film I have less interest in seeing than Avatar - which means you'll have to kill me before propping me up in front of a screening. The reason I won't see it is that it is grossly historically false, which is okay except that the folks behind the film presented the whole thing as an uplifting bit of real history. My man Chritsopher Hitchens has eviscerated the film in Vanity Fair (go to the VF website {not the panty VF website, the magazine VF website}) and check out Hitchen's commentary on this stuttering farce; it's enlightening. As far as the nominees last night, I did notice where David O Russell was up for best director. I can't speak about The Fighter, as I haven't seen it yet. But I will say that 3 Kings is one of my favorite movies - Clooney and Spike Jonze are genius. And if you haven't seen Spanking The Monkey (Russell's 1st film), I urge you to. You won't be disappointed. And Flirting With Disaster is also really good - it features that woman who was married to that sex addict from the X-Files. And she's always worth checking out...

I was out at Sloopy Seconds again last Friday. This time I didn't last half an hour in the joint. There was a dude sitting in the corner of the bar. He was 30ish, chubby, buzz-type haircut, and sporting ill-fitting tan slacks. Not a big deal you say. These guys are a dime a dozen you say. Well, generally yes. But this particular dude started rambling on about how his wife will not pleasure him orally. I told him that bit of news may not be the best bar chatter in the world. However, he didn't care what I thought. He said at one point that he was considering going to a hooker to get his oral pleasure craving satisfied. I was trying to drink up to get the hell out of the Sloppy Seconds, but before I could get away, this chubby dude (he resembled Frank Caliendo a bit) asked me if I knew any hookers who could help him with his little problem. I said, "The only hookers I know are TJ and John Lee." Alas, the chubby, tan slack wearing guy didn't laugh...

Some of you may be expecting a breakdown of the Devils' debacle in Gobbler country Saturday night. All I'll say is I laughed and laughed...

----->