Today's New York Times has a depressing but important story about the growth in food stamp usage in our country. If you look at the map of the level of food stamp usage across the country, one thing should jump out at you immediately: Food stamp usage is much higher in conservative red states (which I define by those states that went for McCain in 2008). That's right, those states that are ground zero for all the "keep government out of my life" teabaggers and their ilk, that are a hotbed for residents who call Obama a socialist, decry lazy "welfare queens" and call for seceding from the U.S. government, are the biggest users of the federal government's food stamp program. In fact, all 100 of the top 100 counties for food stamp usage are in red states. That's 100% folks. Still, you find wingnuts in the article decrying food stamps.
Yep, here are the counties that lead the country in the percentage of their population that use food stamps, which you'll note are led by Sarah Palin's own Alaska:
- Wade Hampton, Alaska 49%
- Owsley, Kentucky 49%
- Shannon, South Dakota 49%
- Pemiscot, Missouri 47%
- Todd, South Dakota 46%
- Sioux, North Dakota 45%
- Dunklin, Missouri 44%
- East Carroll, Louisiana 43%
- Humphreys, Mississippi 43%
- Wolfe, Kentucky 42%
- Perry, Alabama 41%
- Phillips, Arkansas 39%
- Rolette, North Dakota 39%
- Ripley, Missouri 39%
- Ziebach, South Dakota 39%
- Mississippi, Missouri 38%
- Sharkey, Mississippi 38%
- Wilcox, Alabama 38%
- Zavala, Texas 37%
- New Madrid, Missouri 37%
- Lee, Kentucky 37%
- Clay, Kentucky 37%
- Holmes, Mississippi 37%
- McCreary, Kentucky 37%
- Hancock, Tennessee 37%
- Magoffin, Kentucky 37%
- Noxubee, Mississippi 37%
- Quitman, Mississippi 37%
Red state Missouri leads the nation in the percentage of its residents eligible for food stamps who enroll in the program - 98% - while blue state California has the lowest percentage - just half.
Despite all these stark facts, in the article you still have conservative wingnuts decrying the food stamp program:
"Some people like to camouflage this by calling it a nutrition program, but it’s really not different from cash welfare," said Robert Rector of the Heritage Foundation, whose views have a following among conservatives on Capitol Hill. "Food stamps is quasi money."
Arguing that aid discourages work and marriage, Mr. Rector said food stamps should contain work requirements as strict as those placed on cash assistance. "The food stamp program is a fossil that repeats all the errors of the war on poverty," he said.
The article offers a few glimpses of how red-state, anti-government types can somehow rationalize their use of food stamps: they're different from most food stamp users. Unlike all those lazy folks that abuse food stamps, they use them the right way. That's the view of food-stamp recipient Greg Dawson, a third-generation electrician in rural Martinsville in Clinton County, Ohio, which went for John McCain in 2008 64%-34%.
(Dawson) works the night shift for a contracting firm, installing freezer lights in a chain of grocery stores. But when his overtime income vanished and his expenses went up, Mr. Dawson started skimping on meals to feed his wife and five children.
He tried to fill up on cereal and eggs. He ate a lot of Spam. Then he went to work with a grumbling stomach to shine lights on food he could not afford. When an outreach worker appeared at his son’s Head Start program, Mr. Dawson gave in.
So you'd think this experience would give Mr. Dawson a new appreciation of how government can actually help its citizens, especially in a time of great need. Instead, Dawson distinguishes himself from all those other food stamp users:
Dawson argues that people often abuse the program and is quick to say he is different. While some people "choose not to get married, just so they can apply for benefits," he is a married, churchgoing man who works and owns his home. While "some people put piles of steaks in their carts," he will not use the government’s money for luxuries like coffee or soda. "To me, that’s just morally wrong," he said.
He has noticed crowds of midnight shoppers once a month when benefits get renewed. While policy analysts, spotting similar crowds nationwide, have called them a sign of increased hunger, he sees idleness. "Generally, if you’re up at that hour and not working, what are you into?" he said.
I'll end my diary not by continuing to point out the hypocrisy of the wingnuts' anti-government rants, but to point out a story in the Times article about one couple receiving food stamps that will break your heart: Franny and Shawn Wardlow. They both lost their jobs and saw their middle-class life start slipping away. Franny's symbol for what they have lost: pot roast.
"I was raised on eating pot roast," she said. "Just a nice decent meal."
Mr. Wardlow, 32, is a strapping man with a friendly air. He talked his way into a job at an envelope factory although his boss said he was overqualified. But it pays less than what he made muscling a jackhammer, and with Ms. Wardlow still jobless, they are two months behind on the rent. A monthly food stamp benefit of $429 fills the shelves and puts an occasional roast on the Sunday table.
It reminds Ms. Wardlow of what she has lost, and what she hopes to regain.
"I would consider us middle class at one time," she said. "I like to have a nice decent meal for dinner.
I know that Thanksgiving is over, but I'm giving thanks today that in our household we're still able to put a decent meal on the table whenever we want. And I'm thankful that people less fortunate than I am are able to use food stamps to keep from going hungry - even in the red states.
UPDATE:
Several commenters have pointed out, and rightly so, that I was too blunt in my analysis. If you delve deeper into the top 15 counties on my list above, for example, you'll find that just 4 are "red" counties that voted for McCain (by big margins), and those are 4 of the 5 counties among the 15 where the population is predominantly white. Six of the remaining counties are wholly are mostly contained within Indian Reservations, and the other four have large African American populations, and these counties all went for Obama by big margins:
Wade Hampton County, Alaska: Went for Obama/92% Native American
Owsley, Kentucky: Went for McCain, 76%-23%/99% white
Shannon County, South Dakota: Went for Obama, 89%-10%/94% Native American
Pemiscot County, Missouri: Went for McCain, 56%-43%/72% white
Tood County, South Dakota: Went for Obama, 78%-20%/86% Native American
Sioux County, North Dakota: Went for Obama, 83%-16%/85% Native American
Dunklin County, Missouri: Went for McCain, 60%-39%/89% white
East Carroll Parish, Louisiana: Went for Obama, 68%-35%/68% African American
Humphreys County, Mississippi: Went for Obama, 71%-29%/72% African American
Wolfe County, Kentucky: Went for Obama, 50%-48%/99% white
Perry County, Alabama: Went for Obama, 73%-27%/68% African American
Phillips County, Arkansas: Went for Obama, 64%-35%/59% African American
Rolette County, North Dakota: Went for Obama, 75%-23%/73% Native American
Ripley County, Missouri Went for McCain, 64%-33%/97% white
Ziebach County, South Dakota: Went for Obama, 62%-35%/72% Native American
So, I apologize for not providing a more refined analysis from the get-go. There are clearly many important points to take away from the food stamp usage numbers highlighted in the Time article. One message, which I highlight in my diary and which still stands, I think, is that there are many areas of the country where people vote overwhelmingly for Republicans and support their anti-government message, yet are among the biggest users of governmen assistance. But there are other important points to highlight as well, such as the appalling poverty in which so many of our residents live, particularly among the Native American population.