My response? Big fucking deal. The amount he and his wife are living on is ridiculous, too. $65 for the week, which adds up to $260 a month. That's about the maximum two adults can receive.
If he wants to impress us, let's see him live for a month on $100 for he and wifey. He and other law makers too. Hmm, I may be onto something here. It would certainly be a wake-up call to require all of our legislatures to live for a month on $100 dedicated for food. Actually I'd take it one step further and have him work one of the myriad of low wage jobs (which I now define as any job that has not kept up with the cost of living) then move into a run down rental, thin walls, drafty. Maybe throw in some loud neighbors. Do that for a month, then I will be impressed.
Speaking of food stamps and hunger, I have been attempting to reach the director of the Linn Benton Food Bank at Community Services Consortium for over 6 weeks now. I've e-mailed him three times in those 6 weeks, expressing my concerns over the food bank situation here in Corvallis. I never even received an acknowledgment from the guy. Flake. The last time I e-mailed him I said I was feeling dismissed and said he had 24 hours to respond or I would be contacting the Executive Director, which is just what I did this morning. This is a community agency and this is how they treat local citizens within that community who have concerns? Not impressed. Oh, there are some good folks down there for sure, but I have dealt with a couple of real, um how do I say this, losers? Certainly people who don't give a shit about those in need in this community, and at the very least, haven't a clue as to what it's like living in poverty. I remember one woman we spoke with a few years ago when we were in need of rental assistance. At the time my spouse and I were looking for work and were clients of Voc. Rehab (another agency with some questionable emloyees). As I've stated, our families are utterly lacking when it comes to providing us support, love, etc. etc. So we were pretty much on our own, making a hellish situation all the more hellish. Anyway, this woman was rambling on about how we would both be required to eventually find full time work and was questioning why we were having such difficulty in doing so. My spouse and I then found ourselves justifying our lives to this woman. We had shared our situation so many times with local community agencies, we had grown tired of it, so we got a bit emotional. Well, rather than find compassion within that cold, prissy heart of hers, she pursed her lips and said in this very snooty voice, "well perhaps this program wouldn't work for you. You do need to remain calm when working with us." Calm? Who in the hell can be calm when you have been facing homelessness month after month plus dealing with health issues that certainly were being made worse due to living in poverty? I wish I had said something to her along those lines, but instead we apologized for our tears.
Before we left she said 'we have an excellent program here to help you find work." We just snorted. Each of us had used their "excellent" program. All they did for me was give me a list of websites to visit (websites I was already visiting) and proofed my resume. When I asked if there was anything else they offered I was told they would be contacting me. No phone call ever came. Being I had had to call in over half a dozen times just to connect with someone and make an appointment, I let that one go. My spouse had pretty much the same experience.
Anyway, back to my concerns I've had about the local food banks. In a nutshell, the food sucks. It's unhealthy, overprocessed and I cannot tell you how many items I end up throwing away when I get home because they are expired. And I'm talking about salad dressings, soy milk, yogurt and mayonnaise. Essentially what our "charitable" grocery stores are doing is giving away food items they can no longer sell, instead giving it to the poor. That's right, the poor will take anything, right? Well that practice the food banks and grocers are participating in is only serving to perpuate that falsehood. One of my myriad of business ideas is to form a non-profit that addresses this issue. The need is there. People, irregardless of their income, are worthy of fresh, healthy, abundant food. Period. End of story.
My other issue is the amount of food. Mr. Nina and I used to live in South Corvallis and as such, visited the Tunison Food Bank. After moving to the northern section of town, we noticed the food bank that serves our area gives out a lot less food. Seeing the food shelves pretty barren is becoming more frequent.
I realize our federal government has been channeling (stealing) OUR money into this god damn war, into the war on drugs and into the pockets of corporations and others who DO NOT NEED ANY FURTHER CASH. As such, social services programs are suffering greatly. People scream that our government needs to stop the practice. I completely agree. However, I'm pretty tired of waiting for our government to cough up a conscious and do what is right for the people. Therefore, I think it is time for the community of Corvallis to begin its own "Redistribute the Wealth Program". There is a lot of money in this city. A lot of wealth. Enough so that maybe we can build a model community right here--a community where everyone has his/her basic needs met--safe, sound, affordable housing, fresh food, clothing. So let's begin by asking those who have the most cash to give: the wealthier, private citizen; the profit-making bigger business--will you step up to the plate and help? This woman is tired of hearing all of this talk from people in this community about progressive leadership, progressive politics. Progressive means forward thinking, not doing things the same. Take a look around our streets, our neighborhoods. There is a real poverty problem in this community that is only growing and why? Because the system keeps spinning the same model, day in and day out. So let's truly be progressive and talk about REAL ways to end this very fixable problem.
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3 comments:
nina, you gotta come to the forum tomorrow. well, I understand if you don't come tomorrow (its supposed to rain) but we really need your input. I think its a brilliant idea to ask the wealthiest in corvallis to pony up.
revolution is a tricky word. you don't want to make yourself a target of government surveillance but you want to see change and that now. This country used to be a place where you could speak freely without fear of reprisal from the government. (Well, at least here we're trying to preserve that.) I'm assuming you mean a non-violent revolution. We need to organize.
"People, irregardless of their income, are worthy of fresh, healthy, abundant food. Period."
I know you're talking about the food bank, but I would add to this:
dignified, secure shelter,
clean air and water
education
opportunity
and RESPECT. A seat at the table to discuss what the hell is going on and what we want our society to be.
Of course there is more, (let me know what you think) but suffice it to say that it starts with recognizing that we live in a society and unless we want chaos, we have to create a system that works for everyone.
you are so right tim--unless we want chaos, we have to create a society that works for EVERY person. what an excellent thought!
i know i need to check out the forum--thank you for asking me to stop by. i'm gun shy (social anxiety) with a lot of passion. i'm working on myself to get up some courage, but i also know action is sometimes the best way to get that courage. i've spoken in public before about something i'm passionate about and had to have the mic practically taken from my hand. if i feel comfortable and have an audience (even if it's just one person), i'll go on and on and on......
i do support revolution--in a peaceful manner. organized. changing people's minds by reaching their hearts. that is how change, lasting change, will occur. at least that is my belief today.
the world health organization (i think) created an international bill of human rights in the 1960's i believe. they're beautiful but were never embraced by government leaders (shock shock). i started a blog on this very thing a few months ago and only made the one post. we need a new bill of rights, a bill of human rights. we can create one right here with our local government. the ideas are along the lines of what you have mentioned: clean drinking water, safe, secure housing, healthy, abundant food, heating, running water/sanitation, clothing...those basic needs we all need in order to survive physically, those needs that if not met adaquately lead to a host of social problems. all such needs are guaranteed irregardless of income.
poverty can be eliminated. i'm sick and tired of wealthy, famous types who talk about this issue, attend gala events and drive off in their chauffered limos back to one of their myriad of mansions. i'm sick and tired of politicians who give it lip service during campaign time and who are so out of touch with this problem, their ideas are nothing more than words on paper, lacking in real substance. you want to put together real ideas to end poverty? TALK TO THOSE WHO ARE LIVING IT. ask them what they need.
one thing i'm concerned about though is the amount of resources in relation to how many people there are. i am not confident we can provide the basic needs as i mentioned above for every one of us. i don't know if the planet can sustain it. i took a quiz online a few months ago and despite my spouse and i, our meager existance, we would need 1.4 planets to sustain our way of life if all were to live as us. kind of a shocking result that has stayed with me ever since.
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