some political statistics that have nothing to do with tomorrow's poll numbers
Because I grew up in a politically liberal town, and because I do a poor job of socializing with people unlike myself, I have been saved the awful Facebook badgering that my friends have been complaining about in the run-up to this presidential election. I have not been confronted with any distorted pictures of the president with ugly font lettering superimposed calling him a socialist or some other term I might find flattering. I have been spared. Mostly Facebook has provided me with a steady stream of baby pictures or news that the remainder classmates are finally getting married. So it was with a naive level of shock that I read the following awful thing yesterday:
At Market Basket....and if one more white trash pos hipchecks me 1 more time theres gonna be an Issue! Also if you insist on using my tax dollars on your Snap card don't f%$&@*&$ wear chanel boots and rock your Michael kors bag or expect to get spoken too! This has been a service announcement by the overworked, underpaid and fed up...
(ed note: Thank God copy and paste worked on this, I would have had to hold my nose to re-type it.)
2 people like this. One says "Lol...so true." Another says: "don't forget about there (sic) lexus and/or mercedes are (sic) parked outside"
Now, it's not really a good use of one's energy to engage in political discussions via Facebook status updates, let alone in the COMMENTS of Facebook status updates. But since I have unlimited space here, on the blog, I'd like to shed some real data-driven light on the subject of SNAP benefits and the white trash who receive them.
1) Are you really overworked and underpaid? Maybe YOU should consider applying for food stamps. To qualify you must have income not greater than 100% of the federal poverty line. For a single person like yourself, that means you're taking home $931 a month or less. For a family of four, like us, we can make up to 200% of the poverty guideline and still qualify, that's $3842 a month. With no more than $2000 in savings. I know, doesn't it sound like living the dream?
2) SNAP benefits can only be used for food you cook at home, not prepared food or coffee or a party platter from the supermarket or anything like that. But thankfully, the DTA does not monitor the way you spend your other money OUTSIDE of the food stamps program. That $931 a month, when you're done paying rent and utilities and fuel for your lexus and/or mercedes, you're free to take it over to Marshalls and score some great deals on late-season Michael Kors. Those ugly bags are super cheap over there, I promise.
3) But as the dis-fluent commenter highlights, some taxpayers might worry that SNAP dollars are going to people who are not truly needy. Who are committing FRAUD as Sandy Martinez would have us believe in the one billion leaflets she's sent to our house this campaign season. Well, what does the research really show?
The USDA audit for 2011 showed an error rate in SNAP dispersions of 3.8%. The total amount the federal government spent on SNAP in 2011 was $78 Billion, which means SNAP fraud cost the country an estimated $3 Billion. (Those bitches driving their lexus and/or mercedes to Market Basket must be in among this group.) By contrast, the IRS estimates income tax noncompliance at 16.9%, which adds up to $450 Billion in tax fraud. For those of you who are innumerate or who read this paragraph like "cost the country an estimated BIG NUMBER... adds up to BIG NUMBER" I'll say it more simply: The overworked underpaid taxpayer is fucked nearly 150 TIMES HARDER by rich tax dodgers than by white trash pos'es.
Or to put it another way, the amount lost to tax fraud each year is over 5 times the amount spent on SNAP programs. Total.
But, you know, your scapegoat or mine.
And anyway, rich assholes don't shop at Market Basket, so they're less likely to get in your way at the checkout.