More than ten percent of Americans rely on food stamps. Tina Contraeras is one of them: "Unemployed and on disability benefits, Contraeras, 45, has custody of her grandchildren, ages 2 and 3. She has resorted to circling the first of the month on her calendar so that when her grandchildren are hungry, she can count down the days until they can return to the grocery store.
'I have to make a game out of it for the kids,' she said." [Via] @11:10 AM 14
Food Stamp Nation: How's Your Recession Going? @12:50 PM
1. "Nearly half of all U.S. children and 90 percent of black youngsters will be on food stamps at some point during childhood."
2. "The U.S. Department of Agriculture said nearly 200,000 retailers nationwide now accept food stamps, 20 percent more than in 2005."
3. "In September, Texas processed 58.6 percent of applications within the 30 days required by the federal government. By the end of that month, nearly 42,000 families were waiting for a decision even though the deadline had passed."
4. "Some 36 million Americans are on food stamps, an increase of nearly 10 million over the past two years…. Some 66 percent of those eligible participate."
5. "A federal judge has ordered Indiana's partially privatized welfare intake system to speed up decisions on food stamp applications, but the state has a year to meet its first target." 14
The Great Annual Change Bowl Guessing Game @10:41 AM
Every year or so, when finances grow slightly tight, Americans turn to that big bowl of change on the dresser. The annual pilgrimage to Coinstar! America! It is like all the money ran out for another country. So let's have a little guessing game. How much change is in The Awl's Big Bowl O' Change? The winning guess will… win something. Not sure what. Undying loyalty? A portion of the profits? A small amount of Awl equity? 80
Beanie Sigel, "In The Ghetto" @1:40 PM
If you're looking to counter the oddly antiseptic aftertaste left by Jay-Z's ostensibly warlike hit "Run This Town," there's this new video from Jay's old Philadelphia recruit, Beanie Sigel. Sit through the corny Vincent-Price-from-"Thriller" voice-over in the beginning, settle in to the swaying organ line and the tinkling piano and, um, brace yourself. READ MORE 4
Do Not Pay Emergency Room Bills, Poors. This Is How. @11:55 AM
I frequently meet people, most of them young and poor, who are burdened by debts to emergency rooms, and I am always shocked that these people with no money are even considering paying. Here is how it is done, in a strangely servicey explanation from Vice. READ MORE 13
