Oregon gov starts week on food stamps

[Odin]

Ore. gov. starts week on food stamps By JULIA SILVERMAN, Associated Press Writer
Wed Apr 25, 3:27 AM ET

If Gov. Ted Kulongoski seems a little sluggish this week, he's got an excuse: he couldn't afford coffee.

In fact, the Democratic governor couldn't afford much of anything during a trip to a Salem-area grocery store on Tuesday, where he had exactly $21 to buy a week's worth of food — the same amount that the state's average food stamp recipient spends weekly on groceries.

Kulongoski is taking the weeklong challenge to raise awareness about the difficulty of feeding a family on a food stamp budget.

Accompanied by reporters and food stamp recipient Christina Sigman-Davenport, Kulongoski headed straight for a display of organic bananas, only to have Sigman-Davenport steer him toward the cheaper non-organic variety.

The governor pined wistfully for canned Progresso soups, but at $1.53 apiece, they would have blown the budget. He settled instead for three packages of Cup O'Noodles for 33 cents apiece. Kulongoski also gave up his usual Adams natural, no-stir peanut butter for a generic store brand, but drew the line at saving money by buying peanut butter and jelly in the same jar.

"I don't much like the looks of that," said Kulongoski, 66, staring at the concoction.

Other shoppers in the store were bemused by Kulongoski's quest.

"Obviously, he doesn't shop often," Barb Sours of Salem said, as Kulongoski bounced around the aisles in search of granola. "He's all over the place."

Kulongoski did pause to chat with shoppers John and Bonnie White of Salem, telling them all about his $21 limit.

"Don't spend it all in one place," John White warned.

Along the way, Sigman-Davenport, a mother of three who works for the state Department of Human Services and went on food stamps in the fall after her husband lost his job, dispensed tips for shopping on a budget. Scan the highest and lowest shelves, she told the governor. Look for off-brand products, clip coupons religiously, get used to filling, low-cost staples like macaroni and cheese and beans, and, when possible, buy in bulk.

At the check-out counter, Kulongoski's purchases totaled $21.97, forcing him to give back one of the Cup O'Noodles and two bananas, for a final cost of $20.97 for 19 items.

After the hourlong shopping trip, Kulongoski said he was mindful that his week on food stamps will be finite and that thousands of others aren't so lucky.

"I don't care what they call it, if this is what it takes to get the word out," Kulongoski said, in response to questions about whether the food stamp challenge was no more than a publicity stunt. "This is an issue every citizen in this state should be aware of."

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When I first read this article I was cynical and i thought politics right away. Reflecting on it now I think this gov has set up a wonderful precedent for politicians and perhaps this type of excersise should be mandatory. I am blessed not to have to worry about such circumstances but I think this is a great way to remind politicians of exactly how thier most vunerable constituants must live.

Anyone else think this is a viable excercise for politicians? Considering the growing devide of the economic classes here in the U.S. I think this is spot on. Any thoughts?

[InsaneApache]

Matthew Parris did something similar in the early '80s, he lived for a week in the northeast of England on the dole. I remember it well.

IIRC he got about £30 a week.

[Pannonian]

Matthew Parris did something similar in the early '80s, he lived for a week in the northeast of England on the dole. I remember it well.

IIRC he got about £30 a week.

And Michael Portillo spent a week or something as a single mum. Got on well with some of the kids (especially the oldest, who was his chief advisor), but carried on a running feud wth the youngest IIRC.

Review of When Michael Portillo Became a Single Mum

About Parris' original effort, from The Independent preview of his redux.

Twenty years ago, when he was one of Margaret Thatcher's silly backbench bully boys, Matthew Parris (right) famously took a courageous step that changed his life. After banging on about keeping benefit payments low as an incentive to the unemployed to find work, he was challenged by ITV's current affairs strand World in Action to go and live in the Newcastle suburb of Scotswood for a week. Living on a single-man's unemployment benefit (then pounds 26.80 a week), it was one of the first examples of life-swap programming.

More importantly, though, it became one of the defining pieces of political television from the dark days of the 1980s, when there were 3 million on the dole. The programme was watched by more than 13 million, who saw him fail dismally, and was instrumental in him resigning as an MP. It wasn't through any realisation that the Conservative government was to blame for the bleakness, though. It was more that he was, in his own words, "made to look like a Tory prat". He called something right for once.

[Odin]

Interesting fellas.

This is a fairly rare phenom in the U.S. and when it happens it flies well under the radar (even more so given the political climate in the U.S.). I personally think this is a fruitful excersise for any politician, and might go as far as to say that it should be an expected excersise for politicians once elected.

I have been to europe a few times but never lived there, here in the states most of our politicians have wealth and dont necessarily understand the nuances of living at or above the poverty line.

[Vladimir]

What a fool. Food stamps aren't supposed to be the sole source of your food money for a week but a supplement. What point was this guy trying to make by trying to buy "organic" food (you know the story about a fool and his money) and fancy peanut butter? You already have an excess of money and emotion if you buy into the organic craze. I suppose his daddy paid his way thru college and he never had to eat on a budget. Whenever politicians go to a grocery store, they make a fool out of themselves.

This "experiment" isn't weather or not the amount is enough but whether or not a person can live the lifestyle they want to while on government support. It's like these damn fool households where both couples have to work to make their gilded ends meet. America has some of the best dressed, well-fed poor people in the world. Do you know what one of the reasons is given for the obesity epidemic among poor people: Because eating is one of the few joys they have in life. Fools.

Barring some physical injury/defect/etc there is little excuse not to be able to afford college education in the US. If you want to you'll risk the (at worst) 1-2% risk of death in the military (because, you know, if you're not in the military you can't die. The boredom of garrison life is likely to kill you first). It's all about choices. You can have just about anything you want in this country it just depends how much you want to give up for it. Whether it's freedom by joining the military for four years (or even better, the National Guard; huge bonuses and student loan payback) or time by using FREE libraries to research and apply for grants/loans, you can be successful.

What's that saying about a tyranny for our own benefit?

*and breathe*

[Odin]

What a fool. Food stamps aren't supposed to be the sole source of your food money for a week but a supplement. What point was this guy trying to make by trying to buy "organic" food (you know the story about a fool and his money) and fancy peanut butter? You already have an excess of money and emotion if you buy into the organic craze. I suppose his daddy paid his way thru college and he never had to eat on a budget. Whenever politicians go to a grocery store, they make a fool out of themselves.

This "experiment" isn't weather or not the amount is enough but whether or not a person can live the lifestyle they want to while on government support. It's like these damn fool households where both couples have to work to make their gilded ends meet. America has some of the best dressed, well-fed poor people in the world. Do you know what one of the reasons is given for the obesity epidemic among poor people: Because eating is one of the few joys they have in life. Fools.

Barring some physical injury/defect/etc there is little excuse not to be able to afford college education in the US. If you want to you'll risk the (at worst) 1-2% risk of death in the military (because, you know, if you're not in the military you can't die. The boredom of garrison life is likely to kill you first). It's all about choices. You can have just about anything you want in this country it just depends how much you want to give up for it. Whether it's freedom by joining the military for four years (or even better, the National Guard; huge bonuses and student loan payback) or time by using FREE libraries to research and apply for grants/loans, you can be successful.

What's that saying about a tyranny for our own benefit?

*and breathe*

You finished yet ?

[Lemur]

What point was this guy trying to make by trying to buy "organic" food (you know the story about a fool and his money) and fancy peanut butter? You already have an excess of money and emotion if you buy into the organic craze.

Could you please elaborate on your reasons for condemning all organic food? Mrs. Lemur is a professional chef, so I'm quite curious to hear your rationale.