I'd like a minute to talk about food .. in light of the Blue Apron thread

[nadine_mn]

For SNAP recipients.

Fuck the GOP and anyone liberal, conservative, independent etc who thinks they have any right to say what a person should or should not eat.

Our country has a problem shaming people around food (esp women). Eat too much - someone will yell at you to go on a diet, eat too little someone will yell at you to eat a donut. Vegan or vegetarian - you are called a pretentious asshole. Eat meat - murderer. Eat fast food - lazy. Cook at home - must be nice to have all that time on your hands. If you are fat like me, and eat a salad out in public, some asshole will comment (to your face or loudly behind your back) that when you get home, you will eat a cake. If you are thin and eat a burger, be prepared to hear some snide asshole make a comment about how you'll throw it up.

I was raised by a vegetarian, eat very little meat as an adult, married to bonafide carnivore (he's from Iowa..pork and corn run in his blood) so I have heard every judgmental comment on both sides.

I was also on food stamps as a kid, as student worked in grocery stores dealing with people using food stamps, WIC checks, and later on SNAP cards, and as an advocate took women to apply for benefits and took them to food shelves. I have been on each end of the process and the shame felt by me as a child (because my mom made us drive out of town so no one would gossip), the shame I could feel radiating from customers, and the shame felt by victims of domestic violence, trying to get their lives together with limited financial resources and needing to apply for government assistance to feed their kids. Shame was everywhere.

Shame. Over food. Over goddamn fucking food in the richest damn country in the world that throws out more food in a year than other countries will ever have.

Shame. For food. No one should go hungry in this country ever. No one should be fucking malnourished because they live in food deserts where the nearest grocery store is a goddamn convenience store. Because a Big Mac and fries provides more precious calories and energy to fill hungry bellies for less money. Because adults working shitty shifts or two or more jobs don't have the time or energy to cook.

Fucking shame...for not having enough money in your kids lunch account at school so hot food is literally snatched from their hands, thrown in the garbage in front of them, and they are given a lecture, a cheese sandwich, and a stamp on their hand fucking branding them as poor.

Shame...shame on politicians who want to cut school lunch and breakfast programs, esp in the summer when kids need food to grow and to think and to thrive.

Shame...shame on politicians who cut meals on wheels programs ...programs that not only provide necessary nourishment but also vital social interaction and connections to their community.

Shame..on constantly reducing and limiting what SNAP benefits a person or family can have. It's food, for fucks sake ...it's food. If a mom or dad wants to get goddamn cake mix so their kid can bring cupcakes to school like other kids ...and not feel shame..or have a goddamn treat of cereal that they love .. what is the goddamn HARM? Homeless people and some with disabilities or elderly can't cook so what..they don't get to eat? You are gonna deny them eating prepared food and say here's a can opener and some beans, knock yourself out?

It takes a lot of fucking nerve for the party of the man who only eats KFC and McDonald's to start lecturing anyone on nutrition.

Some people will abuse any program...it's fucking human nature, assholes and scammers will always exist. But to punish people who are parents, children, tired, elderly, have disabilities, are homeless, are veterans and who are sadly HUNGRY is sick and deranged.

Food can be good, can be nourishing, can be comforting, can be celebratory, can be tasty, can be healthy and unhealthy. It shouldn't be scarce, it shouldn't be weaponized and it shouldn't be used to shame.