Does it make you upset when poor people are given nice stuff?

[Nikia]

I ask this because over in GD, some people are in the thread about food stamps. Some comments suggest that it is horrible for poor people to get name brand food, clothes, or other luxeries even if these items are given by individuals or charitable organizations, rather than the governmnet.
Is there a reason that I shouldn't donate Campbell's Chunky soup, Kellog's and General Mill's cereals, and Prego spagghetti sauce to food banks? Is there a reason that I shouldn't donate Gap and Calvin Klein jeans that don't fit me along with the expensive, but more appropriate for older women, clothes that my mother-in-law bought me one Christmas. Is there a reason that I shouldn't donate money to my alma mater's, a private liberal arts college, scholarship fund so that poor students (like myself) can go to a nice college.
My grandmother bought poor children who she knew new clothes and occaionally to combat my grandfather's miserly ways, yet some people were upset seeing these children dressed in nice new clothes.
Really, I don't make my buying decisions based on status. I base them on quality. Why shouldn't I or anyone else share the quality?

[redqueen]

1. NO

And I hate that attitude.

[billyskank]

2. I can't think of a reason against it

And nor can I be bothered to go and look why they think it's so bad.

[Pawel K]

3. If it were up to the Republicans

the poor would be working 3 jobs, their kids would be left alone at home, and these people would live in a 10x10 room. I am also not making this up; this is pretty much what Republicans have told me when I try to debate them on welfare.

[meganmonkey]

4. Oh, gaawwddd.. Don't let me go over there!

I'll start throwin' down.

I work at a food rescue/food bank. We distribute about 3 million pounds of food a year in our county.

A lot of our food is rescued from grocery stores, distributors, restaurants. Nothing makes me happier than when we bring in 700 pounds of organic produce from Whole Foods or the co-op, and to know that it is going to be distributed to people who are most at risk and need healthy food more than most people. Good food helps their immune system, helps kids stay focused at school, oh, I could go on and on.
Because people are poor, are they supposed to only eat ramen noodles and canned corn? Because that's what a lot of people donate in food drives. Thank god we do the food rescue too.

www.foodgatherers.org

edited for spelling. should probably edit for clarity, too, but I'm sure you all get my point ;)

[Padraig18]

5. It doesn't bother me in the last.

I'm on your side.

:hi:

[xchrom]

6. they are assholes

living asshole lives -- pay them no mind.
poor people deserve nice as much as any body else does.

not one person on the face of the earth got one damn thing all their own.
so by their own reasoning -- neither should they have anything nice.

[ScreamingMeemie]

7. Quite the opposite. I quite enjoy giving things like that.

The only problem I have is seeing mothers dressed in leather, and dripping in jewelry, with kids in rags at her side, using food stamps. I highly doubt the jewelry was given by a charity.

[JohnKleeb]

8. No, why should it?

I dont know whats up with some people in GD, some people have an anti immigrant bias that Ive noticed.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

9. That's the kind of stuff I hear from Republicans

They talk as if poor people shouldn't have anything go right for them. They get all bent out of shape if they see a poor person with a TV set or a DVD player, for heaven's sake, as if they don't realize that the TV may be a hand-me-down, the DVD player may have cost $40, and that renting a DVD is cheap entertainment.

They're the same types who tell poor people that if they lived in Bangladesh, they'd be considered rich. (Well, yes, if they were paying Bangladesh prices for food, clothing, and shelter, but they're probably paying New York prices...)

[Blue Diadem]

34. "That's the kind of stuff I hear from Republicans" That is exactly

what I was going to say.

[murielm99]

10. Nah.

I resent it when rich repukes and robber barons get nice stuff at the expense of everyone else.

I love it when poor people and middle class people get nice things. I like buying some of those nice things as presents for other people. That is the best feeling in the world.

[ikojo]

36. What I hate is when I hear of rich people, such as celebs or DJs, getting

things given to them for free when they can easily afford to pay for their stuff.

I hope those people in GD never have to go to a welfare office and fill out forms to get food stamps. I've been there and it is HUMILIATING! The office worker on the other side of the desk looks at the applicant as if he/she is dirt (I was unemployed and did not have any job prospects on the horizon). Poor people are asked to open their whole lives to the scrutiny of the welfare system. They know what you make and what you spend.

Why don't we ask the same of sports team owners or corporations when we give THEM welfare? They are not asked to prove worthiness and yet are given untold MILLIONS In taxpayer dollars.

[NorthernSpy]

11. some people are just natural-born assholes

Having to take charity isn't nearly humiliating enough. Henceforth, all donated goods must be of the lowest possible quality, lest those poor folks taste better and start putting on airs as a result. A jar of all-fruit jam, or a pair of all-leather shoes might seduce them into forgetting for one whole instant their lower-than-dirt status. That would be terrible!

/sarcasm

[Kat45]

12. Not at all, but there is a related thing that bothers me.

Sometimes when I see groups collecting winter coats for poor or homeless people, they insist on new coats only. Now, I don't have a problem with giving them new coats, but I've had instances when I had a nice wool coat that I had never worn (or hardly worn) and I'd wonder why I can't donate that. I know that if I was cold and had no coat, I'd rather have a used coat in good shape than no coat at all. I realize that some people do donate threadbare clothing, and perhaps that's why they ask for new coats, but I'm sure I'm not the only one who has had slightly used clothes in good shape. :shrug:

[WoodrowFan]

15. it's to weed out the crap

I help with my church's clothing bank. I think coat drives like the one you mention are trying to weed out the real crap, the stuff that's only fit for rags. You'd be amazed what people donate. Stuff they'd NEVER let their own family wear but it's "good enough" for the needy. The worst I remember was baby clothes still covered in baby puke. We keep the clean clothes in good condition (used is fine). The really ratty stuff goes to a group in West Virginia that makes rugs with the material they can salvage.

[Kat45]

21. Sounds like they'd take a decent coat, though used.

That's good to know for future reference.

[WoodrowFan]

32. GLADLY

coats are often in short supply and tend to go quickly.

[WoodrowFan]

13. that's a damn depressing thread

first the anti-immigrant thread, then this one.

[DrWeird]

14. I wonder if those people

consider themselves christian.

[ScreamingMeemie]

28. Funny isn't it? Gotta love 'em!

/sarcasm off ;)

[sandnsea]

16. Throw a little Mormonism at 'em

Not necessarily the GD people, but the Christian types who sneer at somebody who is dressed nicely, but finds themself in need.

My sister asked the same question when she was doing Mormon charity work. Actually, she made the comment that "this stuff is nicer than what I have.". The elder's response was "We're doing God's work and God's work should always consist of the best of what we have to give, not the leftovers."

So there. Only good thing I heard from her Mormon mouth in 20 years.

[Strawman]

17. Bush: Send 'em all to Iraq and serve 'em shit on a shingle n/t

[madinmaryland]

18. We donate all of our clothing and things

to Goodwill and to local women's and childrens shelter. In addition, the books go to the school's library. If the clothes don't fit, no matter the brand, donate!

[Spinzonner]

19. No, it doesn't amd you are entitled to give as you choose

but from a larger perspective one should consider that giving 'brands' is not always so much a reflection of quality as promotion and it is reflected in the cost.

If you monetarize that cost, you often can buy more of good, more than adequate non-brands (or less heavily promoted ones) and increase the extent of giving for the same commitment.

One can also achieve somewhat the same goal by being very aggressive in shopping for sales, coupons, and rebates for the products one gives.

[donheld]

20. Not in the least

I wish they could all they can stand. I never can tell, i may one day walk in their shoes.

[catmandu57]

22. Not in the least

I prefer to give new, if I can.

[skygazer]

23. People's attitudes on this drive me crazy

I've been on welfare, I've had to use food stamps and there is nothing worse than standing in the checkout line getting condescending looks from the other people in line. As a matter of fact, the other day at work (I work in a grocery store), one of the checkers commented after serving a woman who used food stamps (and EBT card) that he is offended that he is paying for her groceries!

None of these people have any idea what the person in quesions circumstances are, why they are collecting, what their life is like. It's very hard to always tell your children, "no, I can't afford it" when they ask you for the things that all the other children they know have. It's tough when they've been good as gold and you can't buy them a lousy candy bar without someone sniffing and making a face when you pay for it with a food stamp.

Fuck all those people. I challenge any of them to walk in my shoes for a week and see what it's like to struggle. And to those who say, "well if you're poor, you shouldn't have kids", fuck them, too. I wasn't poor when I had kids but after my divorce, I sure was. But that is none of anyone's business.

Those programs are out there for a reason - to help people who need help. Instead of judging, people should have some compassion and think that perhaps they are lucky not to be in that position.

Small minded, arrogant people make me sick.

[Spinzonner]

26. I guess that the 'Samaritan Parable' is just old News

[SemiCharmedQuark]

24. No, that's ridiculous.

I worked at Su Casa in Chicago, a food kitchen. It's amazing the things people would say. We would have spaghetti dinners, beef stroganoff (??) different meals and people would be angry that they were getting those things to eat. I guess they wanted us to serve up gruel.

[Love Bug]

25. No. What pisses me off is when rich people get free stuff they don't need

[jswordy]

27. IT IS NONE OF THEIR FRICKIN' BUSINESS!

I tell ya, people constantly amaze me. Let them tend to their own knitting, and leave others alone.

Christian or not, ya gotta admit Jesus had a goodun when he said pick that thar log outta yer own eyeball afore ya look fer the toothpick in that feller's peeper over there...or something like that!

Holy creepin' flox! What WILL be next for their noses to get stuck into? (shaking head)

[SemiCharmedQuark]

29. I agree. How many times have you heard someone say "well if they are so

poor, how come they have _____"

[SoCalDem]

30. Not at all.. The food stamp issue is a thorny one though

I used to be a grocery checker and it didn't make me mad, as much as it it SAD to see those precious food stamps being used for soda pop and doritos when they should have been used for nutritious foods for the children.

What's needed as much as food stamps is EDUCATION on cooking, budgeting, sewing...etc.. These are all things that kids used to be taught by their families, but the family structure for millions of poor people is hopelessly broken.

MOST people on food stamps do a great job buying food, but unfortunately there ARE lots who do not..

Since the parent controls the finances, it's doubly sad when Mom and/or Dad spend the scant resources for stuff that THEY like, and use their cash for things like beer and tobacco products. What this translates into is nothing decent to eat at the midpoint of any given month..

Now that they use ATM-like cards instead of the "monopoly money", I wish they would break the monthly award into a weekly stipend credited to the "account". It might at least assure that the kids would have food all month long:(

I once had "words" with a woman who argued with me when I told her she had to get the regular cheerios with her WIC voucher...not the Honey Nut Cheerios.. She announced that her boyfriend didn't LIKE the regular ones.. I responded.. "WIC is for your KIDS....NOT your boyfriend"..

The fact is that in lots of "assisted" families there is a mooching boyfriend who is often eating food that rightfully belongs to the kids.

[gizmo1979]

31. In many poor neighborhoods

There is an unbelievable underground economy where most things can be bought and sold.Just because they are poor doesn't mean they are stupid.People adapt,repugs and lily whites don't understand this.You would be amazed at the ingenuity,now is it all legal well probably not but hey you do what you have to.

[mondo joe]

33. I don't think it's anyone's business

If people give other people something nice I fail to see why it is the interest of any third party.

If people use food stamps in a wasteful way, that's their choice and they are the ones who live with it.

[amazona]

35. No I think some people don't have enough to whine about

I think most of the griping about poor people getting nice clothes -- since when are Gap clothes all that expensive anyway? -- is being done by one person.

Donate nice things, a nice appearance can be important in helping a student or new worker get further ahead. Teachers are not supposed to discriminate but the nicely dressed and groomed will always be treated better. It is human nature. And that goes double for some poor mother trying to get a better job!

It's better to donate nice than to donate rags. I'm not sure of the mechanism but the really crappy looking clothes that gets donated somehow gets to Africa, where it is destroying the local textile industries because people are wearing worn-out American T-shirts instead. So donations of really crappy clothes actually does harm!

Donate nice stuff that people can use here. If I have something really ragged, I don't donate it, I make it into rags for use about the house.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72