Walmart Store Shelves Emptied in Louisiana Store

[bjl584]

http://blogs.marketwatch.com/behindthestorefront/2013/10/14/wal-mart-stores-in-louisiana-picked-clean-during-ebt-card-outage/

"Shelves at Wal-Mart’s Springhill and Mansfield stores were picked clean in short order after a Xerox-operated Electronic Benefits Transfer system, which allows beneficiaries to use the card to make certain purchases, went haywire in 17 states.

While many retailers promptly halted use of EBT cards since the outage meant they couldn’t see cardholders’ spending limits, Wal-Mart let cardholders go ahead and buy food and other necessities at the two Louisiana stores and others across the country."

[disneysteve]

Wal-Mart let cardholders go ahead and buy food and other necessities

Did you see photos from this? They were not buying necessities based on the pictures that were published. Of course, that's a big problem with the whole food stamp program.

[bjl584]

Did you see photos from this? They were not buying necessities based on the pictures that were published. Of course, that's a big problem with the whole food stamp program.

Yes. I did see some photos. People were grabbing anything that would fit in their carts.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

What in the world!? Food and other necessities? As far as I know there are zero necessities other than food that one can buy with "food stamp" EBT cards even when the system is functioning perfectly.

The state next door to mine, just a ten minute drive away, experienced this EBT malfunction. But I surely have not heard of anything such as happened in these Louisiana Walmarts. It must have been a store-by-store decision to allow the continued use of EBTs. Then either not many stores decided to do that, or there is something very off kilter in those Louisana towns.

So did this happen elsewhere?

[lorraineb]

Bad on the people taking advantage, bad on Walmart not following the rules -- and Walmart has to pay for it: http://abcnews.go.com/Business/walma...ry?id=20563982

[disneysteve]

What in the world!? Food and other necessities? As far as I know there are zero necessities other than food that one can buy with "food stamp" EBT cards even when the system is functioning perfectly.

There are lots and lots of non-necessities that can be purchased. That's one of my main issues with the program. I'm not opposed to helping folks who need help but the help should have appropriate limits.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

There are lots and lots of non-necessities that can be purchased.

Do you mean things like chips, pies, sodas, cookies, candy? I'll agree that those aren't necessities, but they still get categorized as food. Did you see photos of people buying non-edible stuff. presumably on food stamp EBT cards?

[disneysteve]

Do you mean things like chips, pies, sodas, cookies, candy? I'll agree that those aren't necessities, but they still get categorized as food. Did you see photos of people buying non-edible stuff. presumably on food stamp EBT cards?

No. I was talking about that crap.

I was in a store a while ago that actually has big tags on the shelves of items that can be bought with food stamps including the soda, chips, Red Bull, cookies, and other crap. Sorry but why exactly should my tax dollars be paying for people to drink Red Bull?

If I'm not mistaken, the WIC program has much stricter limits regarding what can be purchased. Why not apply similar rules to food stamps?

[hamchan]

According to the GOP's recent figures the percentage of food stamp dollars currently being used on "junk food" is less than 2.5%. This averages out to less than $3.50 per person per month. I have a hard time getting riled up about that, personally. It would cost the taxpayers to "fix" this "problem" and I do not think it's worth it. Poverty is hard enough already without people having to figure out what they can and can't buy, and the numbers do not suggest rampant abuse to me.

[hamchan]

A lot of people bring up WIC, which is a much smaller scale supplemental program. The way WIC works would not transfer easily to be able to cover a family's entire grocery purchase. I can explain in greater detail if you like, but I have found it to be a waste of time in most cases.

[sarah]

food stamps are already to restrictive. Everybody complains that you can buy soda on it. What nobody talks about is that you can't buy soap or diapers on it. Why do we dump on the poor by talking about the deserving poor and the undeserving poor who decides?

[Wino]

Here's an anecdote that shows why I'm totally against food stamps and other government-forced charity altogether. As an aside, I don't give a flip what anyone else thinks about my opinion on this. I'm old enough that my "compassion circuit" has been overloaded to the point where I could care less about the opinions of others. As I've said before: If you want to find empathy, look in the dictionary after education and effort, but before employment. If you get to entitlement, you went too far.

When I was 18, I had moved over 6000 miles from my parents' house and was totally on my own. I got a full-time job that paid for 100% tuition as long as I got an A, going down to 50% for a C, and nothing for any grade lower. I was in line at a grocery store one afternoon after going to classes and before going to work. It was about 2:00 pm. There were two people ahead of me in line.

The first person in line was a little old lady, complete with hunched back and rounded shoulders. She was buying, among other things, a couple of cans of cat food. When the price was rung up, she was digging through her change purse to come up with the coins to allow her to purchase her very small group of items. As I watched her count out pennies, I was trying to figure out a way to pay her bill without embarrassing her about it, but no course occurred to me. I remember wondering, "Does she even have a cat, or is she going to eat that cat food herself?"

The next person stepped up. He was about six feet tall (185 cm) and weighed in the neighborhood of 275 pounds (125 kg). He placed a can of pistachios on the belt, and promptly paid for it with food stamps. He was given cash money as change. He then placed a six pack of beer on the belt, and paid for that with the change he had just received, pocketing the rest.

So, while I'm working a night job, going to school full-time and barely scratching by, and little old ladies are possibly eating cat food, a large, strapping, able-bodied man is buying beer and pistachio nuts on my tab using food stamps.

I remember a quote from when I was a kid: "Every man is self-made, but only the successful admit it." I don't remember who said it, but it's true. The country has become a dichotomy of the workers and the leeches. This Wal-Mart escapade shows that there are indeed leeches out there, and we need to do something about it.

I still haven't gotten an answer to a question I first asked almost 20 years ago: "What makes someone else 'entitled' to the money I worked to earn?"

Too many people are ashamed to say what I just said, but I'm not. If it were up to me, someone would be needing a glucose infusion before the government (that's me and you) pays for his food. Even the Bible says, "For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat." (2 Thessalonians 3-10, KJV)

It isn't compassion when you're using someone else's money to pay for your charity. It's theft and redistribution. Churches, families, and other institutions will take care of the truly needy, but these institutions will require effort and responsibility from those who seek the help. The government has become a giant teat that allows anyone to suck their sustenance, much of the time while gaming the system with black-market, cash-only work (or drug dealing, prostitution, or other criminal activities) for which the "entitled" don't pay taxes.

Personally, I'm sick of it and I'm tired of supporting the lazy and worthless dregs who make this lifestyle their mainstay.

[disneysteve]

According to the GOP's recent figures the percentage of food stamp dollars currently being used on "junk food" is less than 2.5%.

That's interesting. I'd be very curious to see what they classify as "junk food" for the purpose of that statistic. I'd venture to say that 70-80% of what can be found in the typical supermarket is junk food.

Everybody complains that you can buy soda on it. What nobody talks about is that you can't buy soap or diapers on it.

That's a good point. I'd have no problem with people being able to buy necessities with their aid. That could easily be paid for by eliminating the ability to buy crap.

And I'm not only approaching this as an angry taxpayer but also as a concerned physician. I work in a very poor area. I see how people's diets affect their health and well being, and to some extent, I see how and what they eat and feed their kids. I know that much of it is purchased with government aid. So when I see an infant drinking blue juice in her baby bottle, it makes me cringe.

[bigdaddybus]

Here is a what I saw 2 weeks ago that helped shape my opinion of food assistance programs.

8pm on a Friday night, wife and I put our kids to bed and my wife tells me to run to the store to get us some drinks. So I run up the road to the Jewel/Osco.

So there I am in line (white guy, late 30's, college educated, veteran, corporate job, father of 2 biological kids and adoptive father of 2 kids taken away from their parents for neglect, married almost 20 years) waiting to pay with cash for my 12 pack of beer and 6 pack of Mikes lite hard lemonades for the Mrs. I am wearing flip flops, a 5 yr old tshirt, and work around the house shorts with paint and tile adhesive stains. Basically, I look like I need public assistance. lol

In front of me is a very attractive 25-30 yr old african american woman dressed to impress. nails done flawlessly, brand new name brand clothing, shoes without a scuff on them, hair colored/braided to perfection. Sitting on the conveyor belt is the following............... 3 full sized bags of chips, 6-8 individually wrapped ribeye steaks, and a dozen individual bottles of Snapple. $75 worth of stuff. She tries to palm her Illinois SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) card as she pays.

I follow her out of the store where a 3-5 yr old GMC Yukon is waiting with 5 or so adults inside, widows tinted, subs bumping, 24's shining, washed/waxed and looking good. As soon as she opens the door you hear "Gimmie my F'N drink!" and they drive away.

Seriously, what is a working man to think when they see this crap?

I agree with others comments on the WIC program. I used this program when I fostered a 3 week old and 13 month old. I used it soley for Formula to save over $100 a month. Great program IMO and I have no problem with my tax dollars going there.

[Bob B.]

I worked at a convenience store for a while when I was in college. By far the most common sales were beer, cigarettes, and milk to college students. Once in a while a customer would make a purchase with food stamps. One of those sales sticks out in my mind. The customer set ice cream toppings (hot fudge, and some other stuff) on the counter, and he presented his food stamps (this was about 20 years ago, before there were bridge cards). I wasn't even sure if crap like that could be purchased with food stamps. I was new. My manager was standing close by, so I glanced at her, and she gave me a nod, so I made the sale. Then, the customer pulled out his cash, and bought lottery tickets! I was floored, and I didn't even try to disguise my disgust.

I have a similar story to bigdaddybus. We also fostered two boys. We've since adopted them. They were both WIC eligible, and we have taken full advantage of the program. WIC is, indeed, very restrictive in what you can buy. DW has the list of available purchases, and monthly limits fully memorized. I can take a stab at it. When the child is 0-12 months, you can buy formula. When the child is 1-5 years, you can buy three gallons plus one quart of milk - 2% or less fat. You can buy a couple loaves of whole wheat bread and/or a couple packages of whole wheat tortillas. You can buy a can or two of black beans, and/or a jar or two of peanut butter. A couple boxes of cereal (the non-sugared stuff). And a certain dollars's worth of fresh fruits or vegetables. And a bottle or two of fruit juice.

We figured the total package of goods amounted to $60 or $65 per month per child aged 1-5.

Our older son turned five this past July. He was eligible for the program through the end of the quarter (September). He has aged out, but our younger son will still be eligible for another year and a half. We are still in the program with him.

We do need to visit the county health department quarterly for a weigh in and consultation. Plus DW completes periodic educational units. She opts to do them on-line, but they can be done at the health department.