COMMENT 299383
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2012-07-19 12:27 PM |
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That's what a "progressive" county gives you-poverty and governmental dependence. Thanks SBC for your failed social policies, along with an incompetent State and Governor.
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COMMENT 299402
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2012-07-19 12:52 PM |
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As cruel as it sounds, I'd wish there was more "food insecurity" in this country. It just pains me to see it only happen to those that have no money to afford it. 383 - Progressivism has nothing to do with it. The "conservatives" in the federal government have completely destroyed the natural process with which crops are harvested. GMO corn and cotton are subsidized to the nth degree, giving a false sense of security, and ruining our future for productive food harvest. Once that industry also tanks, we will all be in real trouble. They've been coddling the gluttons who stuff their face with fast food for years. You've just been too busy calling it freedom to care otherwise.
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COMMENT 299446
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2012-07-19 01:45 PM |
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If you were a poor peasant in Mexico or Gutemala,etc, and there were free food debit cards to you and your family (if you gave birth to a child in CA), would you not take advantage of the system too...? It's a free for all. No longer do you receive food "stamps" (too embaressing), you get a food "debit card....
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COMMENT 299455
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2012-07-19 01:56 PM |
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If you can't put food on your table and you live in Santa Barbara maybe you should move to a cheaper city...
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ROGER DODGER
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2012-07-19 02:20 PM |
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It would be great if every laboror, maid, gardner, all workers just abouve or below the poverty level quit working in Santa Barbara then people like @455 would really be crying...WaaaWaaaa
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DILLYDALLY
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2012-07-19 02:25 PM |
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Hahaha Roger, well put.
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COMMENT 299484P
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2012-07-19 02:53 PM |
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Quit and do what? Move? I'm not certain why that would make anyone cry except the business owners who are not paying their employees enough to live on. I know that is then transferred to the customer who buys the products. So prices of goods and services goes up so the employees of businesses can be paid enough to feed their families and pay their bills. I can live with that. But you cannot expect to work at McDonalds and support a family of four. Learn a skill and get a better job. Those jobs used to go to teenagers and college students now there is another group of people filling these positions. Then you have the laborers, maids, and gardeners working for increasingly depressed amounts of money. Accepting low wages is dragging down the pay of the industry.
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COMMENT 299490
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2012-07-19 03:03 PM |
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It is not the fault of the Dems or Rep's. Check out the website Thrive Movement for the real story of what is happening to our country.
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COMMENT 299491
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2012-07-19 03:06 PM |
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402 - really - republicans drove to our family farm in Nebraska and told my nephew that his collage degree in farming is all wrong and that he should follow their guide lines to ruin the earth .....
bumper crops - wall to wall corn - wheat - sorghum - have you been to the Midwest lately - unemployment is below 4 percent - rent is cheap - so is food - my favorite at the local cafe is - bacon biscuits and gravy - with a pork chop - black coffee and the conversation of local crop prices -
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COMMENT 299498
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2012-07-19 03:14 PM |
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...but they could put 22's on their suburbans and escalades.
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COMMENT 299402
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2012-07-19 03:20 PM |
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491: The issue is that they think food should be cheap and readily available. They aren't fooling anyone, especially nature. We are not meant to have unlimited supplies of food. Logistically, it just doesn't work, otherwise every single organism would thrive at no expense of any others. For every act that we try to control, 10 natural processes counter act it to attempt to fix the balance. There is no winning in this imaginary war we have created with food production. I don't mean to blame solely the repubs, as democrats are guilty of this too. I particularly like repubs though, because they tend to hate government intervention, except when their lobbyists are the ones receiving the subsidies. They have sold the American dream to the highest bidder.
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COMMENT 299505P
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2012-07-19 03:28 PM |
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1 in 7 people in this country is on food stamps. It's a full on depression, but they (politicians) won't admit it. Both political parties are equally guilty. The working middle class has been screwed, and without us, the economy tanks. Duh.
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COMMENT 299517P
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2012-07-19 04:11 PM |
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455 hit the nail on the head. Clearly, cost of living here is too high for these folks and there are many better options within reasonable reach - Ventura, Santa Ynez, Lompoc, etc., all with TONS of cheap/subsidized/free bus service to Santa Barbara if the issue is getting to work.
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COMMENT 299526P
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2012-07-19 04:34 PM |
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If everyone's so hungry, why are they so fat? Yes, I blame the snack food industry. The eater has no responsibility. Ha!
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COMMENT 299540
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2012-07-19 05:15 PM |
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If it wasn't for the dollar menus at fast food places I would starve.
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COMMENT 299542
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2012-07-19 05:15 PM |
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I don't know how republicans got thrown into an argument about Californias most liberal city, but its nice to know that you guys will never ever ever take responsibility for anything. We all need to pay 20% more for our Food
We all need to pay 20% more for our gardening
We all need to pay 20% more for our childcare
The 18-30 generation needs a masters degree to get any kind of job where their not directly competing with illegals! Thats not how you older folks grew up....and its not fair! Either pay up, or downsize your lifestyles! But your kids and grand kids should'nt have to live in a 3rd world country just so you can save a little on your lawn.
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COMMENT 299549
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2012-07-19 05:36 PM |
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I don't think that this is California's most liberal city, 542.
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COMMENT 299559
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2012-07-19 05:50 PM |
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They can still take free Adult Ed pottery classes.
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COMMENT 299591
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2012-07-19 07:34 PM |
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559 for the win! But really, if you can't afford to live here, you should move (and if you're here illegally, no subsidies for you). The free market economy really does work.
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COMMENT 299594
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2012-07-19 07:45 PM |
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Reading a link like this at the end of a day in my 70 hour work week could be irritating I guess but the fact that I'm sitting here in my office at a company that survived the recession makes me grateful. I've never been hungry because of lack of money - not once. I can't imagine what that must be like and I certainly would not deride people who are in that situation. Be kind always....it's so simple.....it takes the sting out of life.....there's so much that can hurt us....why do we have to take shots at each other constantly? Guess I better get back to work.
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COMMENT 299604P
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2012-07-19 08:09 PM |
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Ummm......10% of this counties population near starvation? An estimate made by a special interest group. With UCLA tacked on the estimate for clout. Look, this number is very suspect. For one, it does not jive with the obesity numbers constantly paraded around. And look for yourself. The people using WIC and food stamps usually appear to be on the plumper side of normal.
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COMMENT 299617
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2012-07-19 08:45 PM |
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Adult Ed pottery classes are no longer free.
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COMMENT 299634
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2012-07-20 07:11 AM |
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Such a diverse array of bullet point: most are quite valid. However, noted is that before the Batman movie violence, the movie theaters had sold out mostly all of the Batman viewings.
Adult ed classes ( "Pottery Classes" are widely attended and they complain abundantly about the nominal fees.)
Debit card instead of food stamps: So true and a lot of them are fraudulently obtained. Why are people so fat? I wonder that, too. Most vegetables are equal or less expensive than bread. Cereal is more expensive than eggs. Give medical care before food. You can get food anywhere if you open your eyes. Maids/gardeners and the like as mentioned above. Let them quit, my neighbors gardener and his wife both work 4 days a week, $18 per hour, they require 10 hour days (rotating weekly homes each day) that equals approximately $35,000/$70,000 a year. Taxes? Their kids go to public schools. They probably have food stamps and medical.
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COMMENT 299647
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2012-07-20 08:05 AM |
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Makes me wonder about those who insist it's a good idea to use a food crop (corn) to produce ethanol... Does that bother anyone else? In the County where I live the Santa Clara/ San Mateo Second Harvest Food Bank is serving greatly increased numbers of people unable to provide food for their families. The Sacred Heart Catholic Charities also is providing food, clothing and help with places to live for increasing numbers of low income people. The Second Harvest Food Bank says that they can provide lunches for 4 needy children for every dollar donated to the Food Bank. For several years they have been where I donate regularly. There should never be hungry people in this country!!!
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COMMENT 299559
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2012-07-20 08:35 AM |
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Adult ed pottery classes are not widely attended. Only a few slots available which have been taken over for years by an aggressive and elite group of repeaters, who use this public benefit to sell their wares made in class at art shows, most likely tax free. Your tax dollars at work. Time to audit this program too.
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COMMENT 299402
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2012-07-20 10:31 AM |
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647: Doesn't bother me that corn is used in ethanol. Corn is already in just about all foods anyway, I think we would be fine with a little less in the diet. Not to mention the fact that the corn being consumed can hardly be considered "corn" anymore.
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COMMENT 299484P
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2012-07-20 10:38 AM |
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How did the study come to these numbers I wonder? Did they simply ask people if they were hungry? Or if they had a hard time feeding their families? Are these numbers derived from the amount of people seeking assistance through food stamps, WIC, and other programs? First of all if someone asked me if I had a hard time making enough to feed my family the answer would be yes. I work awful hard, as does my husband, to feed our family. We don't eat filet mignon every night but we have enough good food to get by. If one of us stayed home our lifestyle would have to dramatically change. Our neighbors however have four children, youngest just turned 5, and a stay at home mom. They receive food stamps, monetary assistance, and free medical because the father makes less than what the county considers adequate for the family size. They have three cars but only he drives. The kids run around with candy and ice cream almost every day. I have a very hard time understanding why my tax money is going to support this.
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DILLYDALLY
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2012-07-20 12:00 PM |
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As many previously middle class families approach the poverty line more people see how the poor live. Some of them get comfortable relying on the govt. programs. We should find a way to discourage that and encourage hard work and self reliance. But growing up I had friends who got food because of these programs. I would be very cautions about doing things that will punish children for their parents behavior.
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COMMENT 299484P
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2012-07-20 02:18 PM |
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I don't want to punish children at all but I do believe that every able bodied person should work before they get assistance. These children are learning a dangerous message from their parents' lack of ambition. Why does this system keep sending out the money without requiring both parents to get a job?
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COMMENT 299559
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2012-07-21 11:11 AM |
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Before anyone makes statements about the "poverty" line and any other string of pseudo-alarmist claims, how about some facts. Even those the census found in "poverty" had several televisions, A/C and indoor plumbing. The dollar value of "poverty" benefits was calculated out to be approximately the equivalent of making $40,000 a year - with food stamps, section 8 housing, MediCal benefits etc. 90% of Americans are in the middle class - 10% fall into poverty or upper class. The middle class remains very large and very comfortable. It is all relative and even the "poor" are relatively very well off in the US. Drug addicts, drunks and professional vagrants like to con you otherwise. You cannot have unemployment and illegal immigration at the same time. Because many citizens refuse to work or live within their means does not mean they are falling into "poverty". It just means they are lazy with a false sense of entitlement.
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COMMENT 300352P
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2012-07-22 07:02 PM |
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Are you people serious with your comments that people who can't afford to live here should move?? Good luck finding someone to serve your coffee, clean your office building, or work at your favorite non-profit agency. Your solution is to have thousands and thousands of people commute over 45 minutes? Rather than fix the problem locally so that more people can live here comfortably? Horrible, horrible idea. I have 2 master's degrees and don't make enough to support myself and my child in Santa Barbara on my own. I work in the mental health field - obviously essential to the community. So based on your logic I should have to live in Lompoc??
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