Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

More Americans are shoplifting food

washingtonpost.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

51–60 of 166 posts

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#51

Post by staplers »

tempsy wrote: post #11
8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that Elon Musk doesn't have plenty of flaws that people online will be happy to spill much ink about, but what does that have to do with widespread poverty on a national level? Does the US not have a government and state-level and federal-level representatives whose job it is to take care of their citizens and keep them out of starvation? Elon Musk and his pals seem like a convenient distraction from holding acco…

Agree that blaming individuals makes no sense. It's the system that is pushing the poorest into more debt and insecurity while making the rich richer that is the problem. A lot of talk about building a healthy middle class but we've lost track of that goal decades ago.

Except those people heavily dictate how the system operates. "Systems" don't just operate without human input or decision-making.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#53

Post by zdragnar »

I once lived in a neigh orhood where you learned to avlid the grocery stores on certain days (especially evenings when fewer police worked), as you would be harassed by people trying to sell you their food stamps.

I am sympathetic to people who don't have enough; I know several for whom food stamps and the local food shelf / food banks were thr only ways they got by, either as children or adults.

However, the persistent theme running through the comments here that people are dying in the streets of starvation and noone is doing anything about it is just a myth. Blaming rich people for it just makes it worse, as if the world were so simple, black and white.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#54

Post by kthejoker2 »

Let us remember our Anatole France: "In its majestic equality, the law forbids rich and poor alike to steal loaves of bread."

To be alive and abundant in the wealthiest country in human history knowing this is occurring is a sin, and it is not the slightest bit of relief to know God will out.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#55

Post by RIMR »

lightgreen wrote: post #29
swiley wrote: post #14

The US is probably inches away from a serious catastrophy caused be the extreme inequality that's only gotten worse this year. Inequality is one thing, but when you're forced out on to the street to starve to death and there's nothing you can do to improve your situation that's totally different.

Nobody is starving to death in the US. Food stamps and food bank help with that. The situation may be bad, but not as dramatic as you paint it.

The problem is food insecurity. People might not be dying, but children are growing up malnourished. That has serious long term effects. Food stamps and charity don't solve the root problem.

And food insecurity could quickly turn into deadly famine if we ever have an interruption in the food supply, especially with our "just in time" supply chain mentality.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#56

Post by SpicyLemonZest »

mempko wrote: post #20
8f2ab37a-ed6c wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that Elon Musk doesn't have plenty of flaws that people online will be happy to spill much ink about, but what does that have to do with widespread poverty on a national level? Does the US not have a government and state-level and federal-level representatives whose job it is to take care of their citizens and keep them out of starvation? Elon Musk and his pals seem like a convenient distraction from holding acco…

Because money is power and it's clear people like Musk have a bigger responsibility to push for an accountable government.

Are you sure? I like Elon Musk quite a bit, and even I don't think he should go around telling politicians what to do. That's not what we as a society have businesspeople for.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#57

Post by nostromo »

RangerScience wrote: post #28
sjg007 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s the pandemic that is tripping the scale and Congress refusing to do anything.

> Congress refusing to do anything. Senate. House has passed stimulus packages. IMO further delineation is deserved, but contentious, so I'll leave it at that.

Before the election the roles were reversed; it's not as black and white as you're letting on.

https://www.newsweek.com/pelosi-says-she-backs-smaller-stimu...

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#58

Post by matthewmacleod »

just-juan-post wrote: post #50
sjg007 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s the pandemic that is tripping the scale and Congress refusing to do anything.

I'm still shocked that people beleive this. Well I'm not - It has been a reinforced Democratic talking point for months now. Why should the federal government bail out state governments when the federal government had nothing to do with the state's actions? The state governors could choose to end lifestyle restrictions at any moment but choose not to. Why should the federal government pay for the choices of states an…

The state governors could choose to end lifestyle restrictions at any moment but choose not to.

This is a gross misrepresentation that proves you have no interest in serious comment on this matter.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#59

Post by Mediterraneo10 »

sjg007 wrote: post #32
givehimagun wrote: post #22

As an American, I'm furious that we (American people) failed these people. I want to help - I've been blessed with a great job and I want find a way to help these people. The food bank in my region is distributing 2x the food they did last year. The director of the site mentioned how important it is to find ways to reach those who are food insecure in dignified ways. Find me more groups that want to/are helping with…

Donate cash to your food bank. Mortgages, rent and utilities are all suspended almost everywhere, so are student loan payments. So hopefully people won’t be evicted and not have to worry about bills right now. But I wonder if an instacart app for food bank delivery would be a good idea. Kind of like meals on wheels. Dunno.. it would beat queuing in cars for miles. Maybe there’s a way to do crowd funded UBI... it coul…

> Mortgages, rent and utilities are all suspended almost everywhere.

Wait, seriously? I haven't been following events in the USA during this COVID year, but I assumed that things are like in most other developed countries with regard to things expected of people. In most European countries you still have to pay your rent and utilities every month, in spite of the noticeable economic slowdown.

Re: More Americans are shoplifting food

#60

Post by ericmcer »

Serious_Cheese wrote: post #2

>“People will say, ‘I was just hungry.’ And then what do you do?” People stealing food to survive while the super wealthy and rich becoming richer and richer[1]. What a great time to be alive. [1]( https://www.forbes.com/sites/sergeiklebnikov/2020/11/18/elon... ) EDIT: I don't particularly dislike Elon (the man has done alot of good), but he was the easiest example I could think of. Stock market is a better indicator…

I never understood this because a Bezos, Musk or Gates aren’t gonna spend hundreds of millions a year buying up all the food and toilet paper. Their wealth buys them political power and influence but it shouldn’t really effect the supply chain as far as everyday basic goods are concerned.

So has our productive capacity fallen to where we can no longer feed everyone? Or are we producing enough food and then just trashing the excess when people cannot be afford it? It just doesn’t all add up for me. I am a novice at economics though.

Post reply on HN