I heard about this yesterday. At first I thought, "cool, our governor is really getting to the level of regular people." But not really. They won't be able to experience it completely. I guess he's trying, so that's good. Perhaps he should live in a shelter for a week with no car. That might be a little more of a real experience.

Reply

Oh, please, the point is to bring attention to the issue, not to see what it's really like. There's obviously a case to be made for "learning what it's really like", but that's a quest for a single person. This is a quest to raise awareness, and it's obviously working regardless of whether or not he lives in a mansion and uses a car.

Reply

I understand the other questions about their house and car and such, but he's doing something that he doesn't *have* to do, especially in a state where 1 in 10 kids goes hungry, it's very, very important.

Reply

he just wants to look like he cares. if he really did, then he would do something about the astonomical taxes, business un-friendly atmosphere, and the legislature that says they are smarter than the population and go against popular votes all the time. sorry, but i think all he cares about is his aprooval rating, not the plight of those who can't affortd food and healthcare. (and yes i live in oregon)

Reply

Some of those "astonomical" taxes just don't exist, gomergirl, like a sales tax. If we added that, knocked down minimum wage more toward the national level (not that I'm complaining, being a student employee whose pay scale is m.w.), there'd be more chance for employment and we wouldn't be--what is it?--#2 in the nation for unemployment.

But it is true: the legislature statewide is comprised of a bunch of idiots.

Reply

The problem with these "try it for a week" schemes (living on food stamps for a week, spending the weekend in prison, wearing a fat suit)is not that he has a nice car, nice house, etc. but that he knows the experiment will end.

The stress of living on food stamps, etc. is not having to make it work but the feeling of hopelessness that comes along with it.

Reply

I'm a disabled grandmother raising two grandchildren I've had since their birth. They're now 12 and 14. There's an insane clause in the foodstamp benefits that says if you earn your income, you get more foodstamps. So I get less foodstamps than someone who can work. Also, in the summer when the kids don't go to school, food stamp benefits are cut. During school, they get two meals a day at school. In summer, they have to eat all three at home. My food stamp benefits are $256 a month during winter, less in summer. I wish the Governor could walk a mile in my mocassins! I hope that there will be some positive changes made through his week on food stamps.

Reply