Kayley Robinson

Ms. McKoy

English II- 4^th Block

4 September, 2013

Should food stamps be monitored on what is bought with the tax payers’ money?

             I have noticed more people have been using food stamps lately. Some people spend Food Stamps on food that has outrageous prices. The people would act as if they do not care about the price of the food because they would just place the food into the shopping cart without looking at the prices. Someone who actually need Food Stamp money to buy food with would not be putting just anything into the shopping cart. They would be looking at the prices and they would look to see if it is healthy. When I was thinking about this, I asked myself, “Should Food Stamps be monitored on what is bought with the tax payers’ money?” I think that Food Stamps should be monitored because of the waste, fraud, and abuse.

             I am not the only one who thinks Food Stamps should be monitored because of the waste, friad, and abuse. In the article, The Food Stamp Program is Effective and Efficient stated, “Some in Congress have suggested that the Food Stamp Program can be cut this year by targeting “waste, fraud, and abuse” (Rosenbaum 1). Waste can be considered as buying items such as steak, name brands, and non healthy foods. Fraud is the people who claim they need the Food Stamps when they truly do not need them. Abuse is when you have the money for food and you receive Food Stamps so you don't have to pay for the food yourself. There is a person in my family who acted in pain and used a walker to get Food Stamps when she was perfectly cable of walking and not moaning in pain. “Food Stamp benefits average only about $1 per person per meal’ (Rosenbaum 1). That person in my family was more than cable of buying the food herself, but she was wasting the Food Stamps on soda, overpriced desserts, and Simple Carmel Snickers Bars.

            People who are taking advantage of Food Stamps are taking from the people who actually need the money for food to survive. “Someone who depends upon the Food Stamp Program to help them afford an adequate diet” (Rosenbaum 1). If you truly needed the Food Stamps, you would not be buying soda, overpriced desserts, and candy with the limited amount of money you get per month to feed yourself. From the money you get in Food Stamps each month should be spent on healthy food such as salads, fruits, and vegetables. In my opinion, I think Food Stamps should be monitored on what is bought. What do you think? Should Food Stamps be monitored?

Works Cited

Rosenbaum, Dottie. “The Food Stamp Program is Effective and Efficient.” http://www.cbpp.org. 29 June 2005. Web. 29 Aug 2013. <http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1183>.