Monthly Archives: November 2008

http://www.welfaregame.com/

I tried to look through older posts to see if this was already put up, but I guess not.

I know this is a spoof, but it brings together what we talk about in class. I love the horoscopes. =]

So this is an article I found on NYTimes. It argues how the Washington Post recently had a front page article about rising hunger and how the number of Americans on food Stamps is reaching a “record high” but fails to take into account the fact that the population is growing. Basically, false and exaggerated info is being used to make food stamps appear as an even bigger problem than it may actually seem, all this according to the Nytimes. They argue that it may be true that the number of Americans on welfare is rising but the U.S. population is also reaching its highest level ever. I find it interesting that this particular article is used to critique the Washington Post for the way it presented its article rather than focusing on the issue of food stamps. I think it’s becoming pretty clear that the use of food stamps is on the rise especially with the state of the current economy, so there shouldn’t be such emphasis on the way this issue is presented. I guess that’s just the media at work. Your thoughts?

?scp=2&sq=food%20stamps&st=cse

An article in The New York Times yesterday showed that children living in public housing in NYC preform bad in school. This follows up on the discussion we had in class about how much your environment affects your performance in life.

The researchers suggest that public housing’s culture of poverty offers young people few role models to stress the importance of education, limits their resources and exposes them to crime or widespread peer pressure from those not doing well in school. Another possible reason is that families who live in public housing may differ from other poor families in ways that are hard to measure.

There is a large number of public housing residents who are unemployed, disabled or receive public assistance. Of the 112,000 children ages 5 to 18, roughly 95 percent are black or Hispanic, and 56 percent live below the federal poverty level. Many households are headed by single mothers.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/24/nyregion/24children.html

This story had even more great perspective than I remember.  You’ll be very interested to read the story of the college student who can’t keep up because of the lousy prep she got in high school.

wall in hallway of DC school.

http://www.oprah.com/slideshow/oprahshow/oprahshow1_ss_20060411/1

I found this article and was shocked to see some of the conditions that the Public Schools in NYC are/were teaching our children in.  Classrooms being made out of old closets and bathrooms?  Handcuffs being distributed to the schools?  I think there needs to be a redistribution of the money so that all schools are safe, clean, and provide good teachers for our children.

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Third_World_US/SI_Kozol_NewYork.html

Since we have seen the pbs video on how unfair and expensive medical procedures are in the United States…many people also go to international countries to get the same procedure done..for much cheaper!

India is a booming economy, in which medical tourism is on the rise.

Heart Sugrery in the United Sates       $30,000 vs.    India $8,700

Orthopedic Surgery in the U.S.         $20,000 vs.   India $6,300

With hotel stays & plane ticket expensese, the patient would end up paying less!

Some facts of Medical Tourism in India

	An estimated 150,000 “medical tourists” visited India last year, representing a 20 per cent jump over the previous year.
	The CII-McKinsey report suggests that medical tourism could fetch as much as $2 billion by 2012, compared to an estimated $333 million currently.
	A Famous Mumbai and Goa based cosmetic surgeon says his practice goes 1200 international patient last year, double the number from previous year.

Medical tourists can also check with their insurance provider whether treatment at an internationally recognized hospital in India is covered by their policy. If not, the patient will have to bear the expense of their treatment. The cost of treatment will however be much less than the equivalent treatment in a hospital in the West.

I think that though it is cheaper to go to another country, someone is not chosing their surgeon face-to-face. The question that what if something goes wrong…whats a patient suppose to do then?

I found this article in the NY Times….not only does it talk about Costco not accepting food stamps but sheds light on the fact that food stamp applications are at an all time high since the country’s economic crisis.  Its states that now the government will have to deal with rising food costs that have lowered the amount of food that food stamp recipients can buy.   So many people are losing their jobs while food costs continue to rise, how will the government accommodate new applicants? and increase food stamp allowances when our welfare system is so flawed? check out the article below…

November 19, 2008, 6:30 am <!– — Updated: 3:29 pm –>

Why Doesn’t Costco Accept Food Stamps?

Councilman Eric N. Gioia outside the Costco store in Long Island City, Queens.

Farmers’ markets accept food stamps. The Harlem Fairway accepts food stamps. So does Trader Joe’s in Brooklyn. Even Whole Foods, which has been trying to shake that “Whole Paycheck” image, accepts food stamps. But Costco, the warehouse retailer that made its reputation as the anti-Wal-Mart, generous not only to Costco’s customers but to its workers as well, does not.

“Costco in general has a reputation of being a socially conscious company,” said Eric N. Gioia, a city councilman from Queens who last year began a campaign asking Costco to accept food stamps after discovering it did not during the “live on food stamps for a week” stunt. “There is no logical reason for someone not to accept food stamps. It is not only compassionate, but it’s good for their bottom line.” (more…)

I found this blog on the NY Post website.  I thought it was interesting because it talks about how McCain continues to compare Obama’s tax cuts plan to welfare.  The blogger has interpreted McCain’s use of the term “welfare” to be filled with racial undertones.  as we spoke of in class, maybe the blogger is interpreting it this way because of the negative public view of welfare and welfare recepients.

check out the blog on <a href=”http://www.nypost.com/seven/10192008/news/politics/mac_playing_welfare_card_134220.htm”>http://www.nypost.com/seven/10192008/news/politics/mac_playing_welfare_card_134220.htm</a>

Posted by christina Lebron

I recently found this article in New York Times that discusses the major issues faced by many middle-class families in today’s economy. Because of the recent economic issues, many have lost jobs and find it rather difficult to support themselves and their families. Therefore most of these unfortunate people who are now unemployed must turn to food banks, soup kitchens and other charitable organizations to put food on the table. But because of the recent increase in families visiting food pantries, the demand is far greater than what most organizations can supply. Because of the recent job market, food aid has increased to about 40 percent, with the normal at 20 percent become the economic slow down. And many predict it will increase by 2009 if the economy slips into a further decline. Federal studies have found out that an estimated 35.5 million people lack enough nutritious food to eat and about 10 million children and adults alike go hungry in America today. The main problem of this new food shortage in food banks and the sudden demand and increase of people visiting food pantries is because of the job market and the current economy. People are losing jobs, and if the economy does not shape up, more people are going to turn to food aid and donations for help. Even the food banks are suffering because they can’t keep up with demands and grocery chains that once donated food are now cutting back because of monetary issues.

I just found this video on youtube and thought that it was quite interesting that the cartoon wanted to stop funding the poor all together. Giving the money to multinational corporations instead of helping people in our own society.