The United States is in the midst of another government shutdown, and this one seems more intractable than the ones that came before it. Part of the calamity involves the non-payment of SNAP benefits (aka "Food Stamps").
A couple of quick facts about that: About one in eight Americans relies on those benefits to some extent. And the majority of those folks are in households that also bring in income, just not enough, according to our own legal standards. (Remember those?)
A third fact about that is that my sister was receiving said benefits when she was raising her son, Charlie. She also completed, in that time span, her Bachelor's and Master's degrees.
It was a struggle, a worthwhile one, although the tragedy of Charlie's passing and the incredible carnival of officially malicious stupidity that followed it made it seem less so, for quite a long time.
It is through representative government that our voices are supposed to be heard. But, living in Michigan's District 3, we were not heard where Charlie's false Death Certificate was concerned. And we are not being heard now. So, if you happen to be my House Rep, Republican Bill Huizenga of Holland, Michigan, this is an open letter to you.
In all fairness, this wasn't even District 3 during that time. Your office, sir, is a New Creation, borne by the cynical forces of Gerrymandering. You barely live within an hour of me, and you have done me no favors since landing your plush job.
The people who have less to eat because of your inaction today, Bill, are children. Children. Not conservative children, not liberal children, not minority children... They're little kids, man. You have represented our District so poorly that our Governor, thank God, has offered to step in with State assistance in lieu of federal cruelty (bearing your signature).
I can somewhat understand government not being interested in helping a deceased child, like Charlie. But in no way can I reconcile the withholding of food from citizens who still like to watch Saturday morning cartoons. And eat cereal.
Since one cannot be Pro-Life and Anti-Food at the same time, won't you please break with your doctrine of obstinate anger and do the right thing? But know this anyhow: No matter what course the GOP takes in the future, your Party has lost my vote, forever, because of this. The Democrats are not perfect; I have proven that on this blog. But at least most of them have a conscience.
I pray that you somehow find yours, whenever you get back to work, somewhere in all that darkness. A darkness in which only certain types of people tend to exist.
pH 11.o4.25
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