Technology triumphs food

As the picture above shows, Owsley County in Kentucky is a pretty place. But like the Appalachian region, has the distinction of being the nations’ poorest county, with the lowest household income of any county in the United States.

The County is 98% white and 81% Republican. More than half of Owsley County residents live below the poverty line and depend on Food Stamps, a Federal food assistance program that was hit hard yesterday when House Republicans voted to cut it drastically.

If the House Republicans bill passes, 3.8 million Americans will relapse below the poverty line by 2014. A large chunk of Owsley residents will go hungry. 

A paradox: There is Federal Food Assistance and then there is Federal Wireless Assistance, to “empower” the poor by giving them free cell phones. Walk down the streets of the Bronx in New York City, and men and women wearing nice clothes (looking very governmental), might just accost you, like a Jehovah’s Witness, and ask if you’re on any one of the government programs, If you are then you qualify for a free cell phone and free (albeit limited) connectivity [Assurance and Safelink Wireless, are two popular providers of “free government cell phones.”].

Is one to understand then it’s mandatory to provide free connectivity to the poor, but it’s not mandatory to subsidize their basic food consumption? How odd this paradox is. I suppose it’s based on the assumption that while technology is indispensable, food isn’t.

Food Stamps=freeloading, while free connectivity=a step toward self-empowerment?

As the very Parisian Marie Antoinette said (I am paraphrasing), give the poor cakes and they'll be happy. The 21st century equivalent of the 17th century Marie Antoinette "cake" paradigm is technology.

And why isn't there an App yet for downloading Food Stamps fast?