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Food Stamps

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Going online to several forums and websites concerning food stamps, or the debate regarding food stamps, will lead a reader to find an interesting debate. This debate has been called the witch hunt for food stamps. The debate itself is over various aspects of the food stamp program. One of the leading debates is concerning what types of foods a beneficiary should be able to purchase with food stamps. The second debate, and possibly the most heated portion of the debate, concerns the perceived notion of what a food stamp beneficiary looks like. These two debates have caused a witch hunt epidemic throughout the country.

Grocery Stalkers

Grocery stalkers is the name that has been given to those individuals who lead up the so-called food stamp witch hunt. These are the people that will post on forums and websites concerning the debate over not only the perceived notion of what a food stamp beneficiary looks like, but also what people are purchasing in the checkout lines. The grocery stalkers tend to follow individuals they believe are on food stamps based only on their appearance. Once they reach the checkout line or aisle, the grocery stalker will take a picture of the items in someone’s cart or make note of what the person is buying. They will then post this online for others to see and comment on. The problem with these grocery stalkers is the majority of the time, they are choosing individuals who were not on food stamps and solely going after them based on their own preconceived notions. Grocery stores are making an effort to stop this particular action. However, often times it is a situation too little too late and the damage has already been done.

Fraudulent Reporters

There has also been an increase in the amount of fraudulent reports on the misuse of food stamp and cash benefits by beneficiaries. The same individuals who perform grocery stalking, will also fraudulently report a beneficiary for the misuse of food stamps. For example, there have been hundreds of fraudulent reports of stores allowing a beneficiary to use a food stamp card to purchase alcohol or another item that is prohibited on the food stamp program. In truth, the beneficiary may not have food stamps at all but may be using an EBT card with cash benefits.

These cash benefits are gained from child support or other government programs that have no regulations or stipulations on what a person may purchase. As long as the beneficiary is using cash benefits and not food stamp benefits they are allowed to purchase whatever item they see fit. They are also allowed to use an ATM in order to withdraw cash funds. These are not fraudulent uses of the card, but a misconception on fraudulent reporters assuming that EBT card may only hold food stamp benefits.

The outrage of communities regarding the massive amount of food stamp beneficiaries, EBT card users and beneficiaries of government benefits has grown out of hand in several areas. In addition to the grocery stalkers and fraudulent reporters listed, there are also many cases reported of angry citizens who have taken it upon themselves to administer justice to who they believe are being fraudulent with their government benefits. In many cases this has become a violent administering of justice and has caused increasing issues for police departments across the country.

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