Hunger, true hunger isn't funny, at all. However I'm always weary of statistics like this. What does "hungry" mean? How is it that obesity and hunger are both issues affecting the poor? Are the fat poor kids stealing the food from the hungry ones? I have been the recipient of food shelf donations as well as a volunteer and now that I have the means, a donor. There are so many programs out there that give assistance to the needy, either with real food or with food "stamps," that I have a hard time believing that the number is as large as they claim on the billboard. I have often had to bite my tongue when I have a family come into the food pantry (often all over-weight) and they go for all the prepackaged foods that are absolute garbage. We often have to throw away the staple foods, flour, beans, rice, canned meats et.c. because the people that frequent the pantry rarely take the foods that would benefit them the most. In my experience, even the poor will often forgo proper nutrition and even entire meals because they lack the skills or, perhaps, the desire to actually cook for themselves. A bag of flour, some yeast and a few other basic, inexpensive ingredients will make a lot of bread. Oh, but wait, it takes a LOT of effort to make bread and it doesn't come in "white" and it isn't presliced. I know! There is the 5 pound bag of brown rice! Sure a little rice goes a long way but it isn't processed, covered in sugar or cheese... Hmmmm I guess the "family" sized box of shells and cheese is a better choice. It's almost completely devoid of nutrition, won't actually feed an American family but heck, all you gots to do is boil water.
Like the saying goes, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." The idea that the only affordable food is fast food is silly. People who believe that need to learn to shop. Clip some coupons! I just went shopping today and coupons got me $110 worth of food for a little over $50 and this is roughly days worth of REAL food for a family of six. Buy basic ingredients instead of prepackaged and processed food. I know, I know I may have to use a knife to cut, or a whisk to mix and, perhaps, more then one pot or pan. I must be a heartless bastage for expecting others to be able to provide for themselves.
Is there real hunger in the United States? There probably is some, but I'd bet a bag of rice that a village or ten in Africa would eat like kings on what those "hungry" few have.
