by Cedric Mcclester

Created on: November 23, 2007

The Cowboy and The Indians

Looking at President George "Dubya" Bush posing with select members of the Chickahominy tribe at Virginia's Berkley Plantation, which lays claim to being the site of the first Thanksgiving, al holiday where those who can afford to stuff themselves, would give one the impression that all's well in America. It is not and the President's budget priorities are one of the reasons why. "Our nation's greatest strength is the decency and compassion of our people," Bush told hundreds gathered in a tent overlooking the James River. He went on to say, "As we count our many blessings I encourage all Americans to show their thanks by giving back." Too bad he doesn't follow his own council.

Some 38 million people in America are considered "food insecurethey have trouble finding the money to keep food on the table according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The 2005 report went on to say more than 13 million families in 2004 were unable at times to buy the food they needed. Finances are so strained with 5 million families that one or more members goes hungry as a result. I could site more statistics because the statistics are endless, but the situation begs the question why? How can we have hunger in the richest nation in the world you might ask. After all we're far from being Sub-Sahara Africa.

A major part of food insecurity (hunger) in America relates to the uncertainties of daily life the report goes on to state. People go hungry because of unexpected events, such as paying for an emergency visit to the hospital, a car repair, or more commonly the loss of a job. You can be just above the poverty line, and any one of those circumstances can push you into poverty. The report continues when a family is living that close to the edge, the bottom line is that cuts will be made in the consumption of food. Food is purchased with cash. If you don't have a credit card, then you have to pay cash for food. The majority of people don't have a monthly charge account at the local grocery store. There also are problems of access and distribution. Good healthy nutritional healthy fresh food is expensive , especially if you work at a minimum wage job. The national minimum wage is still woefully inadequate. There is also a definite geography of poverty. The highest rates of poverty are found in Appalachia, the Mississippi Delta, the US Mexico border and Indian reservations. Perhaps it was apropos that the President chose to take his photo op

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