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From: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Newsgroups: net.politics.theory,net.politics
Subject: Re: Extent of hunger in America
Message-ID: <803@psivax.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 21-Oct-85 23:38:44 EDT
Article-I.D.: psivax.803
Posted: Mon Oct 21 23:38:44 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 26-Oct-85 07:35:17 EDT
References: <203@gargoyle.UUCP> <3913@topaz.RUTGERS.EDU> <215@gargoyle.UUCP>
Reply-To: friesen@psivax.UUCP (Stanley Friesen)
Organization: Pacesetter Systems Inc., Sylmar, CA
Lines: 43
Xref: linus net.politics.theory:1357 net.politics:10999

In article <215@gargoyle.UUCP> carnes@gargoyle.UUCP (Richard Carnes) writes:
>
>Jan Wasilewsky writes:
>
>> An *egg* only costs a dime; at *minimum wage*, it embodies
>>100 seconds of work; it provides enough protein for some hours
>>(and you don't even have to cook it).
>>Carbohydrates and fats are even more accessible.
>
>>Whatever nutritional problems exist in this country,  they  cannot,
>>in  fairness, be called "hunger". If you can earn, receive, steal
>>or borrow a dime an  hour,  you  can't  (except  voluntarily)  go
>>hungry.  
>
>But millions of Americans *cannot* earn, beg, borrow, or steal even
>that much.  They include children, the elderly, the mentally and
>physically ill, the disabled, and the unemployed.  If they had any
>adequate sources of income, very few of these would still be hungry.
>How does Jan square this with his belief that food automatically
>distributes itself in nations where there is high food productivity?
>
	Oh barf! *Anyone* who is not totally immoblized or
incarcerated can earn *at* *least* 0.25 an hour by begging!
(In fact the figure is probably closer to a full dollar). All that is
necessary is to stand/sit/lie at a busy street corner and ask everyone
if they can spare some change.(Or if you are mute, write a sign) You
would be amazed at how many people will give out a quarter! Just one
person per hour will net enough to buy over two eggs. A mere four
givers per hour will net a dollar. And I have seen many mentally and
physically ill people doing just this. Admittedly this generates
barely sufficient funds to buy food, but it *does* do that much.

	Please do not misunderstand me. I am not in favor of a pure
capitalist economy, and I support government anti-poverty programs. I
would like to see all the beggers able to get thier needed food in
other ways. I just found your statement above to be too wild to let
pass without some comment!
-- 

				Sarima (Stanley Friesen)

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