Ping Fortenberry

Found out some details today.

We get about a ton of food each month from MEFAP (Mass Emergency Food
Availability Program), but that will soon be cutting back. The State
is already in a billion dollar deficit with more to follow. We get 14
cases of ten various items (from a list of about 20). That is from
the Lowell Food Bank which is a State run facility. We also get about
another ton of food for which we pay $0.17/pound. Our money comes
from two $5000 private grants, and about $20K from two churches, and
some money from fund raisers (auction, sponsored foot race, etc.).

The local supermarkets give us yesterday's pastries/breads, and old
fruit and vegetables which we have to package.

Our expenses are mortgage on the building, expenses for the 12 pass
van, heat and electricity, etc. Only one person is paid - the
Director and then she is only a part-time employee, and doesn't make
very much for all she has to go through each week.

Our cubbards are getting very bare because of the State's cutbacks and
a slight increase in clients.

Dave

"Dave LaCourse" wrote in message
...
Found out some details today.

We get about a ton of food each month from MEFAP (Mass Emergency Food
Availability Program), but that will soon be cutting back. The State
is already in a billion dollar deficit with more to follow. We get 14
cases of ten various items (from a list of about 20). That is from
the Lowell Food Bank which is a State run facility. We also get about
another ton of food for which we pay $0.17/pound. Our money comes
from two $5000 private grants, and about $20K from two churches, and
some money from fund raisers (auction, sponsored foot race, etc.).

The local supermarkets give us yesterday's pastries/breads, and old
fruit and vegetables which we have to package.

Our expenses are mortgage on the building, expenses for the 12 pass
van, heat and electricity, etc. Only one person is paid - the
Director and then she is only a part-time employee, and doesn't make
very much for all she has to go through each week.

Our cubbards are getting very bare because of the State's cutbacks and
a slight increase in clients.


that would be cupboards, and my dad reported the same from the Breakfast
Mission he is involved with in Delaware. As I stated earlier, we are seeing
similar effects at the Catholic Charities Food Pantry here in Berks County.
Tom
Dave

Tom Littleton wrote:
"Dave LaCourse" wrote:
...
Our cubbards are getting very bare because of the State's cutbacks and
a slight increase in clients.

that would be cupboards, and my dad reported the same from the Breakfast
Mission he is involved with in Delaware. As I stated earlier, we are seeing
similar effects at the Catholic Charities Food Pantry here in Berks County.

Same here, the Eastern Illinois Foodbank does well when the economy
is rolling along, when the economy goes south, not so much.

--
Ken Fortenberry

We are still doing well, with only a minor addition of clients. Today
is was about 10 Cambodians who have been on relieve since they came to
this country years ago. They recently heard about our mission.

The food cutback is due to the state's inability to stop they hoggish
spending. Our Dem gov inherited a surplus just two short years ago,
and now we are into a billion dollar debt.

And stop being a net nannie, Tom. It does not become you. d;o)

Dave

On Tue, 14 Oct 2008 18:00:50 -0400, Dave LaCourse
wrote:
[...]
Our Dem gov inherited a surplus just two short years ago,
and now we are into a billion dollar debt.

Not surprisingly, Dave got that totally wrong.


In a November 27, 2006 presentation to Governor-Elect Deval Patrick's budget
advisers, Romney aides projected a budget deficit for fiscal 2008, which
begins in July, of between $400 million and $1.1 billion. The latter figure
proved correct.

Other facts about Mitt Romney tour as Governor of Massachusetts:

Under Romney, Tax Burden Went Up
In 2002, Tax Foundation Ranked Total Tax Burden In Massachusetts 9th In The
Nation. According To The Tax Foundation, Total Tax Burden In Massachusetts Was
7th Highest In The Country In Both 2006 And 2007.

Romney Didn’t Reduce Income Tax
Romney Pledged To Roll Back The State’s Income Tax To 5 Percent By The End Of
His First Term, But Today, Income Tax Rate In Massachusetts Is Still 5.3%.

Romney Didn’t Reduce Corporate Tax Rate
Throughout Romney’s Term As Governor, Massachusetts’ Corporate Income Tax Rate
Remained At 9.50%, The Fourth Highest State Rate In The Nation.

Romney Raised Taxes At Least 19 Times
Romney Enacted 19 Tax Increases, Which Cost Taxpayers An Estimated $519
Million In First Year They Were Enacted.
Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation President Michael Widmer Noted That
Businesses Have Been Paying $1 Billion Annually In New Taxes For The Last Four
Years.

Romney Proposed An Additional 6 Tax Hikes That Would Have Cost Taxpayers An
Additional Estimated $56.1 Million In Their First Year, But They Were Not
Enacted.

BUSINESS CLIMATE DECLINED UNDER GOVERNOR ROMNEY

When Romney Took Office In 2003, The Non-Partisan Tax Foundation Ranked
Massachusetts’ Business Climate 26th In The Nation.

After Romney’s First Year As Governor, Massachusetts Dropped Eight Places To
34th In The Nation. By The End Of Romney’s Term, Massachusetts Had The 14th
Worst Business Tax Climate In The Country, Ranking 37th On The Tax
Foundation’s List.

Number Of New Employer Businesses Decreased Under Governor Romney
Associated Industries Of Massachusetts President Richard Lord Said Romney’s
Tax Increases Could Discourage Employers From Staying Or Relocating In
Massachusetts.

From 2002 To 2005, Estimated Number Of New Employer Businesses In
Massachusetts Decreased By 9.215% While Increasing Nationally By 22.12%.
Massachusetts Lost 3,384 Business Establishments Between Mitt Romney’s First
Year And Third Year As Governor.

UNDER GOVERNOR ROMNEY, MASSACHUSETTS RANKED AT BOTTOM OF NATION FOR JOB
CREATION

Massachusetts Is One Of Only Seven States That Has Still Not Recovered All Of
The Payroll Jobs That It Had At The Peak Of The Business Cycle. Romney
Spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom: Did We Recover All The Jobs That Were Lost? No.
From The Beginning Of 2001 To The End Of 2006, Massachusetts Ranked 49th In
The Nation In Job Creation, Outpacing Only The State Of Michigan.

Formal Payroll Employment In 2006 Was 16,000 (0.5%) Below Its Average Level In
2002, The Third Lowest In The Nation.

While The Number Of Employed People Over Age 16 Rose Nationally By Nearly 8
Million Between 2002 And 2006, The Number In Massachusetts Fell By 8,500.
GOV. ROMNEY DIDN’T SOLVE MASSACHUSETTS’ BUDGET DEFICIT

Romney Inherited Deficit But Left One Too

On Campaign Trail, Romney Claims To Have Closed A Nearly $3 Billion Budget Gap
Inherited When He Took Office.

Romney Actually Only Faced A Budget Deficit Of $1.3 Billion At The Beginning
Of His Term.

Romney Admitted In 2005 That The $3 Billion Gap Didn’t Come True.
In November 2006 Romney Aides Projected A Budget Deficit For Fiscal 2008
Between $400 Million And $1.1 Billion. The latter figure proved correct.

And Romney Increased Size Of Government

Romney’s Recommended Budgets Increased Real Per Capita Government Spending By
7.85%.
Total Spending In Recommended Budgets Grew 22.2% Under Romney’s Watch, From
$29.477 Billion In Fiscal 2003 To $36.021 Billion In Fiscal 2007.

In article , Dave LaCourse
wrote:

Found out some details today.

We get about a ton of food each month from MEFAP (Mass Emergency Food
Availability Program), but that will soon be cutting back. The State
is already in a billion dollar deficit with more to follow. We get 14
cases of ten various items (from a list of about 20). That is from
the Lowell Food Bank which is a State run facility. We also get about
another ton of food for which we pay $0.17/pound. Our money comes
from two $5000 private grants, and about $20K from two churches, and
some money from fund raisers (auction, sponsored foot race, etc.).

The local supermarkets give us yesterday's pastries/breads, and old
fruit and vegetables which we have to package.

Our expenses are mortgage on the building, expenses for the 12 pass
van, heat and electricity, etc. Only one person is paid - the
Director and then she is only a part-time employee, and doesn't make
very much for all she has to go through each week.

Our cubbards are getting very bare because of the State's cutbacks and
a slight increase in clients.

this all sounds crazy to me. What's going on? Banks being nationalized,
people who haven't made proper provision for the future being given
handouts?

Do you want a socialist (Obama?) for your next president or don't you?
I think Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan would have been horrified
by what's happening to private banks in the US at the moment.

the market is the only thing that works. We all know that. At times,
companies fail. That's part of the normal working of the market.

Only commies want handouts to people who, let's face it, have made bad
decisions about employment or about savings. If you get rid of moral
risk (which requires that people who have made bad decisions should get
hurt) then you destroy the very market which has made our great country
wealthy.

There are a lot of people out there who hate America, and want to
destroy it. They are those who will cry fire in a crowded theatre, and
will call for handouts when there's a blip in the market.

The American way has made us rich: it requires that a few people who
have made bad choices will suffer if the majority are going to flourish
(and if those that flourish are going to be lean and fit). It also
requires that we don't hand out taxpayers' money to people who have
made bad choices.

What's happening now is socialism. If I'd known that George W Bush was
a commie, I wouldn't have voted for him last time round.

Lazarus

"Lazarus Cooke" wrote in message
news:141020082339500453%lazaruscooke@britishlibrar y.invalid...
There are a lot of people out there who hate America, and want to
destroy it. They are those who will cry fire in a crowded theatre, and
will call for handouts when there's a blip in the market.


this group would, seemingly, include most elected officials, not to mention
about half of Wall Street. Who the hell wouldn't want private profits and
nationalized risk?

The American way has made us rich: it requires that a few people who
have made bad choices will suffer if the majority are going to flourish
(and if those that flourish are going to be lean and fit).

huh?? This sounds like a cross between Dr. Phil and Richard Simmons, with a
dose or two of blotter acid thrown in.

Tom

In article , Tom Littleton
wrote:

Who the hell wouldn't want private profits and
nationalized risk?

So how far do you take it?

Jack-booted Europeans trampling across the plains of Montana?

In many places in Europe, any bum who's voluntarily chosen NOT to take
out insurance can just roll up at a hospital, and get treated for tens
of thousands of dollars-worth of treatment paid for by hard-working
taxpayers. this is what clinton and obama are secretly trying to
impose upon us.

If poor people go without eating for a week they won't die. They may
even be healthier after a hungry weekend, and start thinking about what
jobs they're really prepared to do.

Do people like Dave de la Course want us to pay for people wh own a
television set? Why haven't they sold it?

L

On Wed, 15 Oct 2008 00:08:44 +0100, Lazarus Cooke
wrote:

Do people like Dave de la Course want us to pay for people wh own a
television set? Why haven't they sold it?

Lazarus, I am the biggest capitalist you will ever find. I am not a
bleeding heart liberal, and socialism is the worst of all the isms.

BUT, some people fall through the cracks in the floor in our country.
They receive assistance (it is some times my job to check what and how
much assistance they get), but without the food given to them at the
various food pantries in the area, they would be hungry. Is their
cheating amongst them? Bet your bippy there is. But it is not my job
to punish them for their cheating. I believe they will some day reap
what they sow. But in the mean time, I have no qualms about helping
someone who needs a hand-out, who needs help getting past a bad period
in their life, who needs just a few groceries and a warm blanket to
stave off the cold while they are homeless. You would do the same if
you saw them.

Dave

On Oct 15, 12:24*am, Dave LaCourse wrote:

I have no qualms about helping
someone who needs a hand-out, who needs help getting past a bad period
in their life, who needs just a few groceries and a warm blanket to
stave off the cold while they are homeless. *You would do the same if
you saw them.

Dave

Sorry Dave but that's socialist talk.

Are you a socialist or aren't you?

Are you American or aren't you?

L