I was listening to NPR’s great show, “To the Point with Warren Olney”, last night and the subject was the new poverty numbers. Olney interviewed representatives from various food banks from around the country and then interviewed policy experts from Washington D.C. to give a somewhat balanced view of what is happening in America today.
Dinora Barahona (left), of North Bend, picks out food while volunteer Denise Angrisano assists July 21 at the Mount Si Helping Hand Food Bank. (Photo by Christopher Huber)
Perhaps the most heartbreaking part of the discussion is when one of the regional representatives (this one was from Arizona) talked about how former contributors to her food bank were now customers. Nobody in middle class America wants to hear that story.
By its very nature, American society is insecure. The promise of America is that if you work hard and play by the rules, you can achieve the American dream. The peril of America is that if you have some bad breaks or if you break the rules, you could end up being a customer and not a contributor to a food bank.
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