Govt Spends $500 Million Of Our Tax Dollars To Bring Kale To The Hood. Oops.
Other people's money spends so easily and so well -- and failing at your job in government tends to get you big bonuses, not fired, like in the private sector. (If you do get fired from a government job, it generally takes a huge outcry and perhaps a few dozen flattened kittens.)
About that kale-targeted $500K of taxpayer dollars, Elizabeth Nolan Brown writes at Reason:
"Since 2011, the Federal Government has spent almost $500 million to improve food store access in neighborhoods lacking large, well-stocked grocery stores," according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). "States and local governments have also launched programs to attract supermarkets or improve existing stores in underserved areas. For example, the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Initiative has provided $30 million of public funds (matched with $117 million of private investment) to help address limited store access in underserved urban and rural areas throughout Pennsylvania."The theory was simple: poor people simply lacked easy access to healthy food options. If you put fruits, vegetables, and whole grains in front of them, they would soon be singing the praises of Michael Pollan, too. And voila: no more obesity epidemic in these neighborhoods.
But of course things didn't work out that way. As many business owners in these neighborhoods and other food-desert skeptics have pointed out, the problem wasn't that they simply hadn't thought to offer more wholesome items. The problem was that these items just didn't sell. You can lead human beings to Whole Foods, but you can't make them buy organic kale there.
The USDA just admitted as much, with a new report on food deserts published in its magazine, Amber Waves. Highlights from the article note that proximity to supermarkets "has a limited impact on food choices" and "household and neighborhood resources, education, and taste preferences may be more important determinants of food choice than store proximity.
Duh.
Did they really think American businesses are stupid?
If there were a market there and profit to be made, they would be there. Millions of private company dollars are spent on marketing studies. Who buys what, where. Whole Foods, Kroger and Costco already knew.
But a bunch of government bureaucrats get lifetime pensions for wasting 500 million of our hard earned dollars. Lovely.
Annie at June 15, 2016 5:55 AM
"Did they really think American businesses are stupid?"
Yes, Annie - they did. Don't you remember that both Hillary and Obama have said that American Businesses don't create jobs and opportunity, the government does? There has never been a more narcissistic left serving, and WRONG statement in all of the history of the USA. It makes the joke about "We're the government and we're here to help" even funnier! I mean, REALLY?
They wanted the sheeple to actually believe, and only the REAL REAL left leaning people would trumpet this, that the only real jobs were created by the government, through government programs. Therefore, THIS particular government program was designed to help further the narrative - create health, jobs, opportunity, etc. Except, just like the left's green programs, etc., it is a big failure....
Lee Ladisky at June 15, 2016 6:43 AM
There's a reason our blog hostess eats kale: because she saute's it in bacon grease.
As far as Federal Government employees, it's pretty much impossible to get fired. Here's one who's committed a felony:
http://dailycaller.com/2016/03/22/va-worker-gets-job-back-despite-armed-robbery-charge/
Maybe when she's convicted and has to go to the big house and can't show up to work they'll finally terminate her employment?
I'm pretty sure some of the Phoenix VA people who got "fired" have been brought back, even if they fraudulently rigged the books to show low wait times which turned into the basis for bonuses.
I R A Darth Aggie at June 15, 2016 6:53 AM
There has never been a more narcissistic left serving, and WRONG statement in all of the history of the USA.
Oh, I dunno. I'd give "you didn't build that" pretty high marks.
Tho Alan Grayson's "weapon designed to fire 700 rounds a minute" comes close, but that's just facepalm stupidity from a loathsome individual.
I R A Darth Aggie at June 15, 2016 6:59 AM
People don't want to admit that the cause of bad neighborhoods isn't lack of availability of Boston lettuce. Bad neighborhoods are bad because of bad culture. Government had a lot to do with creating that culture. So if someone wanted to actually fix the problem, the first step would be to stop doing those things. But that doesn't fit the agenda. I mentioned the Curley effect in another post, which seems to be the operating philosophy of most people in political office today. Bad neighborhoods are client classes; they are very important to keeping incumbents in office.
Cousin Dave at June 15, 2016 7:16 AM
Progressives/Democrats make their living reversing cause and effect and forcing people to give money to them to attempt that reversal.
Rich people have nice homes, so subsidize homes to make people rich.
Successful people get college degrees, so hand out degrees to make them successful.
People with technology degrees make good money, so encourage technology degrees,
despite a person's inability to do the work.
Smart people eat vegetables, so subsidize vegetables.
People making $15/hour are comfortable, so
require that all jobs pay at least that
much despite higher unemployment among the people supposedly being helped.
Guns kill people, so attempt to ban guns, despite 99% of mass killings happening in
gun-free zones. It is better to die as a
peaceful sheep rather than fight back
with violence. We will eliminate violence.
Even better, such efforts will always fail, and so these projects are assured to have
a long life, long enough to employ the relatives and children, while signalling
the highest dedication to a better world.
"We are working for you, for as long as it takes, forever if necessary."
Andrew Garland at June 15, 2016 10:22 AM
And yet, big cities HATE Walmart (which has cheap groceries) and won't give them a permit. How inconsistent can one get? (rhetorical question)
Craig Loehle at June 15, 2016 11:17 AM
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