Its all about the bottom line, democracy is dead in America Inc.

in a couple of months.

My opinion, many people of the USA are just selfish, non caring and greedy and that includes all spectrum of society in the United States of America.

In other words, its all of us. We as a country need to come together.

...and it would get even worse under tRump.

that leads you?

The corporations don't care, but I bet there are plenty of supervisors who would have turned a blind eye in the same situation. Some people simply have more compassion than others.

However it says she was fired by the district. I guess it is possible though.

My job wasn't that bad. I was initially hired to work with one of the managers for accounting, but my job shifted to being under the executive chef. My boss was really nice and I hung out with all the chefs. I was only a part-time worker. My job was to inventory of all the food and non-food items in the kitchen and then figure out where there were discrepancies I had to figure out where they were and fix them. My boss ordered all the products we used, but eventually he turned the easier ones over to me and let me deal with the vendors which was interesting. I also had access to all the storage areas including the freezer (my favorite place in the summer). I would go in there and get the raw cookie dough balls that they bought and eat them (my boss kept telling me I was going to get sick from them). I got all the beverages I could drink.

One day I was going to go upstairs to get something to drink and my boss asked me if I could get him some coffee. I said "sure." Then I went up and got my drink and poured his coffee. After that I went over to the grill, took out an egg, opened his coffee and cracked the egg putting the yoke in it. I went back with his coffee and he started drinking it. I stood there watching him. After he finished it I asked him if it tasted any different and he said no. Then I told him there was an egg in his coffee.

our morals and ethics have been hollowed out by corporate greed and the bottom line.

seems as if the corporate bosses are living scrooges dream.

Makes me sick! I know there are still a lot of really good people here, as this wonderful woman demonstrates. I hope she gets a lot of better job offers for this!

Matthew 25:37-46New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

37 ‘Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you ill or in prison and go to visit you?”

40 ‘The King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

41 ‘Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was ill and in prison and you did not look after me.”

44 ‘They also will answer, “Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or ill or in prison, and did not help you?”

45 ‘He will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”

46 ‘Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.’

Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone?

When was the last time Mike Huckabee or Ted Cruz visited a prison or hospital to care for the sick or imprisoned?

Don't sound like those kind of guys, but they use the rhetoric.

Prosperity Christianity! Its all the new rage.
Especially formulated for the I've-got-mine middle class church-going Republican lot. Basically the richer you are the more God likes you, and the poorer you are, the closer you are to worshiping Satan. So why should the prosperous God-blessed class help those who must have obviously pissed God off somehow based on their lack of material wealth and probably even secretly worship Satan?

It makes me sick. Yesterday I spoke to a Greek friend of mine who told me about a friend of hers in Greece who has leukemia is in the hospital for a bone marrow transplant. Her five-year-old child was stuck at school because his father was still at work after the school closed for the day, so the teacher took him home to play with her children until his father could get off work. This same teacher shared her lunch with the boy on another occasion when the father wasn't able to prepare one for him in advance. This kind of kindness is taken for granted in Greece. Here, that kind of compassion will either get you fired or get the police called on you. I still believe that most people in this country are good, but that is not rewarded or even recognized. We are failing as a society.

...for the next 2-4 decades....

That's cold.

From her Facebook page:

https://www.gofundme.com/9gfrtcss

Results in a million. Refusing to feed a child 800 bucks. Yikes!

This is only 2 days old. I hope there will be more contributions.

this story boggles the mind...hope funding catches fire

The frustrating part is that we should even have to do this at all. What is wrong with this country?

it buggers the mind to think adults who should know how much food is thrown away and parceled out to workers every day think that feeding a kid is wrong and is theft.

I don't care who thinks they have a plan to feed hungry children, I think the line workers who are neighbors and friends and family, who are directly dealing with children day to day know more about appropriate recipients of charity than do ARAMark contractor managers and school administrators.

This stinks. Rehire that woman.

Hunger and education should not be in the same sentence.

That's pretty normal for all of us or we wouldn't need to eat 3 times a day. She might just have burned off her breakfast we don't know.

at the very least. The fact that there are children going hungry in either one of those times is highly unacceptable, metabolism aside.

Then it's all speculation.

I'd minimize it too... were I so inclined.

However, benign speculation is part and parcel of a message board, hence it seems redundant to focus on that rather than the structure of the story itself. However, I realize bias often compels us to minimize, reduce and trivialize hunger if it doesn't stoke our belief-system in the desired manner.

If she was poor she'd be on the free lunch program. I know it feels better to blame the big bad government but there are missing facts.

are growing up in poverty. Many more are living in marginalized households, those homes that don't quite meet the government's definition of "poverty," but where food is not abundant, and parents struggle to make ends meet.

Children in poverty, and in these tenuous homes, frequently suffer depression, anxiety, PTSD, and a host of other mental stresses that make getting an education difficult, if not impossible. How can we expect a child to learn when hunger, and dirty clothes, and angry, frightened parents hold them in thrall?

When I was teaching, I would stop at McDonald's and purchase several sausage biscuits to give to my students who chose to attend my tutoring sessions, because--in order to get additional help with their math--these younglings would miss their "free breakfast" in the cafeteria. This "free breakfast" was most often a slice of white bread with a piece of fake cheese "melted" on top, and a carton of milk. Most students drank their milk, some nibbled at the center of this horrible "breakfast," and most threw the awful 'cheese toast' away.

Our current SecEd, Arne Duncan, and our last two presidents have done little to acknowledge this key reason for the "failure" of our system of public education. Far easier--and more convenient--to blame "bad teachers."

care about WAR and tax cuts for the rich.

But apparently that offer was rejected.

then it would not be stealing, now would it?

First you start off with feeding hungry children. Then you move up to thinking maybe adults shouldn't be hungry either even if they don't have a job. Next thing you know you will be thinking that people have a right to health care. Then it's on to the hard stuff like thinking people should have the opportunity to get a college education for free. Then next thing you know women are getting paid maternity leave.

So you see now the problem. That free lunch will lead to the break up of the family unit.

"The school district also says students are allowed to charge up to $11 on a lunchroom bill and even if their bill reaches above that, they are still given food privately and discreetly."

My brother works for a school district food service. Students lunch money is paid by debit card, which is either funded by school lunch programs or by the child's parents. They do not accept cash. Everyone's card looks the same, so there is no stigma associated with getting a free lunch. The card can have a negative balance up to a certain point. If they don't have their card or it's too farcin the red, they get a turkey sandwich and a carton of milk (discreetly).

However, firing someone over a $1.70 lunch is rather harsh. Sending her home, reprimanding her, requiring restitution, sure -- that protects the employer's interests.

And this bullshit of giving kids a sandwich and milk "discreetly" is about as subtle as pasting a scarlet letter on the kid.

... corporatists actively select for sociopathic tendencies in middle management. In the microcosm of a school setting, such reprehensible actions are distilled and concentrated (my wife is a teacher; believe me, we know!) As has already been mentioned in this thread, a disturbing lack of empathy permeates society now, thanks in no small measure to the pervasive and corrosive influence of Ayn Rand, whose seething hatred of altruism in any and every form defines the corporate mind.

Despite nationwide criticism, it appears these swine are indifferent to the needless pain they caused; indeed, I suspect they revel in it.

1. It's a matter of personal responsibility!
2. It starts with school lunch and before you know it, we have socialism!
3. Life is tough and not everything is supposed to be equal.
4. The student will have learned a valuable lesson and will work harder not to be poor like his or her parents.
5. Why should I have to pay for the kid's lazy parents? It's not my fault. (By the way, I'm Pro-Life and a good Christian!)
6. Policies are policies and we can not make ANY exceptions.
7. It's like feeding a hungry animal; they'll just keep coming back for more.


Yes folks; this is the America that Saint Ronald Reagan, Gordon Gecko, Bill Clinton, the Bush/Cheney families and the Pharmo-Asshole have brought us. FUCK EM! I'm all in for Bernie Sanders if for nothing else, to tell the 1% and the corporate whore; ENOUGH!

Please sir... I want some more....

Go Bernie!

...spirit for you. Bah, humbug!

And anyone else in management who approved the firing of the worker.

This situation could have been handled so much more reasonably. There was no need for such a drastic step.

the taxes paid by the state, county, and anyone working in that right wing state, (which use to be democratic) means that money was already allocated to feed those students, it's in the annual budget.

So if this "supervisor" thinks that she is the gestapo lunch "supervisor" and a little tyke comes in and wants a lunch, the citizens of that county, state have paid for that meal already, so that everyone in that school gets a meal and a education.
How can she discriminate against the student for starters-----------------she got her Gestapo list of students that haven't paid----------------really.

And then she runs to the school administrator --------------------------they are also just as culpable in the discrimination---------------I mean think about that------------------and then people wonder why the education in this country is at 17 in world rankings-------------------duh---------------------we have people more worried about giving food lunch to a student, that had no moola----------------really----------------------why didn't she go to her or his wallet or purse to pay for the meal---------------really---------------------punish the kid, she really doesn't deserve being in the position of employ------------------I mean really

And this is prime example HAS TO why this country is screwed up--------------------she has taken this issue upon herself to be not only judge and jury, but also the proverbial executioner in that lunch room-------------------------she should be fired------------------no if's or and's about it-----------------that is not in her job description-----------------her job function is to make sure there are meals for "ALL" the students------------------------what a hypocrite--------------------this is just unconscionable.

Have the citizens with any conscience in the state, of ID, been making phone calls------------------I mean really, someone doing "good" for a kid gets fired

But don't feed 'em!

This story makes me cry & rage at the same time.

Ass holish

closet ass-a-holics. now it seems they're proud to be so open about it.


and it trickles down into society like bad diarrhea

that the supervisor will be visited by three ghosts this Christmas Eve.

You are LOSERS!!!

we could fix this.

Maybe the civilized people at the school could chip in a nickel and pool them to pay for it!

So likely you're right.

feeding her could have save her life.....they should reinstate the employee with extra pay for the abuse she has taken from the school district

much food they throw away every day.

A LOT!!!

At the middle school where I taught, only the very hungry children ate a significant amount of the horrible food that came out of the lunchroom. I think I ate in the lunchroom twice, and each time the least disgusting part of the meal (green beans and one other veggie--bland and overcooked) was carefully measured so as not to exceed half a cup. Just before students got to the "cashier," they could choose an ice cream treat, if they had an extra 35 cents. For some, milk and an ice cream constituted "lunch."

The cafeteria had separate plastic trash barrels for the food left on the trays. Students were required to discard their paper and plastic in the trash bins, then scrape the uneaten food into these barrels. These were full, or very near full, at the end of each lunch period.

She should have received some training on exactly what to do in these situations, not been fired.

the kid a pbj sandwich. Okay that sucks big time. Now you have humiliated the kid in front of their peers. Someone needs to be fired here but it isn't the lunch lady who didn't follow "proper procedure."

If grade school through high school is manditory in America and parents can be held accountable for not sending the children to school (in most states), why aren't the students provided with lunch? We pay for lunch and many times dinner and probably breakfast most local and state politicians not to mention our bought and paid for federal leeches. Isn't is logical that if the kids are required to attend they should be fed at least lunch?

Hell, we even feed prisoners at tax payer expense but can't pay for a simple and minimally nutricious lunch for school students! I'd bet most prisoners eat better than half the school kids in America.

Time to contact your local politicians to have them pass laws providing free school lunch if the same politicians require kids to attend school.

Good grief. Take the per diem away from these politicians who can afford to buy their own luch (which we tax payers pay for) and provide that money to the schools lunch programs!

Who's more important today, our children or politicians and prisoners?

you are correct. if school is mandatory, then seeing that the children are properly fed should be a given.

as to who is more important these days--pols and corporations. we simply do not count.

The school district also says students are allowed to charge up to $11 on a lunchroom bill and even if their bill reaches above that, they are still given food privately and discreetly.

"privately and discreetly"??? as though the child had done something wrong, or it is shameful to actually FEED A CHILD? if that idiot thinks this is an acceptable response, that person is completely clueless, and probably a puke.

may they all receive everything they deserve.

puke nasty.

Offers to take the case free. And some think the money should go to a fund that feeds kids who don't have the money a particular day. I like that idea a lot. It would totally ensure this doesn't happen again.

country.

Let me tell you some things about that place. First and foremost one must understand that the state of Idaho is owned and operated by the LDS church. You can't get a decent job, especially in Pocatello, unless you are LDS, it's why I moved after I finished college there. Sure, there are a few other religions represented there but they are few and pretty powerless business-wise and politically. One of the few, and not so much anymore, havens for nonLDS is the ISU campus or the Fort Hall IR.

Some census data of interest: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/16/1664090.html
Pocatello, Idaho (Bannock County)

Most employment is minimum wage at best ($7.25/hr), and there is a 2 year lifetime cap for SNAP benefits trying to get any public service from the state is the most egregious hoop jump, including unemployment, that anyone could imagine. I think this is where mittens' idea of self deportation comes about... if you aren't covered under the LDS system of welfare - they have their own welfare system for members only and then they also can get benefits from the state - then you should go live somewhere else cuz we're not gonna help you survive.

I can almost guarantee that this child was not a "member": of the LDS club and neither was the lady who was fired. Chances are, they were looking for a reason to get rid of her because she's probably not a "member" and she was probably getting close to retiring from that job.

There's so much more here but I would be here all day. The religious BS that flies under the radar is appalling at best... and looking at it from really close up and personal, LDS are a pseudo-xtian sect... lots of lip service and show but being considered human or worthy of assistance only applies to the "members" and those who might be "converted". Many times, when frustrated over second class citizenship, my friends would half jokingly quip, "become a mormon so you can get a job."

show I am watching on Syfy called "EXPANSE" has in the story line, Mormons and the Mormon church.

Show hasn't been on long enough for me to tell what role they will play in the story.

separation of church and state in Idaho, Utah and most likely Nevada. I live in Montana, just a couple miles across the state line from Idaho and the nearby little town is also run by mormons. This scenario should be held up as an example of what we are facing with regard to the religious RWNJs should an R get into the white house.

Separation of Church and State, repeat it often and loudly, folks, it is at the root of our problems. When someone tries to calim that the US is a xtian nation, the response - used as a mantra - should be, "The FIRST AMENDMENT assures us that there is, first and foremost, separation of church and state which means you cannot blend or combine government with religion."

Many of the casinos in Nevada are owned/run by uber-religious folks whether they be mormons or... well, think Adelson for example.

I lived in Idaho for 14 years so it's not like I was engaged in a drive-by residency.

if its one of those very red states, this sadly does not surprise me at all.

Last edited Thu Dec 24, 2015, 12:50 PM - Edit history (1)

the reddest states. That, of course, upon close examination also includes one of the higher rates of child abuse from sexual abuse to neglect.

When I first moved there the governor was Cecil Andrus, a good Democrat, but when he retired, things turned red in a hurry. It hasn't improved much at all in all these years. Sen. Frank Church was from Idaho BTW.

the landscape is sooooo beautiful, but it sounds like the politics are dreadful. what a shame.

I refer to it as "Awesome real estate, crappy social climate." Some of the most beautiful land I have ever seen.

how having really good progressives at state and fed govt would benefit, and what they could do with that beautiful place.

At least, the rich aren't being taxed more. And most of our federal tax money goes to war profiteers. Those things are the silver linings.

They're the ones who say, "These parents shouldn't even HAVE a kid if they can't afford them."

Just heard that nonsense here last night. Railing about poor people breeding and then getting the government to support them and, "Who pays for that?"

This from a guy who refused to get into a relationship because he's terrified of having to spend money.

What a country we've become.

Send the criminal to jail!

fire someone over a one dollar and seventy cent meal...terrific!!!!

(to the school district, not the author)

If a couple bucks is such a big deal to the school, then why isn't there a fund to help kids who don't have enough money every so often? If it's a recurring issue for a kid, then why isn't the kid able get assistance for lunch?

It says they go through extreme efforts to ensure kids get meals. Okay, so what happened here? Of course they resort to the "we don't comment on these issues" response.

orders restitution in back pay for the employee and opportunities for job placement and if the student can't afford a meal, be allowed to consume the supervisor.

isn't always so great for PEOPLE !!

The situation could have been handled in so many positive ways, but the school systems prefers to fire or kick kids out of school, rather than using common sense. Fired for Thief, what an outrage by the school district. The parents of that school district should demand the resignation of all board members, school officials and any teachers involved. School now, seem to think they are the JUDGE, JURY and sentencing board on everything. Teaching kids is not even in their minds any longer. This is a huge disgrace for Pocatello
CABINET MEMBERS
TITLE CONTACT PHONE EMAIL
Superintendent Douglas Howell howelldo@sd25.us
Community Relations/Communications Shelley Allen allensh@sd25.us
Director of Student Support Services Kent Hobbs hobbske@sd25.us
Director of Elementary Education Lori Craney craneylo@sd25.us harwooja@sd25.us
Director of Curriculum Chuck Orr orrch@sd25.us
Director of Business Operations Bart Reed 2 reedba@sd25.us
Director of Employee Services Carl Smart 3 smartca@sd25.usDistrict 25.
Lets tweet out this criminal act by the District millions of times. These are some of the officials at that District;
Director of Secondary Education Jan Harwood

Person who did the firing, should be fired.

Pocatello Id. really does not need this, but that is what people will think about that small city unless this is reversed. This one is national as well as world wide news.. "In the U.S.A. they fired someone who helps out a hungry kid.."

This woman put it on the line and will again.

Kids can still bring their own meal if they want but i don't think it costs much to do this.

These Republican heels are really tempting fate.

http://money.cnn.com/2015/06/03/news/companies/cafeteria-worker-fired-free-food/