Obama Once Needed 'to Take a Subway or a Bus Just to Find a Fresh Piece of Fruit’

Originally posted by RealSpoke
reply to post by Required01

 

Dr.phil is clinically overweight and visibly out of shape so eating those Mc Donalds burgers didn't help him out much. Again, I don't see the connection to this thread.

i watched about 5 minutes of his show a couple of years back, and to this day have never watched him again, he caters to the mouth-breathing, knuckle-dragging crowd. if that is being elitist, then i am an elitist. the lack of intelligent conversation on the boob tube leaves me watching very little these days

Originally posted by Blackmarketeer
Obama was addressing a problem most politicians pretend doesn't exist or sweep under the rug.

This is a problem that highlights one of America's weaknesses - urban sprawl and inner city decay. City centers are left with no grocery stores or those that don't carry fruits, vegetables, some won't even carry meat. You're left with discount marts that sell hamburger helper, pop-tarts, and junk food. Bus lines from the inner city out to the suburbs where the grocery stores are either don't exist or would take hours to ride.

In 2008 several cities launched initiatives to combat this serious problem (such as Philly's "Fresh Food Financing"), even New York is attempting to fill the need for green grocers with a sidewalk pushcart program to sell fruits and vegetables (and yes, it's gotten that bad in NYC).

Maybe some of the trolls who rant about Obama should actually leave their ivory towers in white suburbia and go see what it's like in the poorer parts of town, then maybe they can work with us to fix the problems instead of being part of the problem.

This "program" has been in the works for 2 long years.

HHS and Kathleen Sebelius has been pushing along with the FLOTUS.

Has Anyone contacted HHS and Michelle Obama to find out what the stall is ???

Hurry up because I hear the studies (that are costing millions of $) will conclude the project is not feasible

Originally posted by Blackmarketeer

[snip] ...or meet health code rules

From what you said - if they don't meet health code rules then they should be shut down. Giving out botulism is not helping anyone. There are plenty of volunteer organizations involved in food drives and distribution to the poor, but that is not the issue here - it's the simple fact that Americans have created an economic model that favors urban sprawl and abandonment of inner cities. Most social democrats have proposed legislation to reverse this trend and encourage growth in older, inner-ring suburbs and inner cities. My last project along this line was to work with our cities land bank to aggregate lots to allow a larger grocer to move in, with tax abatements. We've attracted several "Dave's Supermarkets" (a mid-sized grocer), with prospects for a large chain supermarket. They're baby steps but at least a step in the right direction.

I don't see how any president addressing this issue can be vilified over it, except to say that most people are willfully ignorant about the plight of the inner city.

I commend your efforts to make a change and I would love nothing more than to see a return to once vibrant neighborhoods in Cleveland. We have some pockets of redevelopment that are encouraging but also quite pricy at the same time. Cleveland is a city that offered 15 year tax abatements on new construction and rehab projects. It was a great tool to get the ball rolling but many people sell and move on long before the tax bill is due. The rehab aspect of it is full of tricky guidelines regarding what project is deemed as a property value increase. Sadly, replacing old worn out, inefficient and broken windows is not considered a project to increase a homes value. (contradicts the federal green rebate incentives to replace old windows).

As far as tax abatements for commercial retail space.... Tax abatements cannot replace profits nor can they pay bills. The market needs to sustain business and profit on its own without the need for a crutch.

Cleveland's own no compromise tax policy has actually failed the city in many ways by encouraging large corporations to pick up stakes and move to the outer ring suburbs with more enticing offers. It's a "poaching " problem this is occurring everywhere.
www.cleveland.com...