Note: we are republishing this story, which originally made the news in September 2016.
Army personnel Patrick Gibson was at his local Walmart when he noticed the two shopping carts of the couple in front of him.
Gibson took photos of the grocery carts and posted a collage of photos on social media.
He captioned the post: “The picture you see on the left is the amount of groceries including diapers that I was able to afford this pay period for my family.”
He stated that he works hard to make a living for his wife and two kids, and added: “The picture on the right is of the purchase in front of me in line. If you can’t tell in the picture there are 2 full buggies of groceries including such items like steak and some other very nice choices of food.”
“Here’s the kicker. This purchase was made in food stamps,” he added, stating that his problem wasn’t that they paid for $800 worth of groceries using an EBT card, but that he saw the person “move their big fold of cash out of the way” to get the EBT card.
He stated that he watched the couple load the groceries into their carts before loading them into the back of a brand new Hyundai Genesis, which he wrote was worth $15,000 to $20,000 more than his car.
“I just thought I would take the time to tell this person/family that you are very welcome from all of us hard working/struggling to buy food Americans that have to foot the bill for your fancy steak feast while I skip breakfast and lunch every day [so] that way my wife and children have food to eat every day because $50-$75 dollars doesn’t go very far,” he wrote. “So, you enjoy your $800 free grocery purchase.”
Many commenters echoed Gibson’s sentiments, with one writing: “I agree with you Patrick 100%. There are a lot that really need it, but as you said, there are a lot that abuse the system and a lot like yourself that need them and can’t get them, especially you and your family.”
Others wrote that food stamps and welfare should only be for those going through hard times, not for people who didn’t want to work.
However, some slammed Gibson’s assumptions, highlighting that he didn’t know the full story.
“Do you really know their backstory? Don’t be quick to judge someone because you’re angry. How do you know if that person works and their spouse doesn’t work because of problems? That all the money in their pocket is to pay their bills that the new car was a gift? How do you know that’s not the case?” one person asked.
Gibson then responded: “Let’s just call it what it is. We can all sit around and believe in sunshine and rainbows saying the old don’t judge a book by its cover crap, but the reality of it is that so so so many people are abusing the system that was put in place for struggling families. If we can’t even acknowledge that there is a problem, then how can it ever be corrected. And a brand new car as a gift? Really? If they have friends or family with money like that, then its a shame they still need $800 a month in food stamps.”
