CNN's John King: We were on food stamps

[apples and oranges]

CNN's John King tells Anderson Cooper about his upbringing during a difficult time in his family's life.

[Thrill]

1. WOW. See people think of color all too often

But you see people like King, who many may have never thought was ever on Food Stamps. I got a feeling Mittens pissed off a lot his voters with his comments.

[Honeycombe8]

8. Wow is right. We're finding out that LOTS of Americans have rec'd a hand UP from time to time...

and they weren't happy about having to take it. And they didn't continue taking it, but went on to become very productive citizens.

[Lex]

2. So his mom thought her kids were entitled to FOOD?

Imagine that.

[Zalatix]

11. Have you seen this?

[intheflow]

3. A humble and moving and real moment on CNN.

Kudos to John King for speaking up.

[nadinbrzezinski]

4. It's over, damn it is over, so much over

lord... he did manage to insult so many people!

[zonkers]

15. And I don't think he learned a thing.

[bluestate10]

5. Powerful. An in the flesh person saying why Food-stamps are important.

I wrote earlier this week that my parents got food stamps for a while to feed me and my siblings. Then, I was a ashamed for being in those circumstances. Now, I view those food-stamps as an investment government made in me and my siblings, an investment from which the government has made out like a bandit and still is profiting.

[railsback]

6. My family, too.

There wasn't a day that my parents didn't try to find better paying jobs, too. Man, the stress in the household was unbearable, yelling, fighting... I remember going to the food banks and getting the loafs of cheese and powdered milk. I can't imagine that kind of life would be ok for anyone. Well, thanks to government assistance, everything worked out ok, even though my parents ended up getting divorced when I was 5.

[cr8tvlde]

7. I so hope this prompts others to share. John King is awesome.

As a suddenly single, stay-at-home mom of a toddler with problems and with a deadbeat ex-husband, I know what it's like to go to the local Human Services Office...where I would qualify to work as a Social Worker...and have to undergo the forms, the interview.

Then there was the experience of standing in my neighborhood grocery line praying no one got in line behind me because in those days, food stamps were way obvious. Childcare was roughly the equivalent of what money I would clear going back into the job market.

In fact, I started shopping on the other side of town where the clerks and shoppers didn't know me. It was absolutely awful. I'll never forget it. Then, I rented out two rooms in the house and started a home business. No, I don't think many plot for this this way of life. Certainly not 47% of us.

[vaberella]

9. And John King is a total rethug tool. n/t

[Tarheel_Dem]

10. Awesome. Not a lot of people are willing to say this publicly. And people who have benefited....

from programs to help the needy should be ashamed of themselves to ridicule anyone who hasn't "made it". As Michelle Obama so eloquently said (paraphrasing): "you don't walk through, and close the door behind you".

Thanks for this revelation John King.

[outsideworld]

12. This made me a little

emotional . I dont think this republican will be voting for Romney

[calimary]

13. You mean ... he didn't build it himself? He made use of government assistance? OMG...

I'm glad John King did this. Good Grief - it's like those commercials years ago when AIDS was just starting to be mentioned in "polite company," when you'd see commercials of so-called "average-looking" people, men, women, teens, elders, even babies - who were also AIDS patients.

Now we're seeing "I'm one of the 47%." As well we should be!

[SheilaT]

14. When I was young and we were poor

food stamps did not yet exist. I wish they had. We struggled and made it. That experience has made me always understand how dreadful it is to be poor, how awful it is to go hungry.

Anyone who begrudges someone else having a decent meal is not worthy of scorn.

[Bozita]

16. K&R for all of the 47%ers