I often tell friends who are struggling to put food on their plate they should apply for SNAP or go to the food bank

They often reply that they don't want to take it from the people who really need it

Friends, if your bank account is zilch and you're begging online for donations to buy food, you're the people who really need it. It's for you. I only ever got myself out of poverty by taking advantage of every social service available.

Try the food bank.

@shel People's not availing themselves of the safety net programs that exist and are targeted *at them* is a huge problem in the US. It's also pretty definitive proof that social safety net programs mostly don't create the dependence that conservatives claim they do.