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Ted Cruz

7 (6.5%)

Rick Santorum

16 (14.8%)

Michelle Bachmann

13 (12%)

Chris Christie

23 (21.3%)

Rand Paul

49 (45.4%)

Total Members Voted: 107

[wierd]

I'm fairly certain all kids get free lunches.

This is not true.  The Fed subsidises the school lunch programs, and uses that subsidy to control what is on the menu, but getting a "free" lunch requires the parents to literally be completely on wellfare to qualify. (And the number of free lunches per year is fixed.) Typically, what they get instead is an increased amount of subsidisation, such that the parents pay a very small sum, considerably discounted from the usual lunch price. (When I was in school, it was around 1.50 per lunch-- these days I understand it is closer to 3$ per lunch for the standard price. The people on the lunch and breakfast assistance programs pay IIRC, half price or less.)

When I was in school, kids had a rolling debit type account that worked a great deal like a bar tab. The tab could go negative, and children still receive a lunch, but the parents would be notified of the insufficient funds in the lunch fund. To discourage the cliche "beat kids up for lunch money" issue, my school used laminated white plastic cards with a barcode printed on them to conduct the transactions, and money was deposited with the secretarial staff in the school offices.

Actual paper money was not accepted in the lunch line.

Why did you want to know, owlbread?

[MaximumZero]

Welfare isn't always a necessity to qualify. My daughter is in the free lunch program, and neither the ex or I qualify for welfare. It's based on income.

[wierd]

Interesting.  The requirements probably vary from state to state.

[Nirur Torir]

Here in Florida, I had fully free school breakfasts and lunches, and my parents weren't on welfare, although it was based on income. It was one of each per day, with no yearly limit, but certain 'food' items, like fries, didn't count as lunch. I don't know how the pizza qualified, having more grease than one napkin could absorb. I didn't need to show a card, just recite an account number.

[Frumple]

Mm... it was reduced/free for low income, where I was at in North Florida. Everyone else, and even some of those, had to pay if they wanted to eat cafeteria food. Varying rules are varying, ha.

[MetalSlimeHunt]

I don't know if its also the case in Scotland, but it should be noted that some people are strongly against the lunch subsidy program. Most who take that position do so because they claim we can't afford it or that it is abused.

Some, like Representative Jack Kingston, have a more....creative view on the matter.

"But one of the things I’ve talked to the secretary of agriculture about: Why don’t you have the kids pay a dime, pay a nickel to instill in them that there is, in fact, no such thing as a free lunch? Or maybe sweep the floor of the cafeteria -- and yes, I understand that that would be an administrative problem, and I understand that it would probably lose you money. But think what we would gain as a society in getting people -- getting the myth out of their head that there is such a thing as a free lunch."

[LeoLeonardoIII]

When I was a kid we just used numbers. You'd go through the line, and the lady who took your money at the end would have a clipboard with all the numbers and who was associated with those numbers. If you gave a lunch number you didn't pay.

At the time I was getting lunch money for hot lunch from my parents, so I paid for lunch every day. But some kid gave me a number to use so I started using it. I expect if two kids gave the same number there would be a problem but it never happened. The kid probably saw a number on the page that wasn't being used.

Yes this means I was collecting the lunch money my parents gave me every day. Although it was like 75 cents a day. I don't remember that I ever did anything with it.

[MDFification]

Anyone wanna instigate that?

inb4 convincing someone that /b/ is a terrorist group.

Fox preempted you. They've been calling /b/ domestic terrorists, hackers on steroids, internet hate machine...

Also I wanted to vote on the poll but all of those choices are either bible-thumping nutjobs or just plain nutjobs  I mean remember when Ted Cruz changed his mind mid-filibuster? Just wastes 20 hours of Congress's time and then talks himself into voting in favor? And then Santorum and Bachmann are either just really good at pandering to fundies and evangelicals or legitimately dangerous.

[Max White]

I think you missed a very subtle joke about the poll there... Unless I read a joke that isn't actually intentional.

[wierd]

I demand cthulu for congressman, and sub-nigguroth for senate!

Azathoth for president!

[LeoLeonardoIII]

What if you could enter someone's identity as a write-in candidate without actually giving their name? For example:

"The candidate who received the second-highest number of votes."

How would they even count that? Do you count all specific votes, and then apply the conditional votes one by one by time stamp?

[wierd]

If we could do that on a write-in ballot, i'd purposefully start a movement to make the most byzantine logic puzzle possible, just to voice my disdain for the farce that is american politics.

I would be sure to ensure that the puzzle is uniquely solvable, but I wouldn't make it easy for them. I'd probably get my vote recorded for the opposing candidate though.

[misko27]

I read the poll as "The Conservative Crime Squad has taken over a polling place, and demands you vote for one of their candidates. Which is the most palatable?"

[LeoLeonardoIII]

The guy said I could vote with my wallet but I think he just wanted a bribe.

[wierd]

*sigh*

The sad part, misko, is sometimes I wonder about that being actually really the case.

It is not the first time I have seen the silly party and the very silly party hashing it out on grand display like that.