Food Stamp Usage Goes Up

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has reported a 17% rise in Americans using food stamps.  This brings the grand total to 14% of all Americans, or over 42 million Americans.  I had commented on this a few months ago, and I stand by my opinion.  The last thing we need is more people on food stamps.  It's no way to solve poverty or the recession.  All it does it makes people more and more dependent on Big Government.  And since we are talking about something as simple and necessary as food, shouldn't that dependency worry any citizen that lives in the "land of the free?"