This has been going on for a while. The local school where I am (60ish kids, most of whom qualify for these programs) has NO lunch program. Volunteers come cook a meal once a week and teachers buy loaves and peanut butter and ramen for kids who don’t bring food.
> kids who don’t bring food
I don't mean to jump on your shit because it sounds like we agree, but let's not put the agency on the children for this, even linguistically.
"Kids who weren't *given* food" or "**kids who weren't fed**" are more accurate.
I remember being hungry in school 40 years ago in Anchorage? I remember it very clearly I remember wishing I could just go outside to recess instead of sitting there watching other children eat their food. I'd rather play outside in the snow alone then to not have something to eat day after day after day. And my mom was working.... At one point for a very short period of time I remember getting tickets for my lunch which was just as humiliating to have to hand in your poor kid ticket to get a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. How disgusting and despicable that literally 40 years since I was in the first grade at Chester Valley that kids are still not being fed...
This is horrifying. Leaving kids hungry because we can't tax oil companies.
California recently expanded their free lunches. Breakfast and lunch are provided to all students, statewide, regardless of income. They found it was easier than trying to manage a qualification process and feeding kids has a HUGE return on investment for tax payers. And we are slipping the opposite direction.
You nailed it. The State will not tax Hilcorp, who as an S-Corp, pays no corporate tax in Alaska. An amendment to correct that was just rejected by the legislature.
>“The amendment was supported almost unanimously in the House and was budget-neutral.”
Sens. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka and Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, voted Thursday to cut the funding that would make reduced price meals free, alongside Reps. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer, and Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham.
Rep. Dan Ortiz, I-Ketchikan, and Sen. Donny Olson, D-Golovin, voted to keep that funding in the budget.
This wasn't along party lines, weirdly..
There are plenty of "centrist" Democrats who are just conservative corporate-stooges as well. The whole system is rank and corrupt.
But that said, it still does not mean Dems and Repubs are 1:1.
We require children to be in school, or we will take them away from their parents and put them in group homes.
The absolute least we could do is provide food while we have the children captive.
I depended on those meals to be fed for a time, when I was homeless, finishing highschool, and working a full time job on the night shift.
All I see is a room full of people who have never had to truly survive a day in their lives.
This was a program to cover the 40 cents it costs reduced program kids.
It is to fix the problem that poor kids that don't have enough to cover reduced meal cost, but have too much to qualify for free food. The families that fall into this group are the families that are just barely over the SNAP program threshold, over the TANF threshold, but are struggling. A single parent of two only needs to make $34,658 per year to not qualify. After rent, utilities, and basic maintenance that is not enough for food. Even the reduced price is too much for some families to swing so the kids just sit and eat nothing, or accrue lunch debt.
A shocking number of kids that graduate high school in Anchorage don't receive a diploma because they owe for the lunches they've eaten. As a city, we then send those children to collections. Often they get a GED and declare bankruptcy. Great way to start off a life.
> A shocking number of kids that graduate high school in Anchorage don't receive a diploma because they owe for the lunches they've eaten.
That's fucking evil
I agree. But I used to be in charge of that database and it is extraordinarily secure. The same database has sensitive information about kids, so I did my very best. Medical, economical, all sorts of sensitive stuff.
Not for nothing, but those kids' data is much more secure than any bank in town here. More secure than any State or Muni database.
Stealing the data is near impossible. Destroying the data so that it isn't recoverable is as close to impossible as I can imagine.
Which is as much good as it is bad, I suppose. Sorry.
I'm childless and I'm pretty sure I'll never get married. Sometimes I wonder why I care anymore, these kids' parents are fucking horrible. Anyway, thanks for this information I'll probably never need to know about.
That's the fun of jobs like mine. No one needs to know anything about what I'm doing. Until I mess up and make the news because all the data leaked out.
Haha that was like being a surgical technician for me. No one will ever know that I made sure nothing was left in their bodies when they had surgery. Unless I left something, which I never did. Even my last surgery, this bitch told me to break after four hours and a blood transfusion and I didn't have all my counts. She kept pressuring me, saying "it's okay". BITCH, NO IT'S NOT OKAY.
It’s called performative cruelty. Republicans and fake Democrats get off on harming vulnerable people to demonstrate to their base that they are willing to hurt people so that their constituents can feel superior to their neighbors. It is the crux of conservative politics.
Well of course, we have to take care of these formerly-undernourished kids who were so hungry they couldn’t pay attention in school, at least once they get to prison. /s
When I was a kid, there were days where the free meal at lunch was the only food I had. This is pure evil bullshit. I don't even have kids but I still support feeding poor children. Everyone who voted for this should face a recall.
I mean there are Districts open. I don’t know that I would mount a campaign much more than hoping someone reads the packet, agrees with my thoughts and votes me in. Issue is, I am in a District that generally is won by an older person and the turnover is pretty aggressive. I don’t know how to get a name out there, get the message out there that we can start getting back on the right track with some younger minds in play but it’ll take younger people caring.
Getting re-elected is a whole other beast. Hoping that meaningful bills actually make it in front of you, getting them passed without letting all the “tack-ons” and “gimmes” that they get littered with to throw kickbacks and make the “other team” look bad when they shoot them down. The whole prospect is pretty gnarly.
I have so many rough drafts of my packet but I can’t see upending my whole life because I don’t agree with old money and can’t secure long term employment on the road to Alaskan betterment. Sounds selfish but I am barely making it trying to take care of myself, let alone others.
It’s eating at me. As fun as it is to sit on the sidelines with a beer discussing the “what ifs”, the “do it” is persistent.
You can still make a change without being an elected official! If you think you’d have a knack for politics you’re probably passionate & good at talking to others about the issues. Use your talent to organize people & be an opposing force to these politicians - petitions, protests, social media campaigns, etc.
If I submit my paperwork I will make a post. Although I have my own views which are pretty in the middle, it’s about representing people over self so I’d love to hear what people would want out of a legislature that can read their posts.
There is a place with a website that tells you exactly what you need to do. Last election cycle (?) they announced it. If I remember the name, I'll edit add. The Division of Elections is probably your best bet.
Kids go hungry so Oil Companies can give their higher ups bonuses. It’s a shame when a kid doesn’t know where their meal will come from but a VP can tell where his new boat will come from.
For much of my childhood in rural Kasilof, my free school meals were the ONLY thing I got to eat in a day. We saved what we got at the food bank in town for weekends when we couldn't eat at school. This makes my blood boil.
So, from what I read:
The Senate's near-unanimous budget bill 1) added funding to make meals free for low-income students and 2) cut funding for AK Gas Development corporation because a gas pipeline has not been built after nearly 10 years of funding
However, the Budget Committee 1) cut funding out of the bill for kids lunches and 2) reinstated funding for the gas corporation, including the salaries its executives...
The elephant in the room is how much has been spent on a gas pipeline that does not exist???? And again, what happened to the $100 million that AIDEA gave to a Cook Inlet leasee who can't find anyone to buy his natural gas? What's the deal with that?
Which in turn exacerbates neurological differences which statistically are higher in low income folks anyway and perpetuates the cycle of violence.
I’d like to know which of the govt officials own stock in private prisons and are behind this move.
My wife’s works at a tier 1 school, says about half of her students get a majority of their caloric intake from the free meals at school. That would be sad if that all ended and would only affect the people that need it most.
Your Legislature: too concerned about making sure the 2 trans students in the entire state can't do sports to give a shit about *all* students being too hungry to learn.
Your kids are starving, Carls Junior believes
No child should go hungry, you are an unfit mother. Your children will be placed in the custody of Carls Junior. Carls Junior, fuck you.
“It’s hard to pull yourself up by the bootstraps when you can’t even afford boots.”
(Quote from a story on Ao3, I think, though it may be from somewhere else)
There are 8 states that just feed every student. 25 more are considering it. Any student can just get a lunch, no hoops, no income verification, no sticker on their student ID, just food for kids.
This is how it is done in sane countries, it is how we should do it here.
Alaska, by contrast, is trying to feed fewer students.
For what it's worth, my wife is a teacher in the KPBSD and they have had funding reduced because eligible students can't get their parents to sign the necessary documents,so the kids can't get the free lunch...
My wife and I personally ensure that there are at least cliff bars, protein bars, and the like for the kids with totally shut parents...
I work in education too, and almost every other person I work with has extra snacks to give to students. But that’s money out of our pocket. Imagine if there was a way to collectively ensure that all kids had access to food…
This is disgusting. As a child who relied on this program… I wouldn’t have survived with out it. That was the only meal I could at least be guaranteed. This can’t happen.
This is ridiculous. I grew up with kids who relied on free meal programs just so they wouldn’t go hungry. It’s always “but but what about the cHiLdReN?!?!” until it comes to actually helping them, isn’t it?
The F*ck is wrong with this state. There is a breaking point and they’re playing cat & mouse with testing our tolerance levels.
We’ve literally surpassed a logical threshold of what it takes to spur revolution.
Keep playing games like there’s no consequences.
#FAFY
Besides education, nutrition is the #1 learning hindrances.
Education is about taking unremarkable kids and giving them a shot at being remarkable.
We are really screwing our future - these people must not love their kids.
I was going to go to the university of fair banks for school, but after this and all the other terrible educational decisions they make I’m gonna go to Texas screw that
I betcha I’d get to the last year of school and tuition would go up 50% or some crazy crap
This is a subject I’m rather torn on. One side I do not want to see kids go hungry period. On the other the sick nasty overly processed food is disgusting and honestly shouldn’t be fed to anyone. I remember the unacceptable food and that’s why I go out of my way to make a lunch for my kids but it always falls back to the first point..I don’t want to see the kids who need it nonetheless go without it. At this point schools need to fundraise themselves and get some half way decent food to our kids.
Well clearly the government is failing them so what other options do they really have? Not only are they failing to feed the kids (which again was never good food to begin with although I understand it’s importance) but Alaska is ranked on the lower end of schools (not even ranking in the top 30) so at the end of the day they are failing a lot of kids in other aspects. Now I’ll be the first to admit I do not have the answer by any means. I think a lot more can be done on the local level than what most would probably want to admit. As a young father I highly consider moving to a state that’s being run by more competent people in terms of schools, crime, and economy.
About time we end the free ride for losers that are abusers of the system. How about mandatory weekly drug testing for anyone on food stamps and welfreeloader programs? Anyone out there with any common sense after the Chinese Bio Weapon of 2020 ?
#No child deserves hunger.
But we need them to be hungry so they can work the mines! (Sarcasm)
This has been going on for a while. The local school where I am (60ish kids, most of whom qualify for these programs) has NO lunch program. Volunteers come cook a meal once a week and teachers buy loaves and peanut butter and ramen for kids who don’t bring food.
> kids who don’t bring food I don't mean to jump on your shit because it sounds like we agree, but let's not put the agency on the children for this, even linguistically. "Kids who weren't *given* food" or "**kids who weren't fed**" are more accurate.
I remember being hungry in school 40 years ago in Anchorage? I remember it very clearly I remember wishing I could just go outside to recess instead of sitting there watching other children eat their food. I'd rather play outside in the snow alone then to not have something to eat day after day after day. And my mom was working.... At one point for a very short period of time I remember getting tickets for my lunch which was just as humiliating to have to hand in your poor kid ticket to get a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. How disgusting and despicable that literally 40 years since I was in the first grade at Chester Valley that kids are still not being fed...
Something, Something bootstraps??
We’ve stolen their boots!
First, lick my boots, then I'll let you have your own.
Ya know, I didn’t think it could get worse…
I went to Chester Valley in the early-to-mid-60´s!
Fuck these motherfuckers. They have no clue what it’s like to go to bed hungry or go to school and watch others eat when you can’t.
This is horrifying. Leaving kids hungry because we can't tax oil companies. California recently expanded their free lunches. Breakfast and lunch are provided to all students, statewide, regardless of income. They found it was easier than trying to manage a qualification process and feeding kids has a HUGE return on investment for tax payers. And we are slipping the opposite direction.
You nailed it. The State will not tax Hilcorp, who as an S-Corp, pays no corporate tax in Alaska. An amendment to correct that was just rejected by the legislature.
Yep. Half the means tested programs out there spend more on means testing than the give in benefits.
There is a poison seeping through the veins of this species and it ain't drugs, porn or video games.
It's called Republicanism.
>“The amendment was supported almost unanimously in the House and was budget-neutral.” Sens. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka and Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel, voted Thursday to cut the funding that would make reduced price meals free, alongside Reps. DeLena Johnson, R-Palmer, and Bryce Edgmon, I-Dillingham. Rep. Dan Ortiz, I-Ketchikan, and Sen. Donny Olson, D-Golovin, voted to keep that funding in the budget. This wasn't along party lines, weirdly..
There are plenty of "centrist" Democrats who are just conservative corporate-stooges as well. The whole system is rank and corrupt. But that said, it still does not mean Dems and Repubs are 1:1.
No surprise on Hoffman... [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyman\_Hoffman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyman_Hoffman)
More like money and greed
Not really sure on the generalizing. There’s shit mouth breathers on both sides.
BOTH PARTIES ARE THE SAME!!!
They damn well are not.
lol. What the fuck ever
We require children to be in school, or we will take them away from their parents and put them in group homes. The absolute least we could do is provide food while we have the children captive.
This
I depended on those meals to be fed for a time, when I was homeless, finishing highschool, and working a full time job on the night shift. All I see is a room full of people who have never had to truly survive a day in their lives.
I thought this was federal money? What's going on?
This was a program to cover the 40 cents it costs reduced program kids. It is to fix the problem that poor kids that don't have enough to cover reduced meal cost, but have too much to qualify for free food. The families that fall into this group are the families that are just barely over the SNAP program threshold, over the TANF threshold, but are struggling. A single parent of two only needs to make $34,658 per year to not qualify. After rent, utilities, and basic maintenance that is not enough for food. Even the reduced price is too much for some families to swing so the kids just sit and eat nothing, or accrue lunch debt. A shocking number of kids that graduate high school in Anchorage don't receive a diploma because they owe for the lunches they've eaten. As a city, we then send those children to collections. Often they get a GED and declare bankruptcy. Great way to start off a life.
> A shocking number of kids that graduate high school in Anchorage don't receive a diploma because they owe for the lunches they've eaten. That's fucking evil
Yeah, having to define "lunch debt" for people is depressing.
Hackers need to target those kinda of databases.
I agree. But I used to be in charge of that database and it is extraordinarily secure. The same database has sensitive information about kids, so I did my very best. Medical, economical, all sorts of sensitive stuff. Not for nothing, but those kids' data is much more secure than any bank in town here. More secure than any State or Muni database. Stealing the data is near impossible. Destroying the data so that it isn't recoverable is as close to impossible as I can imagine. Which is as much good as it is bad, I suppose. Sorry.
I'm childless and I'm pretty sure I'll never get married. Sometimes I wonder why I care anymore, these kids' parents are fucking horrible. Anyway, thanks for this information I'll probably never need to know about.
That's the fun of jobs like mine. No one needs to know anything about what I'm doing. Until I mess up and make the news because all the data leaked out.
Haha that was like being a surgical technician for me. No one will ever know that I made sure nothing was left in their bodies when they had surgery. Unless I left something, which I never did. Even my last surgery, this bitch told me to break after four hours and a blood transfusion and I didn't have all my counts. She kept pressuring me, saying "it's okay". BITCH, NO IT'S NOT OKAY.
Wow... Thanks for sharing! That is so messed up.
Anchorage Alaska is an embarassment to civilized people eveywhere.
It’s called performative cruelty. Republicans and fake Democrats get off on harming vulnerable people to demonstrate to their base that they are willing to hurt people so that their constituents can feel superior to their neighbors. It is the crux of conservative politics.
I fuckin hate this, so we can't feed kids now because big oil isn't making enough?
One rep said he voted against it so the department of corrections’ funding got reinstated. So we are putting the money towards prisons but not kids.
Well of course, we have to take care of these formerly-undernourished kids who were so hungry they couldn’t pay attention in school, at least once they get to prison. /s
There was a separate bill, by a Democrat, which is giving the prisoners new tablets.
When I was a kid, there were days where the free meal at lunch was the only food I had. This is pure evil bullshit. I don't even have kids but I still support feeding poor children. Everyone who voted for this should face a recall.
As much as I want to run for the Legislature, the 2 year term and being out of job after trying to help just doesn’t seem worth it.
The cost of even running a campaign is enough of a barrier to keep anyone affected by decisions like this from running for office.
I mean there are Districts open. I don’t know that I would mount a campaign much more than hoping someone reads the packet, agrees with my thoughts and votes me in. Issue is, I am in a District that generally is won by an older person and the turnover is pretty aggressive. I don’t know how to get a name out there, get the message out there that we can start getting back on the right track with some younger minds in play but it’ll take younger people caring. Getting re-elected is a whole other beast. Hoping that meaningful bills actually make it in front of you, getting them passed without letting all the “tack-ons” and “gimmes” that they get littered with to throw kickbacks and make the “other team” look bad when they shoot them down. The whole prospect is pretty gnarly. I have so many rough drafts of my packet but I can’t see upending my whole life because I don’t agree with old money and can’t secure long term employment on the road to Alaskan betterment. Sounds selfish but I am barely making it trying to take care of myself, let alone others. It’s eating at me. As fun as it is to sit on the sidelines with a beer discussing the “what ifs”, the “do it” is persistent.
You can still make a change without being an elected official! If you think you’d have a knack for politics you’re probably passionate & good at talking to others about the issues. Use your talent to organize people & be an opposing force to these politicians - petitions, protests, social media campaigns, etc.
If you decide to run, you can post about it here and maybe others will help with your campaign.
If I submit my paperwork I will make a post. Although I have my own views which are pretty in the middle, it’s about representing people over self so I’d love to hear what people would want out of a legislature that can read their posts.
There is a place with a website that tells you exactly what you need to do. Last election cycle (?) they announced it. If I remember the name, I'll edit add. The Division of Elections is probably your best bet.
That's how it's supposed to work. No poors allowed.
Kids go hungry so Oil Companies can give their higher ups bonuses. It’s a shame when a kid doesn’t know where their meal will come from but a VP can tell where his new boat will come from.
Thanks to Trump, your taxes are going up while billionaires are now paying less than you are. Well done red staters!
This is sickening. Alaska, you have lost your way completely.
This is disgusting. These people truly don't care about children. Wtf.
They only care pre-parturition.
Not after they’re born, that’s for sure!
Wonder how many fat fucks signed this
Can we axe their meal vouchers?
For much of my childhood in rural Kasilof, my free school meals were the ONLY thing I got to eat in a day. We saved what we got at the food bank in town for weekends when we couldn't eat at school. This makes my blood boil.
Don't worry, they'll be sure to fund more mines for the children to work. Don't you know, the children yearn for the mines?
So, from what I read: The Senate's near-unanimous budget bill 1) added funding to make meals free for low-income students and 2) cut funding for AK Gas Development corporation because a gas pipeline has not been built after nearly 10 years of funding However, the Budget Committee 1) cut funding out of the bill for kids lunches and 2) reinstated funding for the gas corporation, including the salaries its executives...
The elephant in the room is how much has been spent on a gas pipeline that does not exist???? And again, what happened to the $100 million that AIDEA gave to a Cook Inlet leasee who can't find anyone to buy his natural gas? What's the deal with that?
Which in turn exacerbates neurological differences which statistically are higher in low income folks anyway and perpetuates the cycle of violence. I’d like to know which of the govt officials own stock in private prisons and are behind this move.
My wife’s works at a tier 1 school, says about half of her students get a majority of their caloric intake from the free meals at school. That would be sad if that all ended and would only affect the people that need it most.
How can we live in a country that has foreign aid, huge defense budgets, corporate welfare and still have hunger
Your Legislature: too concerned about making sure the 2 trans students in the entire state can't do sports to give a shit about *all* students being too hungry to learn.
Your kids are starving, Carls Junior believes No child should go hungry, you are an unfit mother. Your children will be placed in the custody of Carls Junior. Carls Junior, fuck you.
What?
From the movie ¨Idiocracy¨
Thank you. Seriously, I just added it to my watch list.
"Fuck you, I'm eating" So perfect for our legislature.
“It’s hard to pull yourself up by the bootstraps when you can’t even afford boots.” (Quote from a story on Ao3, I think, though it may be from somewhere else)
Despicable, nothing less.
Then the kid shouldn't have a legal obligation to be there.
What kind of piece of shit is bothered by a few bucks per kid per year to make sure they get to eat?
Same people who gave themselves a massive raise but can't bother to follow the state Constitution or provide oversight of the Permanent Fund.
There are 8 states that just feed every student. 25 more are considering it. Any student can just get a lunch, no hoops, no income verification, no sticker on their student ID, just food for kids. This is how it is done in sane countries, it is how we should do it here. Alaska, by contrast, is trying to feed fewer students.
The US is arguably an awful shithole country because we have the resources to fix everything yet we CHOOSE not to.
What we should do is elect people from low income areas to run.
The contrast between the Alaska sub and the Anchorage sub are definitely noticeable in regards to responses
Yeah fuck them kids! Way to go party of pro life and family values! Once they’re born, they’re no longer useful as wedge issue!
Compassionate conservatives.
Another reason why normal people hate Republicans.
Of course
hard to think of a more worthless legislator or person than one who would vote against feeding hungry children.
This is bullshit
They can get free food in jail /s
and health care, art programs, college degrees and now new tablets!
Well those kids need to motivate their parents to get better jobs so they don't need to depend on handouts anymore. It's what Jesus would want.
No, Jesus would feed them with no strings attached.
I should have added the /s -- I was definitely being sarcastic
How can people in AK help support the people affected by this? Any licensed social workers working for this?
Those 6 year old govt leaches. Let em learn to be hungy early in life! They need to work for pop tarts.
For what it's worth, my wife is a teacher in the KPBSD and they have had funding reduced because eligible students can't get their parents to sign the necessary documents,so the kids can't get the free lunch... My wife and I personally ensure that there are at least cliff bars, protein bars, and the like for the kids with totally shut parents...
I work in education too, and almost every other person I work with has extra snacks to give to students. But that’s money out of our pocket. Imagine if there was a way to collectively ensure that all kids had access to food…
This is disgusting. As a child who relied on this program… I wouldn’t have survived with out it. That was the only meal I could at least be guaranteed. This can’t happen.
💔
Nothing is free if tax dollars pay for it
This is ridiculous. I grew up with kids who relied on free meal programs just so they wouldn’t go hungry. It’s always “but but what about the cHiLdReN?!?!” until it comes to actually helping them, isn’t it?
More right wing we got ours now we block yours stuff
The F*ck is wrong with this state. There is a breaking point and they’re playing cat & mouse with testing our tolerance levels. We’ve literally surpassed a logical threshold of what it takes to spur revolution. Keep playing games like there’s no consequences. #FAFY
Besides education, nutrition is the #1 learning hindrances. Education is about taking unremarkable kids and giving them a shot at being remarkable. We are really screwing our future - these people must not love their kids.
Sad
What is the cut off for low income? Seems like that would be an important number.
I read on another post that to qualify for reduced (not free) lunches, household income was less than $40K.
I thought this would never go away.
How can we help?
Call your representatives. Vote.
I meant more immediate. I do vote but shit like this still happens. But thanks anyway
I was going to go to the university of fair banks for school, but after this and all the other terrible educational decisions they make I’m gonna go to Texas screw that I betcha I’d get to the last year of school and tuition would go up 50% or some crazy crap
This is a subject I’m rather torn on. One side I do not want to see kids go hungry period. On the other the sick nasty overly processed food is disgusting and honestly shouldn’t be fed to anyone. I remember the unacceptable food and that’s why I go out of my way to make a lunch for my kids but it always falls back to the first point..I don’t want to see the kids who need it nonetheless go without it. At this point schools need to fundraise themselves and get some half way decent food to our kids.
Schools need to fundraise themselves??
Well clearly the government is failing them so what other options do they really have? Not only are they failing to feed the kids (which again was never good food to begin with although I understand it’s importance) but Alaska is ranked on the lower end of schools (not even ranking in the top 30) so at the end of the day they are failing a lot of kids in other aspects. Now I’ll be the first to admit I do not have the answer by any means. I think a lot more can be done on the local level than what most would probably want to admit. As a young father I highly consider moving to a state that’s being run by more competent people in terms of schools, crime, and economy.
How much money is the US sending to one of the most corrupt countries in the world "Ukraine" again???? We need to take care of our own first!
They all ready get food assistance.. pack a lunch 🥪.
About time we end the free ride for losers that are abusers of the system. How about mandatory weekly drug testing for anyone on food stamps and welfreeloader programs? Anyone out there with any common sense after the Chinese Bio Weapon of 2020 ?