The carcasses of freshly killed bison lay on the wind-scoured plains of the Blackfeet Nation in western Montana, waiting to be sawed apart and trucked to a butcher.

They had died so that tribal members on the brink of losing their food stamps might eat.

The Blackfeet and other tribes were disproportionately vulnerable to cuts in food-assistance programs because of the government shutdown, so they decided to bridge the gap by slaughtering some of their buffalo and giving away the meat.

“It’s what the herd is for,” said Slew Costel, who helps manage the Blackfeet Nation’s herd. “In times of need, we need to feed the people.”

Even as the shutdown nears the end, the uncertainty and need it generated are certain to linger in low-income communities like the Blackfeet Nation. Last week, the tribe harvested 18 buffalo from its herd of 600 and turned them into more than 3,000 pounds of hamburger.

The tribe distributed the meat in packages along with Spam, milk, and fruits and vegetables to elders, young families and other tribal members who might need them, whether or not they receive food stamps.

For thousands of years, bison were the indispensable animal for Native Americans across the Plains and Mountain West — a vital source of meat for food; hides for tents, blankets and clothing; and bones for tools and arrowheads.

Government-approved mass hunting in the 1800s drove the animals nearly to extinction, but after a tribal-led buffalo renaissance in the West over the past decades, their population has rebounded to about 400,000.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5796590&forum_id=2Vannesa#49422393)

"I could barely afford a tiny apartment in Seattle despite working full-time," said Therdanine, 40.

"What a $cam," he added.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5796590&forum_id=2Vannesa#49422403)