Help! Do we have to call the United Nations for help? As the radio announces the latest tally of the millions raised for political candidates by the Super-Pacs; the headline of our local newspaper in Putnam County, Florida, screams: "Pantry Plea-The Shelves are Bare." This disconnect is infuriating. Putnam County Florida resides to the east of St. Augustine and southeast of Jacksonville; the so-called Gold Coast. State government cuts here have decimated our towns and cities. A funding cut from the U.S. Department of Agriculture has hit food charities hard. At the beginning of the downturn in 2007 and 2008, the poor and middle-class had something left to sell to keep up with expenditures. There is nothing left now. The donors are tapped out and the local churches are exhausted by the needs that can't be met. Cutting funding prematurely for basic needs (especially food) was premature at best, cruel at worst. There is growing desperation here and it is rapidly getting worse.