One legislator signed up for the real thing, briefly, reluctantly, years ago. Out of work, in the middle of a messy divorce, and with a growing daughter to feed, Rep. Christine Johnson, D-Salt Lake City, accepted the help, gratefully, painfully. She knows how hard it is to feed a family with food stamps. She praises the program, knows the value of a helping hand.

The other accepted the Food Stamp Challenge, a pseudo-program proffered by advocates for the poor, who challenge people to experience life on food stamps for a week. But Rep. John Dougall, R-Highland, signed on disingenuously, disdainfully, attempting to prove that food stamp recipients live on Easy Street, not Hardship Row. He's an unapologetic opponent of federal public assistance programs who wants to see social services delivered by churches, non-profit organizations and cities.

Johnson and Dougall tell their stories online at foodstampchallenge.org, a Web site set up by local social justice groups that support congressional reauthorization of the food stamp program, which provides recipients with $22.05 per person per week. Anti-hunger advocates say it's not enough for a healthy diet and are lobbying for an increase of $37 per month for a family of three. But Dougall thinks $1.05 per meal is plenty.

On Monday, the first day of the challenge, Dougall claimed to have eaten three squares, fresh fruits and vegetables included, for $3.04. But he had to fudge to do it. He bought in bulk, overspent and arrived at his figure by dividing the cost by the percentage used, something the poor aren't always able to do.

Even then, he's comparing prime rib to chopped liver. You'd have to live on food stamps for a month or more, walking to the store, eating in a hovel, denying your kids the simplest pleasures, to experience the full effect. When the challenge is over, and Dougall returns to filling his plate at restaurants and the all-you-can-eat family dinner table, he still won't have a clue.