A small dose of reality: POOR PAY UP (washington post article)

I wish the article would've expanded on the reasons why some of them are in those predicaments.

Because, when I usually hear stories like this, people are usually complaining about not being able to do certain things for their children.

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children? I'll never understand why people do that.
 
If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children?
Thats a fair question. From what i hear, the more kids you have, the more aid you get. so that can be an explanation.

And as far as gettin into that predicament, they could have been there their whole lives, got laid off, drugs...i mean there's a million reasons why. Weneed to find a more efficient way of helpin folks advance.

but how do you advance, save money when "day old bread" is more expensive in their neighborhood (down the street) than across town in the moreeconomic affluent areas.

Housing..man dont get me started. They cant get loans to begin owning homes cause they simply cant afford it. then when they are told they can afford thesesubprime loans (which would be used to gain ownership and ultimately) save and provide for the next generation.....well yall seen what happened.
 
Originally Posted by Roc Boy Jada

I wish the article would've expanded on the reasons why some of them are in those predicaments.

Because, when I usually hear stories like this, people are usually complaining about not being able to do certain things for their children.

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children? I'll never understand why people do that.
Yet rich kids can go get knocked up and have mommy and daddy handle the bill...


PRIVILEGE.....


Not everyone has it.
 
any other thoughts?

I was watchin Outside the Lines (tv show;sports) and the topic was about how crack cocaine (the cheaper drug) of cocaine is punished "100 times"harsher than reg cocaine.........

just another thought, not sure it relates.
 
Originally Posted by jthagreat

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children?
Thats a fair question. From what i hear, the more kids you have, the more aid you get. so that can be an explanation.

And as far as gettin into that predicament, they could have been there their whole lives, got laid off, drugs...i mean there's a million reasons why. We need to find a more efficient way of helpin folks advance.

but how do you advance, save money when "day old bread" is more expensive in their neighborhood (down the street) than across town in the more economic affluent areas.

Housing..man dont get me started. They cant get loans to begin owning homes cause they simply cant afford it. then when they are told they can afford these subprime loans (which would be used to gain ownership and ultimately) save and provide for the next generation.....well yall seen what happened.
I understand some of them are put in these situations with no choice but it's like a majority of them don't learn from anotherperson's mistake or their own life experiences.

They grow up underprivileged themselves, go through the struggles, and have their children grow up with the same lifestyle.

Does someone need to sit down with them and tell them that money is needed to raise children?

I need to find the article that I read on it but, it said on average, about $100k is used on one child by the time they're 18.
 
Originally Posted by SneakerHeathen

Originally Posted by Roc Boy Jada

I wish the article would've expanded on the reasons why some of them are in those predicaments.

Because, when I usually hear stories like this, people are usually complaining about not being able to do certain things for their children.

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children? I'll never understand why people do that.
Yet rich kids can go get knocked up and have mommy and daddy handle the bill...


PRIVILEGE.....


Not everyone has it.
Yeah dude, exactly. If you don't, don't intentionally have kids, that's idiotic.
 
can there be a functional economy without a poor class? even if everybody in america was better off, that would mean some other country would be getting theshort end of the stick, right?
 
Originally Posted by mytmouse76

i look forward to what this turns into tomorrow...

Im hopin it sees tomorrow. I hope or wish that the comments that make threads explode (usually ignorant) are ignored and a true discussion occurs. I know a lotof us (obviously myself included) are on the outside looking in.... So i ask that NO ONE makes a ignorant generalization and if they do, it gets not ignored,but not responded to in such a negative (argument inducing) way.
 
Originally Posted by CuriousGeorg3

can there be a functional economy without a poor class? even if everybody in america was better off, that would mean some other country would be getting the short end of the stick, right?

1st question: but it would mean a higher standard of living for the poor so...being better off would be great.
2nd: short end of the stick? in what way?
 
i read the article earlier today.. hella sad


some people just DONT have a way out..

w/out doin somethin illegal of course
 
Originally Posted by jthagreat

Originally Posted by CuriousGeorg3

can there be a functional economy without a poor class? even if everybody in america was better off, that would mean some other country would be getting the short end of the stick, right?

1st question: but it would mean a higher standard of living for the poor so...being better off would be great.
2nd: short end of the stick? in what way?

^by everybody being better off i meant all of the poor class moves up into the middle or high class. I just thought that it might cause a huge disturbance inthe natural balance of things.

In order to take, someone must give, so if all of the poor class takes in wealth to move up to the middle or high class, then whos giving it out and how couldit be sustained? unless its being taken from a lesser country. hopefully that sense
 
CuriousGeorg3 wrote:
can there be a functional economy without a poor class? even if everybody in america was better off, that would mean some other country would be getting the short end of the stick, right?


A thousand years ago, the world population was a half billion or so and most people had lives that would be consider dire or extreme poverty. Today the worldpopulation is over 12 times that amount and a majority of people do not live in dire or extreme poverty. It obvious that wealth is not some fixed"pie" and someone's gain is off set by someone's loss, wealth can and is created so the zero sum view is incorrect. At some point in thefuture, hopefully innovation and investment and productivity will continue to raise standards of living to the point that the bottom 10% of income earners willhave the same comforts that are enjoyed by the top 50% or 30% or 10% of today. In the last 200 years that has already happened, let us hope that short sightedpolitics does not slow down economic growth and the increased standards of living that accompany it.

That is the economics of it. Socially, it would be hard to imagine a society that does not have lower class of some form. Even with much higher standards ofliving, some people will have less skills and social connections and will do the less prestigious and relatively less agreeable work. Even far into the futurewhen machinery has made most work obsolete and we all can enjoy a very pleasant material existence, hierarchies will still exist even if they are based on verytrivial things, there will be an elite and a lower class.
 
Originally Posted by Roc Boy Jada

I wish the article would've expanded on the reasons why some of them are in those predicaments.

Because, when I usually hear stories like this, people are usually complaining about not being able to do certain things for their children.

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children? I'll never understand why people do that.
Because there is no repercussion for crapping out a bunch of kids. The only repercussion is that the rest of society has to shoulder the burden ofthese kids who are raised in bad situations. As a society, we should be outraged that people on welfare can keep popping out kids and as tax payers, we will befooting the bill. And it doesn't end with welfare checks...prison, legal system, police, etc. Everything. Most of America's problems, in regards toillegal activity, can be traced back to crapping out unwanted kids, or kids you can't effectively raise as a normal human being, and then unleashing themon society.

Solution: mandatory birth control for women on welfare. It'd be a good start. Before you get your government check, you get a Depo shot so you don'tcrap out little monsters and unleash them on society.
 
let us hope that short sighted politics does not slow down economic growth and the increased standards of living that accompany it.


Rex can you expound upon this? cause what im thinkin (you are saying) is that those suffering now will reap a pay off in the end. (im not truly speakin of astimulus package or anything in particular) but havin those at the bottom suffer in hopes of it payin off in the future doesnt seem like an acceptable answercause the same folks who were suffering say 50 years ago are still suffering today.
 
Originally Posted by Roc Boy Jada

Originally Posted by jthagreat

If you're "economically vulnerable", why are you having children?
Thats a fair question. From what i hear, the more kids you have, the more aid you get. so that can be an explanation.

And as far as gettin into that predicament, they could have been there their whole lives, got laid off, drugs...i mean there's a million reasons why. We need to find a more efficient way of helpin folks advance.

but how do you advance, save money when "day old bread" is more expensive in their neighborhood (down the street) than across town in the more economic affluent areas.

Housing..man dont get me started. They cant get loans to begin owning homes cause they simply cant afford it. then when they are told they can afford these subprime loans (which would be used to gain ownership and ultimately) save and provide for the next generation.....well yall seen what happened.
I understand some of them are put in these situations with no choice but it's like a majority of them don't learn from another person's mistake or their own life experiences.

They grow up underprivileged themselves, go through the struggles, and have their children grow up with the same lifestyle.

Does someone need to sit down with them and tell them that money is needed to raise children?

I need to find the article that I read on it but, it said on average, about $100k is used on one child by the time they're 18.

I don't think u really understand. If it was up to u, if u're poor, don't reproduce then u we won't have to worry about poor infuture generations huh? Then what u gon say, get a job??? It's that easy. I have a college education and I even have trouble gettin a job so that'seasier said than done. According to u, it's our faults that we're born into poverty. U aint sayin it directy but u are in so many words
 
What is it that I'm not understanding? And, you lost me on that second line.
If it was up to u, if u're poor, don't reproduce
Yes.
According to u, it's our faults that we're born into poverty.
If you read my post again, I stated that I understand people have no control over the social class they're born into.

My thing is, some of the same people who are born into poverty end up in bad positions as they get older and STILL decide to have children of their own whenthey can't afford to raise them.

What good comes out of that?
 
Originally Posted by Rexanglorum

CuriousGeorg3 wrote:
can there be a functional economy without a poor class? even if everybody in america was better off, that would mean some other country would be getting the short end of the stick, right?


A thousand years ago, the world population was a half billion or so and most people had lives that would be consider dire or extreme poverty. Today the world population is over 12 times that amount and a majority of people do not live in dire or extreme poverty. It obvious that wealth is not some fixed "pie" and someone's gain is off set by someone's loss, wealth can and is created so the zero sum view is incorrect. At some point in the future, hopefully innovation and investment and productivity will continue to raise standards of living to the point that the bottom 10% of income earners will have the same comforts that are enjoyed by the top 50% or 30% or 10% of today. In the last 200 years that has already happened, let us hope that short sighted politics does not slow down economic growth and the increased standards of living that accompany it.

That is the economics of it. Socially, it would be hard to imagine a society that does not have lower class of some form. Even with much higher standards of living, some people will have less skills and social connections and will do the less prestigious and relatively less agreeable work. Even far into the future when machinery has made most work obsolete and we all can enjoy a very pleasant material existence, hierarchies will still exist even if they are based on very trivial things, there will be an elite and a lower class.



hierarchies=positive sum?
inequality=positive sum?

nerd.gif
 
Reminds me, i did an essay on The Great Depression. An interesting concept i came around to was "If you don't know what to do, go to a poor person.They'll know what to do".
Considering poor people have always lived in poverty.
 
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