The Poor and Stereotypes

Why don't we talk about bankers who cause the world economic crash or tax avoiders or our governments taking resources from other countries and selling arms. Rather going through this same OLD story over and over again it's boring.


Yes that's right people in PROVERTY... which means you are below a line were you can hardly fed yourself, are really all gambling drug taking drunks who are just milking a system in which they get peanuts just to buy a lottery ticket, some glue and a few cans of beers.


While the bankers and tax avoiders of course have done nothing wrong and are currently living it in their lovely big house and sailing around the world in their yachts with no care in the world, while we argue among ourselves over questions like this.


Seriously ??????

I was very poor growing up. My parents both worked very hard yet we still struggled and received little to no government assistance. We had to depend on the goodness of God and the kindness of others on more than one occasion. Some do milk the system, I've personally seen it, but that isn't true across the board. Many who need help can't get it and others on assistance do need it. It's foolish to label a whole economic bracket as drunkards, losers, gamblers, lazy, or druggies. It isn't true.

There are poor people who are honestly struggling from circumstances beyond their control, and there are poor people who became poor through drugs, gambling, etc.

Definitely a stigma. It's easy to label the poor as being lazy, irresponsible and somehow subhuman because it gives others a chance to look up to the heavens and say "God, I thank you that I am not like that guy over there."

redblue22 said:

Consider those in poverty. Are they spending their money on gambling, drugs, milking the system, etc? Or are the poor carrying a stigma on top of honest struggling? What do you think?

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Depends on the poor people.

I know poor people who in spite of their poverty, do not live within their means. The husband is going to school, and keeps going to school, he works on top of that. He'll need to not only graduate, but decide on a career, then put the work in if he's going to pay off their debt. I know someone else who lived off of unemployment for two years, didn't start retraining until that expired, racked up thousands more in debt, didn't finish the retraining, and ended up going back to the fast food industry. Which he could have done instead of living off unemployment for two years. I know someone else who has no marketable skills besides a CDL, and he's in his late thirties. He gave up on college, one reason is he racked up debt that he still is having trouble repaying. He also has the emotional maturity of a teenager, which takes a toll on everything, and contributed to his divorce. I know someone else who has been unemployed for years because he chooses to take care of his sick mother. I think he's afraid that she'll take a turn for the worst if he starts working and isn't there, but they've got money problems too, which he could alleviate if he worked. I was taking classes when he was going back to school - I wonder if he went back for nothing. I know someone else who is poor because he refuses to advance in life. He can do a good job in a certain field, but he refuses to advance in that field to a position that could make him actual money. When he gets sick of one gig, he just quits, drinks for a while, and relies on his contacts to get him another job elsewhere. I know someone else who is poor right now because she had to take care of her grandson, who due to his cerebral palsy, required surgery on his legs to correct some major growth problems. She had to sell the car she had, and now she's got to drive her old beater, which probably isn't safe anymore.

I don't say this in judgment of any of them. Bad things can happen to anybody. Poor choices will however, compound a bad situation. Have I helped them? Yes, in appropriate ways. And that hasn't been enough to get them a success story yet. And that's hard, because I love these people.

We had a couple in church who were poor. We brought them food and you got one glass of that cheap drink you have to mix with water if you came over to visit. He had a good job but they just made too much debts and she didn't want to work. She said: no I choose to be with my kids. When I got kids myself and had to work I was like: Good luck! I'm not going to work a day extra and give you money so you can sit at home with your kids. Now the kids have grown up and she works and they're filthy rich.
It was really sad to see. A 3 year old eating peanuts because he was so hungry.

TheGirlOnFire said:

Why don't we talk about bankers who cause the world economic crash or tax avoiders or our governments taking resources from other countries and selling arms. Rather going through this same OLD story over and over again it's boring.

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Agreed. The people who have the least power are not the ones screwing us over big time.

redblue22 said:

Consider those in poverty. Are they spending their money on gambling, drugs, milking the system, etc? Or are the poor carrying a stigma on top of honest struggling? What do you think?

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It varies household to household.

I lived in subsidized housing for a couple of years when I was married because we were a low income family. I saw a variety of different things, and most of what I saw was discouraging. The families on welfare kept cranking out children, apparently to milk the system, and yet as their children got older they rather neglected almost to a dangerous degree.

There were some families in the complex who appeared as though they were making an honest effort to get by. As though they were taking what assistance they were getting so that they could step out on their own and make a good living for their family.

So it's a mixed bag, but I'm a bit of a cynic when it comes to public assistance since my experience shows me that more people are abusing the system than there are people using it as it was intended.

One of my own friends, I believe, is misusing the system. He's 12 years older than me, has a wife and 1.5 kids, and has no degree, certificate or any means to have a career with a steady income to support his family. He works a couple of meager part time jobs and when things go south he falls back into his old YWAM habits and leans on other people for financial support.

His family is on WIC and food stamps, and the bottom line is that from where I stand they don't need to be. He could be out there doing more than he is but he would rather try to cut as many corners as possible and do whatever requires minimal effort for maximum pay.

Stereotypes or not, those people I know that are on government assistance have been in and out of prison on drug and theft charges. Teetering on the lower end of middle class, I really hold no stereotypes against poor people. Yes, there are a lot that bleed the system, but I also know quite a number who work hard, but have fallen on hard times. There's no shame in poverty if you're handling it in a responsible manner.

Darth Bagel said:

One of my own friends, I believe, is misusing the system. He's 12 years older than me, has a wife and 1.5 kids, and has no degree, certificate or any means to have a career with a steady income to support his family. He works a couple of meager part time jobs and when things go south he falls back into his old YWAM habits and leans on other people for financial support.

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TX_Matt said:

There are poor people who are honestly struggling from circumstances beyond their control, and there are poor people who became poor through drugs, gambling, etc.

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^This. Its a mixed bag and always will be. There are people who screw up and blame the system for their situation, and there are those who truly are stuck in a bad situation that is not of their own doing. And I'm sure there are people who fall somewhere in between.

TheGirlOnFire said:

Why don't we talk about bankers who cause the world economic crash or tax avoiders or our governments taking resources from other countries and selling arms. Rather going through this same OLD story over and over again it's boring.


Yes that's right people in PROVERTY... which means you are below a line were you can hardly fed yourself, are really all gambling drug taking drunks who are just milking a system in which they get peanuts just to buy a lottery ticket, some glue and a few cans of beers.


While the bankers and tax avoiders of course have done nothing wrong and are currently living it in their lovely big house and sailing around the world in their yachts with no care in the world, while we argue among ourselves over questions like this.


Seriously ??????

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1. Couldn't've said it better.
2. Many of us are so attached to the idea that we too will hit it rich if we just put in the hours that we believe that we're just a paycheck away from getting our first yacht. Therefore, hypothetically speaking, if we vote to raise taxes on those bankers and tax avoiders, those higher taxes will come back to bite us once we're living large.

Im not for taxing the rich excessively. Never have been.

What is the use in working hard only to be punished for it if you are one of the fortunate to reach the goal. Why should you have it taken away from you as punishment?

Yes, those that have plenty SHOULD help the less fortunate. It should be an action of free will, not one of law.

redblue22 said:

Why is it so important to know whether someone caused their own fall?

How does one go about milking the system? I'm not sure I even know what that means.

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That's the point it's smoke and mirrors to make us think of something that doesn't exist really, so our eye isn't on them but on the poor and each other. The ones who don't have the power.


Their a story that broke me this week a young women who after she pays her bills and food for her children is left with £3 to fed herself for the week she starves herself.. and it's not being poor it's the shame that comes with it, she's utterly ashamed to be poor and that's what we are putting on people it's their fault....rather than reaching out and helping..I know of kids that go to school not learn but to eat....

We judge to easily

And money we become like wild animals when it comes to that, that it's worth more than life, more than each other..... it's a sad state....

Poor people also have a lot of diseases, and possibly rabies.

redblue22 said:

Consider those in poverty. Are they spending their money on gambling, drugs, milking the system, etc? Or are the poor carrying a stigma on top of honest struggling? What do you think?

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I'm poor so I know the issue first hand.

The Bible teaches that ''a man can have nothing unless God gives it to him". Therefore, poverty is a choice - God's choice. Therefore, one should never be angered at anyone for being poor.

As others have stated, conclusions about character cannot be drawn based upon one's fiscal resources. Great wealth can be both accumulated and lost through amoral decisions. Saying that one's poverty is the result of poor decisions is, to me, akin to holding that the wealthy individual likely accumulated his resources dishonestly or through inheritance, or are stingy.

Personally, I rather relate these stereotypes to those associated with overweight individuals. Like most stereotypes, there is at least a grain of truth present. If one consistently makes extremely poor diet decisions and does not exercise, weight gain will result. However, this certainly does not mean all fat people are lazy or gluttons. Similarly, gambling, alcoholism, and similar will, under the vast majority of circumstances, lead or contribute to poverty. This, however, does not make it accurate to associate all cases of poverty with such decisions.

Fortran said:

As others have stated, conclusions about character cannot be drawn based upon one's fiscal resources. Great wealth can be both accumulated and lost through amoral decisions. Saying that one's poverty is the result of poor decisions is, to me, akin to holding that the wealthy individual likely accumulated his resources dishonestly or through inheritance, or are stingy.

Personally, I rather relate these stereotypes to those associated with overweight individuals. Like most stereotypes, there is at least a grain of truth present. If one consistently makes extremely poor diet decisions and does not exercise, weight gain will result. However, this certainly does not mean all fat people are lazy or gluttons. Similarly, gambling, alcoholism, and similar will, under the vast majority of circumstances, lead or contribute to poverty. This, however, does not make it accurate to associate all cases of poverty with such decisions.

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Actually research has shown that because people are in poverty the limited food choices they have are fatty and cheap when in loaded with sugar and other rubbish stuff. They don't have the choice to choose leaner meat or fruit etc they choice microwave meals for £1 which is like 700 cals. So becoming fat can be a due to the limited amount of food choice you have

TheGirlOnFire said:

Actually research has shown that because people are in poverty the limited food choices they have are fatty and cheap when in loaded with sugar and other rubbish stuff. They don't have the choice to choose leaner meat or fruit etc they choice microwave meals for £1 which is like 700 cals. So becoming fat can be a due to the limited amount of food choice you have

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You don't have to eat that. If I have no money I eat bread with cheese. Cheap and healthy. Got so used to it, eat it almost always. That way I have some nice extras for the kids. I could eat healthy every day but that'll cost me a fortune. My ex who didn't want to work and expected me to take care of him too while he played WOW got a bit irritated and wanted me to skip buying extras for the kids like clay and paint and do something fun with them. I thought: if you don't want to work you won't eat. At last he got so tired of the bread and cheese that he took a job.