Why the poor aren't getting ahead.

[SolomonVII]

Maybe you an Old Crotchety White Man (TM) or maybe you honestly don't see any problem.

Calling someone a crochety old white man is an example of how the neo-racists of the left virtue-signal to each other.

 

[Non sequitur]

Calling someone a crochety old white man is an example of how the neo-racists of the left virtue-signal to each other.

It probably is and I'd steer clear of them. That's why I counter-balanced it with the opposite reaction someone could have or came to the conclusion of.

 

[SolomonVII]

It probably is and I'd steer clear of them. That's why I counter-balanced it with the opposite reaction someone could have or came to the conclusion of.

You'd steer clear of them , eh?

Okaaayy. I steer clear of them too.....

.....
slowly backing away to the door now
.....

 

[Non sequitur]

You'd steer clear of them , eh?

Okaaayy. I steer clear of them too.....

.....
slowly backing away to the door now
.....

Since I didn't say he was a crotchety old man (nor do I think that - standard stereotype names are merely name calling), I'm not understanding why you would be backing away.

Do you think he is a crotchety old man and want to steer clear of me? Is that what's happening?

 

[SolomonVII]

Since I didn't say he was a crotchety old man (nor do I think that - standard stereotype names are merely name calling), I'm not understanding why you would be backing away.

Do you think he is a crotchety old man and want to steer clear of me? Is that what's happening?

It is you that made the association as if his being a crotchety old white man was somehow a valid point for people to be bringing up.

 

[Non sequitur]

It is you that made the association as if his being a crotchety old white man was somehow a valid point for people to be bringing up.

I genuinely don't know his reason and didn't validate it as a valid point, just illustrated it as a point one could hold.

I could have listed every possibility, but used an extreme example of what a person could believe.

If you took that as my sincere belief, it's not. I also clarified it.

I don't know what to take away form this, other than you want me to be a neo-racists of the left?

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Maybe you an Old Crotchety White Man (TM) or maybe you honestly don't see any problem.

And that's the issue people are having. You're not seeing what people are trying to say, in addressing your list.

I can't do any more to point out how only addressing the logically apparent things is of little help/use to the overall issue, any more than I already have.

The topic is the poor, not would-be entrepreneurs.

I actually don't see a huge problem. As Jesus pointed out the poor are an economic (and cultural) class that is always here, regardless of their own efforts or the efforts of others to change this fact. Being poor is not the same as being impoverished, which very few are. We have built a pretty good safety net under the poor so that they don't descend into poverty.

There are advantages to being poor, mainly that it requires little effort to maintain oneself compared to the effort required to rise into the middle class. The poor are largely the 'working poor' who for their own reason have chosen to remain so. This is why I don't believe it is the problem that activists and advocates present it as.

Also the ranks of the poor see many entering but soon leaving as they reestablish themselves in a middle class income. Some have fallen from the heights of wealth but because of experience and desire don't remain long in the 'poorhouse'. The poor are just another demographic. No biggy.

 

[Non sequitur]

The topic is the poor, not would-be entrepreneurs.

I actually don't see a huge problem. As Jesus pointed out the poor are an economic (and cultural) class that is always here, regardless of their own efforts or the efforts of others to change this fact. Being poor is not the same as being impoverished, which very few are. We have built a pretty good safety net under the poor so that they don't descend into poverty.

There are advantages to being poor, mainly that it requires little effort to maintain oneself compared to the effort required to rise into the middle class. The poor are largely the 'working poor' who for their own reason have chosen to remain so. This is why I don't believe it is the problem that activists and advocates present it as.

Also the ranks of the poor see many entering but soon leaving as they reestablish themselves in a middle class income. Some have fallen from the heights of wealth but because of experience and desire don't remain long in the 'poorhouse'. The poor are just another demographic. No biggy.

I guess that would depend on examples of these activists and advocates.

I'd hope nobody advocates for being poor.

 

[tturt]

There was a post about the poor you have with you always seemed to be a goal for some.

Read articles about everyone needs to be on a equal playing field.

Don't see it as a goal but a realization of human nature. (If you set aside Scripture) If all the money in the world was divided equally, within 24 hours or sooner, there would be the poor. Folks are going to steal, gamble, fall for scams, misplace it, overspend, have addictions, flush it down the toilet, etc.

But still think we need to follow Scripture and wisely do the "...and whensoever ye will ye may do them good:..." Mark 14:7

 

[grasping the after wind]

Well, you have your opinion, I guess.

I was told I lacked "a work ethic" when I was working 3 jobs and my days consisted of 10-12 hours at work.
I was told I "must be lazy if I choose to live THERE" when I gave them a home address in the bad part of town.
I was told to "get an education" when I was doing this work in the vain hopes of finishing my degree.
I was told to "get my homeless [phrase for someone's hiney] out of the house of God" when I stepped in between jobs because hearing the choir was the only music I could afford.
I was told "you're such a worthless piece of homeless {another swear word}" by people I biked past on my rush between jobs because I was riding a bike with my multiple uniforms in a tied bag in winter.

I lived in that world for four years. Day in, day out. I heard this sort of thing on a daily basis. Which of these messengers was just "telling me like it is"? Which of them should I have stopped and debated with?

You know what DID help? 2 completely random acts of generosity from POOR people. One gave me a broken bicycle, and another had his apartment-mate die of an infection and offered me the couch for what I could afford to pay.

You know what didn't help? Being told by the society I was so longing to rejoin that I was unwelcome. And yes, they did that. Constantly.

Some people can be jerks. No question. Others can be wonderful, caring and generous. I don't see any correlation in my own life between the amount of resources a person possessed and the level of jerkiness they exuded but both of our experiences are anecdotal experiences so neither can be considered an excuse to generalize. My personal suspicion is that the more power over another person a person perceives they will wield from a situation the more likely they are to act like a jerk toward that other person.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

I guess that would depend on examples of these activists and advocates.

I'd hope nobody advocates for being poor.

Maybe such as Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton do, trying to marshal the poor into a political force. They can't afford to lose them to the middle class.

 

[Cuddles333]

Why the poor are not getting ahead:

Monitarily- according to www. dollartimes.... alcuators/inflation.htm. a single dollar in 1960 could by what today takes $8.21 to by. By devaluing the dollar, the rich (who really make the final Government calls on decisions) have created an ever widening dollar gap every year.

Job/Home Visualization- if a person has never been in the higher income home environment, it is near impossible to see themselves in one in the future.

Home Environment- if a poor person does manage to land a job that happens to pay slightly above the poverty level and where they just might be able to have a savings account for the first time. They are still morally obligated to financially help out their struggling family members when they encounter setbacks.

Education- this is almost humourous if it wasn't so sad. The student is supposed to apply themselves in a school that may even be tops in the State, but wonder what they are going to eat when they get home, if the electricity, cable, or phone is going to be turned off. No money for school events nor clothes to attend them.

Connections- it is truly sinister for the poor student to make it to trade school or college graduation, only to find that the folks operating this employment apparatus has already had it planned out way ahead of time... and it did not include the poor unknown person. So he/she settles for employment way back down closer to the poverty level.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Monitarily- according to www. dollartimes.... alcuators/inflation.htm. a single dollar in 1960 could by what today takes $8.21 to by. By devaluing the dollar, the rich (who really make the final Government calls on decisions) have created an ever widening dollar gap every year.

In 1960 starting pay for many jobs was less than $1.50 per hour.

Job/Home Visualization- if a person has never been in the higher income home environment, it is near impossible to see themselves in one in the future.

That's a good reason not to aim too high to begin with.

Home Environment- if a poor person does manage to land a job that happens to pay slightly above the poverty level and where they just might be able to have a savings account for the first time. They are still morally obligated to financially help out their struggling family members when they encounter setbacks.

God says to leave your parents home and start your own career and family.

Education- this is almost humourous if it wasn't so sad. The student is supposed to apply themselves in a school that may even be tops in the State, but wonder what they are going to eat when they get home, if the electricity, cable, or phone is going to be turned off. No money for school events nor clothes to attend them.

The poor have plenty to eat.

Connections- it is truly sinister for the poor student to make it to trade school or college graduation, only to find that the folks operating this employment apparatus has already had it planned out way ahead of time... and it did not include the poor unknown person. So he/she settles for employment way back down closer to the poverty level.

Minimum wage is a great place to start a working career. You can build a fortune from a humble beginning. I did.

 

[Noxot]

I guess that would depend on examples of these activists and advocates.

I'd hope nobody advocates for being poor.

I advocate for being poor, but only to a certain extent. why do you think being poor is wrong?

 

[Non sequitur]

I advocate for being poor, but only to a certain extent. why do you think being poor is wrong?

If we're going with the standard definition, I'd say "wrong" is the incorrect word.

 

[Audacious]

In 1960 starting pay for many jobs was less than $1.50 per hour.

If you bother to adjust for inflation, that's actually $13.37 an hour.

 

[anna ~ grace]

Too many are,

Undereducated
Under motivated
Unwilling to plan
Unwilling to sacrifice
Unwilling to work hard
Unwilling to obey the law
Unwilling to care for their health
Unwilling to abstain from drugs and alcohol
Unwilling to remain unmarried until they can afford it.
Unwilling to present themselves to an employer properly.

Working at a retailer where most of our customers are in a lower income bracket, I've noticed a few things.

Poor folks tend to blow money like it's water. Few of these families or individuals, sadly, seem to have any idea how to budget.

Folks tend to blow their money on dumb and costly things like televisions, X-Boxes, tattoos, video games, and more televisions even as they can barely scrape together rent money.

Folks have way too many credit cards. And debt.

Folks have no idea how to cook a meal, rely too much on processed foods, fast food places, and frozen food, and have bigger food budgets than they could have.

Folks live beyond their means.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

If you bother to adjust for inflation, that's actually $13.37 an hour.

I was only making $1.10, or just over $9.00 Adjusted. Also the CPI needs adjusting to include housing.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Working at a retailer where most of our customers are in a lower income bracket, I've noticed a few things.

Poor folks tend to blow money like it's water. Few of these families or individuals, sadly, seem to have any idea how to budget.

Folks tend to blow their money on dumb and costly things like televisions, X-Boxes, tattoos, video games, and more televisions even as they can barely scrape together rent money.

Folks have way too many credit cards. And debt.

Folks have no idea how to cook a meal, rely too much on processed foods, fast food places, and frozen food, and have bigger food budgets than they could have.

Folks live beyond their means.

True. The credit card hailed the end of financial stability for millions. I remember when they first came out. It was a disaster for all who obtained one. And, if I had gotten one earlier in my life I too would have abused it. No one was immune.

 

[Roman1]

So after 2008, did a bunch of People suddenly become lazy?

In the Rust belt, are People just more lazy than People in the Pacific northwest?

How about the South, are People just "lazy" there?

The reason People are poor, is because they live in a system where the only way to NOT be poor is to be profitable for Capitalists.

By the way, I came across this today.

Man With Cancer-Stricken Wife Jailed For Leaving Kids Alone To Work

But I Guess that guy is just lazy and the Wallstreet guys are just so productive (Wallstreet doesn't produce anything).

Shame on the OP, read the gospels.