Air Conditioning, Cable TV, and an Xbox: What is Poverty in the United States Today?

[ready4ONE 5,400]

What better excuse fornot taxing the rich? Blehhh!

Edited July 20, 2011 by ready4ONE

[Glyn and Kathy 288]

My husband and I are definitely not poor, but struggling like many Americans now a days. I do however work with one woman and her husband who are constantly crying poverty but both smoke like a chimney, drive a better car than my husband and I , both have newer smart phones with a data package (hubby and I have had the same cell phones for 4 years as we don't want to get stuck in another contract). On top of this, they get food stamps, fuel assistance, free health care for their daughter, and free childcare and eat out for lunch just about every day. I cringe when I hear her say they have no money....she one day said right to me, I don't know what to feed (her Daughter) for food tonight, the cabinets are empty and my food stamps don't come in till tomorrow. She then proceeded to go across the street and purchase her 7.00 cigarettes. Hmmmm 7.00 would have bought one HUGE box of pasta and some sauce and maybe even some meat to go with it.:bonk:

[Danno 1,228]

My husband and I are definitely not poor, but struggling like many Americans now a days. I do however work with one woman and her husband who are constantly crying poverty but both smoke like a chimney, drive a better car than my husband and I , both have newer smart phones with a data package (hubby and I have had the same cell phones for 4 years as we don't want to get stuck in another contract). On top of this, they get food stamps, fuel assistance, free health care for their daughter, and free childcare and eat out for lunch just about every day. I cringe when I hear her say they have no money....she one day said right to me, I don't know what to feed (her Daughter) for food tonight, the cabinets are empty and my food stamps don't come in till tomorrow. She then proceeded to go across the street and purchase her 7.00 cigarettes. Hmmmm 7.00 would have bought one HUGE box of pasta and some sauce and maybe even some meat to go with it.:bonk:

You are right on the money.

Nearly every person on the dole I know smokes name brand cigs and has a new cell phone.

I am seriously more frugal than the so-called poor.

I'll jump right out and say it: There are no more poor in this country!

Couple of years ago an opportunity came up for me to go feed the poor in the hills of West Virginia..... you know the fabled "forgotten poor".

From what I was told it was the third poorest county in the country.

-Most people who came to the distribution point drove cars newer than mine.

-Most had name brand sneakers.

-some hardly found anything good enough..... either in Clothes or gifts which were new (It was Christmas time).

-More than half of those who did come were black, which was only a little noteworthy as we always hear about the "poor white people" in the WV mountains.

-When we left, we still had boxes of food, gifts and clothes left over which was donated to a local shelter.

People if you want to help the poor, look outside our borders because real poverty exists out there.

The only poverty you can find here is -Self imposed poverty- of which the Gov't is largely the enabler.

[^_^ 5,021]

The only poverty you can find here is -Self imposed poverty- of which the Gov't is largely the enabler.

What about the argument made earlier in this thread that the reason poverty in America is so 'comfortable' (relative to poverty elsewhere) is because of Government support and if it wasn't so 'comfortable', our cushy suburban lives wouldn't be this comfortable either (because the poor would graze outside their natural habitat for food and money)?

Edited July 20, 2011 by \

[sachinky 465]

Wow and I canceled cable because they were ripping us off. 200 bucks a month for total ####### TV... and (white whine warning) they took away Food Network and THEN Fox, and I missed Glee that week.

I'm poorer than the poor now.

Eeek, what cable do you have? I have DISH and I pay, like, $35 a month. We get all of the regular channels such as Food Network and Fox.

Edited July 20, 2011 by sachinky

[Susita 175]

Eeek, what cable do you have? I have DISH and I pay, like, $35 a month. We get all of the regular channels such as Food Network and Fox.

We HAD Cablevision. We don't have real cable anymore, I just got Hulu Plus and we have basic cable & internet from the cable company now. The kids barely watch TV anyway, and when they want to see their shows we watch Hulu Plus on the Blueray player. It's like 7.99 a month and you get tons of stuff.

[chri'stina 190]

Eeek, what cable do you have? I have DISH and I pay, like, $35 a month. We get all of the regular channels such as Food Network and Fox.

Ours costs about the same too, through Dish. We don't have DVR(maybe one day lol).

Most of the things we choose to go without is to save more money, not because we are poor. So not having all those things doesn't mean poor. It could mean budgeting for extra savings.

Some people have bad budgeting skills which causes a lot financial problems for them. And some people make wiser budgeting decisions so that money can be used in different ways.

Poor or middle class (I guess I'd exempt the rich with abundant money flow from this for now), there will always be those that just blow their money on unneeded things. And then complain when they run low on cash or can't get something they actually needed. For instance, they can't afford to fix their car but they can afford all new smartphones with $100/month each plans, plus a DVR service, plus cable, plus new video games, plus eating out all the time. Yeah, they actually could afford to fix their car if they made it the priority. (using a real example I know of)

Some people tend to not look past their own little world. They feel their misery is relative to their surroundings. But after being in India myself too, it is just so different. It opens you up to what poverty in this world truly means, not just what it means in the US.

[mawilson 2,133]

What about the argument made earlier in this thread that the reason poverty in America is so 'comfortable' (relative to poverty elsewhere) is because of Government support and if it wasn't so 'comfortable', our cushy suburban lives wouldn't be this comfortable either (because the poor would graze outside their natural habitat for food and money)?

Well we could take some of that welfare money and use it to hire more cops.

[^_^ 5,021]

Well we could take some of that welfare money and use it to hire more cops.

We could be just like Brazil!

Send tanks into the ghetto.

[Ban Hammer 13,552]

We could be just like Brazil!

Send tanks into the ghetto.

were those tanks, or apc's?

[^_^ 5,021]

were those tanks, or apc's?

Do you really think I care?

[Ban Hammer 13,552]

Do you really think I care?

i'll take that as you can't tell the difference.

[sachinky 465]

Ours costs about the same too, through Dish. We don't have DVR(maybe one day lol).

Most of the things we choose to go without is to save more money, not because we are poor. So not having all those things doesn't mean poor. It could mean budgeting for extra savings.

Some people have bad budgeting skills which causes a lot financial problems for them. And some people make wiser budgeting decisions so that money can be used in different ways.

Poor or middle class (I guess I'd exempt the rich with abundant money flow from this for now), there will always be those that just blow their money on unneeded things. And then complain when they run low on cash or can't get something they actually needed. For instance, they can't afford to fix their car but they can afford all new smartphones with $100/month each plans, plus a DVR service, plus cable, plus new video games, plus eating out all the time. Yeah, they actually could afford to fix their car if they made it the priority. (using a real example I know of)

Some people tend to not look past their own little world. They feel their misery is relative to their surroundings. But after being in India myself too, it is just so different. It opens you up to what poverty in this world truly means, not just what it means in the US.

No DVR for us, either. I agree with Christina. Most people I know need Financial Management 101.

Mr. Sachinky and I are not rich (someday!), we are not poor either. We work hard for our money and are able to appreciate and be grateful for what we have. I am in charge of our monthly budgeting/finances and make sure we are spending within our means. We buy what we need, sure sometimes we indulge in luxuries, but on the whole, we try to live frugally. I am from India and having lived on my own since I was 18, it is relatively easy for me to do so, but it is difficult for Mr. Sachinky who doesn't have the same amount of restraint inculcated in him, coming from a very well-off family. But he's learning and doing the best he can.

Edited July 20, 2011 by sachinky