[RipSawyer]

But then I didn't have a car, cable tv, and a cell phone, either, and it seems like most "poor" families have no trouble affording these vital "necessities."

I will grant that cable tv is no necessity but a car is necessary for many working poor in my area as a means to travel to work and back and in some cases a cell phone may be a necessity for people who only work when called in, this is becoming fairly common.

[Atlas Sneezed]

...a car is necessary for many working poor in my area as a means to travel to work and back and in some cases a cell phone may be a necessity for people who only work when called in, this is becoming fairly common.

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There are plenty of minimum wage jobs around the nation that are near bus lines that also go by affordable housing. If one can't afford to live where you live, MOVE.

The cell phone is cheap, and should cost $10 per month, unless the worker is using it as a social tool.

[.cnI redruM]

Back when I was flat out broke, I rode the bus. A car is not a necessity unless you take employment somewhere the metro doesn't reach.