Posted on 12/05/2018 9:05:41 AM PST by SeekAndFind
Because they spend more than they bring in.
Christ Himself told us the poor would always be with us. It’s for a variety of reasons.
Living life based on raw impulse seems to have a detrimental effect on both health and wealth.
Enough of this liberal screed.
Exactly!
It's like asking with bewilderment, "Why do half of all people have below-average wealth/income, and the other half above-average wealth/income?"
Regards,
People just make stupid decisions. That’s really all it is. My family lives very comfortably. Our combined income is over 200K. By all respects we’re probably 1 percenters even living in an expensive area in Massachusetts.
Yet...
I drive a 17 year-old Tacoma pickup. Other car is a 7 year-old Honda Pilot (We bought each one used)
We get all our books and movies from the Library (free)
My sons wear hand-me-down clothes.
We go out to dinner maybe twice a year and always pack our own lunches
We shop at Aldi and Costco
My wife doesn’t have 100 pairs of shoes
We have no premium cable channels
We do our own housework and yard work,
the list goes on and on.
Why? Because we have to put 3 kids through college, we want to live in a safe area with good schools. We want to instill good values in our kids. Every now and then my sons will get upset when I take them to “Play it Again Sports” to get them used cleats or other sports equipment. My oldest is starting to get it at least when I say why would I spend $100 on football cleats that you’ll outgrow in 5 months? Here’s a lightly used pair for $15.
Little things add up. It allows us to drop a grand a month into the college fund. My neighbors complain about money all the time. They have 2 High School kids. The mom complains about sports fees, cell phones, her daughters clothes, etc.
I look at her driveway with a Range Rover and Lexus SUV in it. Her nails are always done. Her kids have Iphones. They go out to dinner all the time...I just chuckle. People are dumb.
Learned behavior....
Hank Williams, I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive:
Because they don’t have enough money. But the solution is easy, just ask Alexandria Occasional Cortex: just get more of it.
There is some validity in all three views: conservative, liberal and the authors.
I would say the conservative view is distorted but given the first few harsh responses here, maybe it’s not.
You’re always going to have some poor. Orphans, disabled, developmentally challenged, drug addicts, etc. And it is government’s responsibility to deal with this.
Trump rightly focused on getting the economic engine running again, restoring jobs driven by the private sector to millions. Unfortunately Congress has fought him every step of the way. Trump could do so much more if Congress would get on board.
Governmental policy does indeed account for much. The lowering of import tariffs, resulted in labor dislocations for uneducated and educated alike. Educated are better equiped to deal. But many labor dislocations are the result of technological advances. And those changes are coming at us with ever greater frequency.
The 2008 financial crisis caused major labor dislocations. That was the result of lowering tariffs in the 60’s which progressively weakened our economy over the coming decades. Bandaids such as mortgage refinancing and weaker credit standards helped sustain the economy for an additional decade. But then a rising oil price dried up deposible income, increased the default rate, resulting in a tightening of credit and the resulting liquidity crisis.
Personal choice plays a large role for some but not all. Failure to recognize coming changes or to get a flexible education, or experimentation with drugs and alcohol takes more than a few off the productive rolls. Government policy impacts that too. Government policy failure to direct educational loans into productive sectors.
Failure to sufficiently educate on the dangers of drugs and alcohol leaves a lot of people vulnerable. Some of the education in the past has been more like an advertisement for the drugs instead of against them. And Hollywood certainly advertises them as a positive, though the media and through example.
We’ve also replaced the Family with Big Government.
And by Family, I mean the extended family, or I would even call it a “clan” of relations. They need to take care of one another. It’s one of the reasons Asians flourish, they understand the idea is to keep as much wealth within the “clan” as possible.
Fifty Five years ago LBJ declared WAR ON POVERTY! It looks like POVERTY is still winning.
The poor in the US today eat better and have better HVAC than the kings of 100 years ago.
For many of the poor nowadays, the word simply means you are at the bottom of the income scale. Poor is a very subjective term.
And it always will. All the King's Horses and All the King's Men won't change that.
Sneak across the Southern border, then barge back into the US claiming to be a ‘refugee’. The US will provide you with everything you need free. That will cure your poverty.
Offer marriage incentives early... and much of the mind-grueling poverty will end. Wealth is more than 'how much stuff' a person can buy and much of poverty is alienation and persistent fear - not the lack of a second TV.
LBJ offered a safety net for women who had their children without marriage. A man who might have stepped up - or had daddy's shotgun aimed at his head - who would have done the "right thing" backed off for a free hospital birth... The most damaging incentive of the Great Society.
The Great Society told women the birth would be free if they didn't marry - they could 'be free of a man - - or they could marry the father AFTER the birth. This was the beginning of the destruction of the black family. By the time the baby was born - and any 'honor' involved in marrying the mother was over - the concept of marriage was weakened and the poverty that is MORE than a lack of money moved in...
Perverse incentives work - even when the end result is destructive.
Switch incentives - make the investment early and save money in the long run. Reward for marriage... cheaper, easier, better...
Insightful, painful and totally 'on the money'....
***Ambition, or lack thereof.***
Forty five years ago my Brother-in-law(If you know him he probably owes you money) cried that he could not find a job. I pointed out quite a few in the paper. He still could not find a job.
One day I found a high dollar job he was qualified for. I called him, told him to get over there and put in an application! Great pay and Great benefits!
He asked what type work it was and I told him it was the same I am doing. His words to me were....”I don’t want to do that kind of work!” I said “OK” and never tried to find him another job.
Forty years later, he is still struggling, and I am doing OK. He has not worked enough in the last 20 years to even get Social Security. His poor wife had to apply for her own SS that she paid in (Minimum wage).
Yep.
I maintain that if there were some way to flip the top 20% of the rich and the bottom 20% of the poor (Trading Places-style) in a short few years, everyone would be roughly back where they started.
People are the sum totals of the decisions that they make. Even when life presents them with bad fortune, they can still decide the manner in which they respond to it.
Years ago, I watched a performance artist (The guy who filmed "Super Size Me") try to live for 30 days on minimum wage. Sure, it was a "reality" TV show, but it sucked me in.
He had problems, but not what you would think. His problem was that employers would hire him at minimum wage, then within a couple of days, want to give him a raise. He did a pretty good job, you see - showed up on time, worked hard, didn't complain, etc etc. So, he couldn't *stay* at minimum wage. The system simply wouldn't allow it.
IIRC, the show finally resorted to some sort of gimmick to rig the guy to fail - he "hurt his back", or something.
No matter, the point was made. My takeaway was that it's very hard to fail in America. People manage to do it every day, but it's likely a failure of their own making.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.