Zone1 We need to reassess poverty.

[Ray From Cleveland]

Yes, fixing the books for America is needed at least for appearance sake.

Americans are making comparisons to the higher quality of life in the world's democracies and wondering why they aren't doing better. America is the richest country in the world but the working class aren't seeing that wealth.

If the reality can't be changed to benefit Americans, at least this idea of adjusting the statistics will help the truly indoctrinated to believie for a while longer.

The first thing that has to be addressed is what is poverty?
Poverty is the situation of not having money or not enough money.
The solution to poverty is therefore money.
Money can be obtained by getting a job.

But it's more than that. It's what people do with money once they get it. It's like my dear old father always said: Money is easy to make; an idiot can make money. But money is hard to keep.

When I see people on the news, or those using SNAP's cards at my grocery store, they always seem to have children with them. The CDC estimated that the cost to raise a middle-class child today is $233,000. So if you want to have the average family of four, you better be ready to cough up a half-million dollars in the next 20 years or so.

When you start off in poverty, again, the solution is easy, but not if you're having children while in poverty. Once you start having children in poverty, you will likely always remain in poverty.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Some if not many minorities are in poverty because they maintain their ethnic lifestyle, which may not be compatible with building financial success here. They should probably be identified and struck from the rolls of the "poor", as it is their choice to remain so. This would undoubtedly lift others out of poverty statistically, and things would likely seem brighter than they do now.

I disagree. The problem is our education system. Kids graduate high school without knowing much about finances. There is a percentage of minorities that believe the only way to financial success is to be able to write a good rap song, be very good at basketball, or run drugs for the pusher selling them to you.

The reason subjects like finances are not taught in high school is because it's mostly under liberal control. They get more satisfaction creating more government dependents than they would capitalists. If you want to learn that kind of stuff, go to college. If you're not college material, I hope you're good at basketball.

So a mandatory class teaching these kids about finances would be a huge help. Teach them about compound interest rates, opening your own business, the stock market, the real estate market, the commodities market. Let poor kids know they still have a chance if they do the right thing, like not having kids they could never afford in the first place.

 

[Lisa558]

The first thing that has to be addressed is what is poverty?
Poverty is the situation of not having money or not enough money.
The solution to poverty is therefore money.
Money can be obtained by getting a job.

But it's more than that. It's what people do with money once they get it. It's like my dear old father always said: Money is easy to make; an idiot can make money. But money is hard to keep.

When I see people on the news, or those using SNAP's cards at my grocery store, they always seem to have children with them. The CDC estimated that the cost to raise a middle-class child today is $233,000. So if you want to have the average family of four, you better be ready to cough up a half-million dollars in the next 20 years or so.

When you start off in poverty, again, the solution is easy, but not if you're having children while in poverty. Once you start having children in poverty, you will likely always remain in poverty.

And the solution is easy:

1) Do not have children until you’re married and can afford them
2) Get some post high-school career or job training, either from classes (Pell Grants will pay) or as an apprentice or trainee in some industry or trade.

Ta-da. Poverty to the lower-middle class, or better, in ten years.

 

[Woodznutz]

.

 

[Woodznutz]

So a mandatory class teaching these kids about finances would be a huge help. Teach them about compound interest rates, opening your own business, the stock market, the real estate market, the commodities market. Let poor kids know they still have a chance if they do the right thing, like not having kids they could never afford in the first place.

Such courses would be 'Greek' to most HS kids.

 

[gipper]

Such courses would be 'Greek' to most HS kids.

And also Greek to the education establishment.

 

[gipper]

Most people in America aren't taught to save their money and just spend wisely.
They are taught "GIMME, GIMME, GIMME, NOW, NOW, NOW"!!!
They want it NOW, they want it FAST, they want the latest version, and they don't care how much it costs!!

American kids are NOT taught hard work brings little money, and that money needs to be saved for use for things you need to stay alive.........roof, food, medical necessities. Instead, they are taught to SPEND, SPEND, SPEND! If you got a buck in your pocket or some money left on your credit card.......SPEND IT NOW!!!!

American kids are not equipped to handle any type of adult life. They have NO skills of any kind. Everything they've been taught in school is a LIE. Everything they've seen on TV and in the movies is all LIES. But NOBODY tells them this.

This is why poverty in America is a far more greater tragedy than any other country.

The only people screaming gimme gimme are the big corporations and billionaires. They get what they demand too, since they control our government.