The Sadness of Welfare

malonetd · January 21, 2011, 2:45pm

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:
Isn’t the ivory tower nice?
[/quote]

Ivory tower, huh? You have no clue. You see, I understand poverty because I grew up in it. I grew up with two sisters and a brother, all of us with different fathers. I grew up on WIC and AFDC and Food Stamps. I grew up getting excited because we were able to sneak the cereal with the added fruits past the grocery clerk, because only the non-fruit version was allowed by WIC. I grew up unable to have steady friends because my single-parent mother moved us around so much. I grew up too embarrassed to have any friends I did have come over to my shit-hole house. I grew up leaving for school extra early every morning because I didn’t want to see my mom wake up with a different man every morning. Some ivory tower.

You see, the biggest things contributing to poverty are stupidity and lack of personal responsibility. It’s not all these what-ifs and worst case scenarios everyone keeps throwing out. It’s simply a matter of not being stupid and being responsible, even when you do make stupid decisions, because we all make stupid decisions sometimes.

I made the stupid decision of getting a girl pregnant when I was 20. Add that to the fact that I was already stupid, poor white trash and I had a disaster brewing. I had no marketable skills and I was a high school dropout. And it’s not like I had family support. My mom was a worthless whore and my brother and sisters were too young. I sucked it up and worked my ass off. And it was tough. Real fucking tough. Especially the first 5-7 years. It was so hard, I made sure not to have any more kids until I was ready (which is looking more and more like never). I can’t say the same about my sister who had her second child by her second father at 21.

But guess what. If you work hard enough, things eventually get easier. He’s 13 now and doesn’t need constant babysitting. That gives me more free time to improve my life and do things I had to put on hold. I’ve been working my way through college. I’ve been at the community college for 6 years now. I’m just now finishing my last semester there. You see, some semesters I just couldn’t afford to go full time, so I just had to take my time and push through. I’m finally ready to transfer to the university and fight through that. It might take six more years, but I’ll get it done.

I’m not trying to play myself up and shoot you down. I understand your attitude. I was there. Hell, if you even look for some of my posts on here from 6 or 7 years ago, I was posting some of the same type of stuff you are. I was bitter and angry back then. I was mad at the world and thought the world owed me some help. But, the older I get and the more I finally get to reap the rewards of hard work, the more I realize that all that shit is just a bunch of whining, excuse-making.

Don’t misunderstand me, getting out of poverty is no rags to riches story. It’s hard, un-glorious work. But people need to realize life isn’t fair. So what, suck it up. The sooner people realize this, the better the world will be. Life isn’t fair and that’s just the way it is. Not everybody gets to drive a nice car or have a big screen TV. People shouldn’t expect that. I keep hearing all this whining about low wages and not being able to pay bills. Well, don’t have bills you can’t afford. Live withing your means and save a little bit for emergencies. It not a difficult concept.

The world is a mean, cold place. But you just have to play the cards you were given and make the best of what you have, instead of pointing fingers and laying blame and making excuses.

orion · January 21, 2011, 2:46pm

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:
So people without money should take any job they can find, but when they take low paying jobs its their fault its low paying, because, by working there, they are giving the employer no incentive to pay more. They shouldn’t take the job. but they should. But they shouldn’t. But they should.

People working low paying jobs should be responsible and save up their money. But if everyone saved most of what they made instead of spending, the economy would slow down. So going to the movies and out to sports games and buying beer is a waste of money and they shouldn’t do it. But if they dont, the movie theater, the sports venue, and the liquor store all go out of business – leaving the people who worked at those places unemployed and faced with low paying jobs that they should take, shouldnt take, should take, shouldnt take.

[/quote]

I think if you are paid minimum wage the shape of the overall economy is the least of your problems.

pittbulll · January 21, 2011, 2:46pm

[quote]Brother Chris wrote:

[quote]jre67t wrote:
Zeb I believe in helping the poor, but this lady was abusing welfare. Its really so unbelievable, I talked to regular mailman and he said she receives child support from two baby daddies.
Zeb your right this how they buy votes and they are the ones keeping the man down.[/quote]

If she is really that poor I got a list of charities that can help her out, one of them helps people get jobs and baby sitters for single mother’s kids for free.[/quote]

please send me that list . I know a homeless person with 2 kids that could use that list

orion · January 21, 2011, 2:47pm

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

[quote]orion wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

[quote]orion wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

[quote]ZEB wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

Its the fault of the low paid worker that they are low paid. I love it.[/quote]

Then you deny that their are people who lack skills, education, drive etc.? Otherwise, it is in fact their fault. Who else’s fault would it be?

[/quote]

The business that employs them.[/quote]

Yeah sure, they should pay them MOAR, until they go out of business that is.

[/quote]

Well, sure, if the company continued paying exorbitant salaries and insane bonuses to everyone “at the top”, while increasing the pay of the workers, they’d go out of business.

But lets not talk crazy talk. SOMEBODY has to have gross excess, or, uh, we’ll have no innovation![/quote]

Yeah, but those people getting these bonuses are pulling their weight.

I know, it is a concept that is almost inhumanly hard to understand, but leading a Fortune 500 company requires more skills than pulling a lever or sweeping floors.

[/quote]

And the people doing the work that creates all of the profit for the company aren’t pulling their weight?

[/quote]

Sure they do, and they get paid according to the weight they pull, which is not much.

Big_Banana · January 21, 2011, 2:49pm

[quote]orion wrote:

Show an Indian the lifestyle of the American poor and see him laughing his ass off.

[/quote]

The American definition of poor is richer than much of the world.

pittbulll · January 21, 2011, 2:52pm

I do not know but one therory is the car could belong to a friend or relative , i have seen really poor people with access to really nice things , they just do not own them

CappedAndPlanIt · January 21, 2011, 2:57pm

[quote]orion wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:
So people without money should take any job they can find, but when they take low paying jobs its their fault its low paying, because, by working there, they are giving the employer no incentive to pay more. They shouldn’t take the job. but they should. But they shouldn’t. But they should.

People working low paying jobs should be responsible and save up their money. But if everyone saved most of what they made instead of spending, the economy would slow down. So going to the movies and out to sports games and buying beer is a waste of money and they shouldn’t do it. But if they dont, the movie theater, the sports venue, and the liquor store all go out of business – leaving the people who worked at those places unemployed and faced with low paying jobs that they should take, shouldnt take, should take, shouldnt take.

[/quote]

I think if you are paid minimum wage the shape of the overall economy is the least of your problems.

[/quote]

You miss my point. No matter what they do, Mal is going to judge them badly and say they should have done the other thing.

orion · January 21, 2011, 3:04pm

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

[quote]orion wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:
So people without money should take any job they can find, but when they take low paying jobs its their fault its low paying, because, by working there, they are giving the employer no incentive to pay more. They shouldn’t take the job. but they should. But they shouldn’t. But they should.

People working low paying jobs should be responsible and save up their money. But if everyone saved most of what they made instead of spending, the economy would slow down. So going to the movies and out to sports games and buying beer is a waste of money and they shouldn’t do it. But if they dont, the movie theater, the sports venue, and the liquor store all go out of business – leaving the people who worked at those places unemployed and faced with low paying jobs that they should take, shouldnt take, should take, shouldnt take.

[/quote]

I think if you are paid minimum wage the shape of the overall economy is the least of your problems.

[/quote]

You miss my point. No matter what they do, Mal is going to judge them badly and say they should have done the other thing.[/quote]

So?

Haterz gonna hate.

Does not change the fact that you are in a completely different position if you can support yourself for a few months as compared to being in debt as far as bargaining power goes.

CappedAndPlanIt · January 21, 2011, 3:06pm

[quote]malonetd wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:
Isn’t the ivory tower nice?
[/quote]

Ivory tower, huh? You have no clue. You see, I understand poverty because I grew up in it. I grew up with two sisters and a brother, all of us with different fathers. I grew up on WIC and AFDC and Food Stamps. I grew up getting excited because we were able to sneak the cereal with the added fruits past the grocery clerk, because only the non-fruit version was allowed by WIC. I grew up unable to have steady friends because my single-parent mother moved us around so much. I grew up too embarrassed to have any friends I did have come over to my shit-hole house. I grew up leaving for school extra early every morning because I didn’t want to see my mom wake up with a different man every morning. Some ivory tower.

You see, the biggest things contributing to poverty are stupidity and lack of personal responsibility. It’s not all these what-ifs and worst case scenarios everyone keeps throwing out. It’s simply a matter of not being stupid and being responsible, even when you do make stupid decisions, because we all make stupid decisions sometimes.

I made the stupid decision of getting a girl pregnant when I was 20. Add that to the fact that I was already stupid, poor white trash and I had a disaster brewing. I had no marketable skills and I was a high school dropout. And it’s not like I had family support. My mom was a worthless whore and my brother and sisters were too young. I sucked it up and worked my ass off. And it was tough. Real fucking tough. Especially the first 5-7 years. It was so hard, I made sure not to have any more kids until I was ready (which is looking more and more like never). I can’t say the same about my sister who had her second child by her second father at 21.

But guess what. If you work hard enough, things eventually get easier. He’s 13 now and doesn’t need constant babysitting. That gives me more free time to improve my life and do things I had to put on hold. I’ve been working my way through college. I’ve been at the community college for 6 years now. I’m just now finishing my last semester there. You see, some semesters I just couldn’t afford to go full time, so I just had to take my time and push through. I’m finally ready to transfer to the university and fight through that. It might take six more years, but I’ll get it done.

I’m not trying to play myself up and shoot you down. I understand your attitude. I was there. Hell, if you even look for some of my posts on here from 6 or 7 years ago, I was posting some of the same type of stuff you are. I was bitter and angry back then. I was mad at the world and thought the world owed me some help. But, the older I get and the more I finally get to reap the rewards of hard work, the more I realize that all that shit is just a bunch of whining, excuse-making.

Don’t misunderstand me, getting out of poverty is no rags to riches story. It’s hard, un-glorious work. But people need to realize life isn’t fair. So what, suck it up. The sooner people realize this, the better the world will be. Life isn’t fair and that’s just the way it is. Not everybody gets to drive a nice car or have a big screen TV. People shouldn’t expect that. I keep hearing all this whining about low wages and not being able to pay bills. Well, don’t have bills you can’t afford. Live withing your means and save a little bit for emergencies. It not a difficult concept.

The world is a mean, cold place. But you just have to play the cards you were given and make the best of what you have, instead of pointing fingers and laying blame and making excuses.[/quote]

So, I’m bitter, angry, and whine. All because I’ve made the point that, in an economy where the majority of workers are paid low wages, more and more will turn to government assistance.

Kudos for working hard, I do the same.

calebsmitty · January 21, 2011, 4:03pm

Why do they turn to government assistance. How many poor people do you know with a cell phone? I have seen people on WIC, Stamps, etc. with three or four kids and each one has a cell phone. What are they doing with the money they are getting. Use the assistance for food so they can buy cell phones?

No body wants to live within their means. Everyone wants to blame someone else for others misfortune. What happened to personal responsibility? I have family that have no ambition other than to collect their check. They dont’ try to work they dont’ care.

Just a story to reinforce the attitude of others. My mom along with her family grew up on a mountain in Virginia. they didn’t have running water, electricity, plumbing, etc. they lived in extreme poverty and hardship. When my mom was 15 she was turned away by her mother and told she was on her own. My mother never in her life recieved a check from the government. She busted her ass and worked. On the other hand her sisters were lazy pieces of shit and didn’t work a day in their life except an occasional stint at McDonalds. they collect their government assistance. Why should I care one bit about those people who sit on their ass and won’t work?

calebsmitty · January 21, 2011, 4:05pm

Lets take care of the children and those physically unable to work. If you continue to have children without means to take care of them you either step up and find work or consider having your children taken away from you and you are on your own.

The only way to take care of this problem is to yank the rug out from under them and give them a reason.

ZEB · January 21, 2011, 4:08pm

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

[quote]ZEB wrote:

[quote]CappedAndPlanIt wrote:

Its the fault of the low paid worker that they are low paid. I love it.[/quote]

Then you deny that their are people who lack skills, education, drive etc.? Otherwise, it is in fact their fault. Who else’s fault would it be?

[/quote]

The business that employs them.[/quote]

So a business should pay someone more than they’re worth just to help them out? That’s idiotic, it’s not a charitable organization they are there to make money.

Brother_Chris · January 21, 2011, 4:30pm

[quote]MattyG35 wrote:
Forgot a zero there Chris, my apologies. I hope that didn’t confuse you.
That ‘template’ wasn’t me Chris, I have my own car and don’t take public transit.
It was meant to represent what 40 hrs/wk @ minimum wage would look like for an average person. I haven’t written it into stone yet.[/quote]

Oh, okay. Well in America someone like that will pay 10% or something, not as high as 25%

Brother_Chris · January 21, 2011, 4:42pm

[quote]pittbulll wrote:

[quote]Brother Chris wrote:

[quote]jre67t wrote:
Zeb I believe in helping the poor, but this lady was abusing welfare. Its really so unbelievable, I talked to regular mailman and he said she receives child support from two baby daddies.
Zeb your right this how they buy votes and they are the ones keeping the man down.[/quote]

If she is really that poor I got a list of charities that can help her out, one of them helps people get jobs and baby sitters for single mother’s kids for free.[/quote]

Area where she lives (not exactly, just like the city).

please send me that list . I know a homeless person with 2 kids that could use that list[/quote]

Brother_Chris · January 21, 2011, 4:42pm

[quote]pittbulll wrote:

[quote]Brother Chris wrote:

[quote]jre67t wrote:
Zeb I believe in helping the poor, but this lady was abusing welfare. Its really so unbelievable, I talked to regular mailman and he said she receives child support from two baby daddies.
Zeb your right this how they buy votes and they are the ones keeping the man down.[/quote]

If she is really that poor I got a list of charities that can help her out, one of them helps people get jobs and baby sitters for single mother’s kids for free.[/quote]

please send me that list . I know a homeless person with 2 kids that could use that list[/quote]

Area where she lives (not exactly, just like the city).

Brother_Chris · January 21, 2011, 4:45pm

[quote]pittbulll wrote:
I do not know but one therory is the car could belong to a friend or relative , i have seen really poor people with access to really nice things , they just do not own them[/quote]

Like food! How dare they!

forlife · January 21, 2011, 4:46pm