Building up the poverty stricken here in the US.

[The Casualty]

What I see in my area on a regular basis forms my opinion.

At least some people have money and try not to spend it those I can deal with, those who use EBT and load it into a newer E-350 are the ones I have problems with.

I'm sure that's a gross exaggeration, as getting anywhere near that amount of money saved up would automatically disqualify you for just about every benefit (including disability) that I can think of.

Personally, when I go to the housing projects to do my job, I may see people with poor spending habits (most being mentally ill), but nothing I would go "wow, it must be nice to live like this". - and you can get some really nice clothes or kicks at Salvation Army or Goodwill or donations from churches that are either new or like new with quality brand names for either cheap or free.

I would say from personal experience, most folks living in these areas where they would be eligible for subsidized housing projects, section 8, or a HARP voucher are *generally* living in a combined household making less than $1000 a month, or a single person making $710, with a maximum of $189 in food benefits - but if you are making that $1000, you won't be seeing food stamps unless you have other mouths to feed.
I've seen some people living on as low as $249 a month, with subsidized housing the only way they could keep off the street.

To me it seems like many people have a gross exaggeration of what the poor in America are really like. Oh I'm sure there's a few who have learned to scam the system, but if I do see it, it's not in any great number that people seem to think.

[makak]

you want solution to poverty problems in usa ?? Stop plaing world police. I mean seriously with amount of money usa spent on blowing mud houses in middle of desert my brain cant understand how there are hundgry children in usa.

[Wells]

And what do you see in your area, do you look?

People struggling to get by.

[drwelfare]

You give materials and tools to someone who has never been able to hold even a part time fast food job.
Now you give them materials and they need to dig a footing so concrete can be poured, can they do it, who will show them how and who will ensure this work is done to any type of code?

Are you going to pay people with the knowledge to train and oversee the work, what is to say the person getting the assistance will not just want that person to do all the work while they stand around?
Who will paid trained certified workers for things like electrical, HVAC, etc?

I would see this ending up with the metals at the scrap yard, tools sold at swap meet/flea market, and rest of materials being sold for cash at 50cent on the dollar.

[Deleted]

The rich aren't investing because the federal government has created the conditions whereby investment would actually be malinvestment.

Indeed. There's just not enough stability to invest. Some people don't seem to understand that, however.

[Theinquisition]

And what do you see in your area, do you look?

"they are cutting off my unemployment it ran out" from someone who does not look for or want a job, instead spending their day melting down and shooing up pills.
Their 3 kids get to eat though thanks to EBT and medicaid pays the doctor bills.

I have a feeling that certain posters on this forum are pretty damn well isolated from the people who would be doing the things you describe, just like most true bleeding hearts.

Easy to pontificate if you don't have to see what's going on.

[Wells]

Indeed. There's just not enough stability to invest. Some people don't seem to understand that, however.

Last I check the stock market is doing pretty damn good, what kind of investment are you talkinga bout?

- - - Updated - - -

I have a feeling that "Wells" is pretty damn well isolated from the people who would be doing the things you describe, just like most true bleeding hearts.

I grew up in a dog shit poor neighborhood, thanks.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

I have a feeling that "Wells" is pretty damn well isolated from the people who would be doing the things you describe, just like most true bleeding hearts.

Posts like these are why you get infracted. Slow down champ.

[makak]

Cute. But by your logic the richer the richest are, the most jobs will be created. Yet we see the opposite.

Therefore, yes, tax the rich. They can afford it. Tax them so damn much that they are forced to employ people to reduce their taxes. Problem solved.

.... or move out. You do know there are other countries tha usa right ?

[drwelfare]

I have a feeling that "Wells" is pretty damn well isolated from the people who would be doing the things you describe, just like most true bleeding hearts.

You can hear lots of people give you a hard down on their luck story but how many are true or even based on reality. At least the "woman (I think)" who offered me services for $15 did not give me a sad story that I hear 4 times a week at the same gas station.

[Seranthor]

Poverty levels and handouts have largely become a large problem here in the US. I don't feel as though links to info on this subject are necessary, but what if we could do something about it?

Why not require (through law somehow, if possible) all corporations that are publicly traded on wall street and have profits over a certain limit (lets over 1 billion) to donate a portion of every dollar after that ( say .5% or 1% or something else entirely) to a fund that has completely transparent books, and is run by a board of trustees that are voted on by the public and have guaranteed jail time for theft/embezzlement.

This board would oversee the funds strictly for the use of buying building materials for building/repairing homes in the poverty areas and providing said materials directly to homes in need all over the US (think ghettos, not aimed at race here just the problem). Now you may ask who is going to do all the work?
The people living in those places, allow them to have access to all the materials they need free of charge and make them do the work and create appreciation in the process. Allow them to in turn for doing it themselves be further rewarded and pay off the house to whoever owns it and give them the deed to the land and house.

The idea is obviously not fully thought out and in need of lots of scrutiny before being adopted for actual use, but I am curious of what people think of the idea. IMHO I believe that it is ultimately humans duty to help another human in need. But I also believe in hard work and not getting handouts forever. It was just something I thought about the other night. I think that in order to help the poverty and crime problem we have to come up with something new, because whatever we are doing now is failing bad.

Please do NOT start any political, religious, racism, etc. talk in this thread. Keep it civil and don't call people names, etc etc.

is your idea in lieu of all the programs and what not that already exist, or in addition to?

[BreakerOfWills]

US Bankers fudge numbers, cause near economic collapse, tax payers are billed for a bailout to the tune of a few billion dollars, heaps of middle class people become insta-poor. The economy stumbles on like a dog with one leg, billionaires record record profit while numbers of unemployed soar to unprecedented levels. The bankers who fucked off with tons of taxpayer dollars pay themselves billions of dollars in bonuses. On the tail end of a war that everyone has figured out by now was a sham it's revealed that the billions of dollars earmarked to rebuild the cities that were destroyed were awarded to friends of some of the same people that advocated for the war in the first place.

But in this thread, all you people can find to bitch about, is FUCKIN POOR PEOPLE'S SPENDING HABITS

Really? Your entire government is bought and paid for, the richest don't even friggin pretend to reinvest in the country anymore, as evidenced by the combination of massive layoffs and record high profits, but any thread like this just devolves into - "I don't wanna pay for no welfare queen" despite the fact that even if every moronic assumption about people in poverty was true it still wouldn't amount to a drop in the bucket compared to the sort of shit people get away with at the top of the mountain.

Americans are so sodding convinced that they'll be rich "tomorrow" that they'll ignore someone stealing their livelihood because poor people account for a few cents of their taxes.

But yeah, enjoy yourselves, it's all the poor peoples fault, rich people are angels and trickle down economics works just fine. But the best part is that the rich people you defend see you THE SAME WAY you see those poor people you hate so much, leeches and slime, deserving of nothing.

Fine though, back to poor bashing

[drwelfare]

.... or move out. You do know there are other countries tha usa right ?

Incentive for someone to try and reduce their taxes or move and pay their taxes elsewhere.

After trying to get an answer from the IRS today and yesterday Id like a simple easy option, they just told me to pay the money today, call back Friday and if it did not need to be paid they can refund me.

[Theinquisition]

Posts like these are why you get infracted. Slow down champ.

Indeed, indeed.

You missed me no doubt.

[The Casualty]

You give materials and tools to someone who has never been able to hold even a part time fast food job.
Now you give them materials and they need to dig a footing so concrete can be poured, can they do it, who will show them how and who will ensure this work is done to any type of code?

Are you going to pay people with the knowledge to train and oversee the work, what is to say the person getting the assistance will not just want that person to do all the work while they stand around?
Who will paid trained certified workers for things like electrical, HVAC, etc?

I would see this ending up with the metals at the scrap yard, tools sold at swap meet/flea market, and rest of materials being sold for cash at 50cent on the dollar.

You bring up two good points that stood out to me.

The first bolded is the crux of where we have disconnect about getting people more off of welfare in our society.
There is a multitude of reasons why people aren't holding jobs or have the ability to, and I swear to you the idea of the person not working being lazy is such a myth. I just don't see it. Hell, I see the opposite -there are so many folks who want jobs who have no realistic opportunity to be competitive in the job market. Either I see folks with either too much social stigma to ever get a job (criminal sexual conduct, violent criminal history, felony fraud), that even if they paid their time there really isn't a place from them in this civilized world, or that they are far too mentally or developmentally disabled to hold a job with any steady hours or without heavy coaching.

There are places that provide rehabilitation employment that liaison between the community employers and these individuals as well as provide education and job training, but well, nobody likes to put money in those coffers, at least not enough to make a big dent.


And that last part, yeah I agree. The transient homeless population is a tough crowd, used to doing whatever it takes to live. All those materials would be gone and spent before you had anything built.

That and just giving someone who has been transiently homeless a place to rest their head does nothing. There is a reason that they have been living on the streets for months or years, and without solving whatever that X factor is, you won't be doing a lick of good.

[Pachycrocuta]

This is going to go so swimmingly, like that McDonalds thread. Because it is cool to bash on poor people.

[Wells]

This is going to go so swimmingly, like that McDonalds thread. Because it is cool to bash on poor people.

Rampant bank fraud? Please. I saw someone use food stamps and then drive away in a fully functional car once.

[Deleted]

Last I check the stock market is doing pretty damn good, what kind of investment are you talkinga bout?

Let me answer your question with another question: how does Wallstreet's success help you, the common man?

The ultra rich are doing fine. But banks are generally sitting on money and unwilling to invest because they don't know what the future holds. There's no stability and since the Democrats are pro-corporatist but anti-business nothing is going to change.

It's as if someone, somewhere wants to turn the poor against the rich.

[Wells]

Let me answer your question with another question: how does Wallstreet's success help you, the common man?

The ultra rich are doing fine. But banks are generally sitting on money and unwilling to invest because they don't know what the future holds. There's no stability and since the Democrats are pro-corporatist but anti-business nothing is going to change.

It's as if someone, somewhere wants to turn the poor against the rich.

You said the rich aren't investing. What are you basing that on? Lending rates? That's a pretty weak number to base that conclusion on.

[Theinquisition]

You bring up two good points that stood out to me.

The first bolded is the crux of where we have disconnect about getting people more off of welfare in our society.
There is a multitude of reasons why people aren't holding jobs or have the ability to, and I swear to you the idea of the person not working being lazy is such a myth. I just don't see it. Hell, I see the opposite -there are so many folks who want jobs who have no realistic opportunity to be competitive in the job market. Either I see folks with either too much social stigma to ever get a job (criminal sexual conduct, violent criminal history, felony fraud), that even if they paid their time there really isn't a place from them in this civilized world, or that they are far too mentally or developmentally disabled to hold a job with any steady hours or without heavy coaching.

There are places that provide rehabilitation employment that liaison between the community employers and these individuals as well as provide education and job training, but well, nobody likes to put money in those coffers, at least not enough to make a big dent.


And that last part, yeah I agree. The transient homeless population is a tough crowd, used to doing whatever it takes to live. All those materials would be gone and spent before you had anything built.

That and just giving someone who has been transiently homeless a place to rest their head does nothing. There is a reason that they have been living on the streets for months or years, and without solving whatever that X factor is, you won't be doing a lick of good.

I agree with you to an extent.

To be honest though, if I was a hiring manager I wouldn't be comfortable hiring a sexual predator, or a violent criminal.

It sucks for them, but honestly I can't bring myself to have pity for someone that would hurt/violate people in such a manner.