Liberals who were hopeful that Hurricane Katrina would advance their poverty agenda are now scrambling — with food stamp and Medicare cuts on the table — to avoid setbacks, this New York Times article points out.
“We’ve had a stunning reversal in just a few weeks,” said Robert Greenstein, director of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal advocacy group in Washington, D.C. “We’ve gone from a situation in which we might have a long-overdue debate on deep poverty to the possibility, perhaps even the likelihood, that low-income people will be asked to bear the costs. I would find it unimaginable if it wasn’t actually happening.”
Posted by Melissa Cooley
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25 Comments
The Liberals have had their way for 40 years. Great Society and War on Poverty, with over a trillion dollars spent on these programs and poverty still exist?
I don’t know. Maybe no matter how much money we spend or how hard we try, poor people will always be around. I’m not saying don’t stop helping, but maybe everybody cannot have a mansion and a mercedes.
Joe I do agree. Some poor folks could squander vast amounts of cash because, well they’re just probably not too smart.Libs and Cons together couldn’t solve that problem.However, under the present tax system the poorer people will pay.
Joe Williams,
Over the last forty years, I’d venture to say that a lot more than $1 trillion has been spent on armaments. But war still exists.
By the logic you use above, I guess it’s time to cut out all armament spending.
Alas, if only the purpose of armaments was to prevent or eliminate war.
Just imagine how the number of “assistance” recipients would change if they had to document just 10 hours a month of community service before recieving benefits
By the way….according to census statistics Forty-six percent of all poor households actually own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio. I wonder how that concept would sound to someone who lived through the great depression.
Education expenses (all levels) are far higher than military expenses in our country. Education expenses by all groups (public schools, private schools, & business) are over $1 trillion each year.
Education is, by far, the biggest activity in the country. Maybe the schools should give up something to help the poor.
Ennis, the current thinking goes:If we educate our children well, they won’t be so poor.I know there’s some kids you just can’t reach, but we can’t quit trying.
We already have a surplus of “educated” people. A strong arguement can be made that the whole reason that two incomes are nesacary in a number of homes is that there are more people “educated” than the market demands.
This can be traced in large part to the womens lib movement that drove many women out of the homes and into the workforce. This glut of workers only served to keep all wages down. jobs are about supply and demand as well. all of a sudden a large portion of society goes seeking jobs there IS going to be an effect.
There is also an increasing demand for masters degrees as a basic job requirement….This isn’t because you learn so much in school. It’s because there is a need to stem the surplus of those who are qualified for the job. By geting a masters in some fields you are not actually using what you learned you are just setting yourself apart from the rest of the competition.
Besides…….Trust me, If tomorrow we gave free tuition and books to everyone who is “poor” do you really believe that we would make a dent in the poverty rate?Another look at census bearu stats -
In good economic times or bad, the typical poor family with children is supported by only 800 hours of work each year: That amounts to 16 hours of work per week. If work in each family were raised to 2,000 hours per year–the equivalent of one adult working 40 hours per week throughout the year–nearly 75 percent of poor children would be lifted out of official poverty
Hmmmm…..Now that is a dent in poverty!
Bush’s new name: ” The Worst thing That Ever Happened”…..”TWTTEH”
dr,trying like hell to find the value in stupidity, huh? Do I detect a bit of defensiveness here?
How much would you be willing to pay to watch him try to pronounce it?
How about “Twit” as the preferred pronunciation?
Seems like the more the government tries to lift people out of poverty, the more dependant people become on the government to do for them what they need to be doing for themselves. In our society, there is no respect for people’s right to struggle and overcome problems on their own, which gives a strong message that they’re incompetent. Proving to ourselves that we have the ability to overcome struggles on our own is the only way humans build self esteem and develop self confidence.
Well said Damoon.
Alright, you want the tax money allocated to helping the poor to be effectively utilized? Here’s my “naive college student” solution:1. Comprehensive sexual education: We need to inform teens about birth control, since unplanned kids really put a damper on future plans. More than that, we need to work to make sure that teens aren’t pressured to have sex.Believe me, the pressure is there. I remember it well.One way to do this is to target female teens, building their self esteem enough so they can tell pushy guys to bug off. And letting teen guys know that NOT EVERYONE IS DOING IT, so they don’t feel the need to bang the first girl who’s willing.2. Affordable child care. Obviously, solution #1 will not eliminate unplanned pregnancies in high school students. So, we channel more money into making sure that these teens are able to stay in school without worrying about their child…the high school CDC programs are a good start. But some of these students abandon their dreams of going to college when they have kids, so affordable day cares (possibly free day care for college student parents) would encourage further education.3. Anti-gang programs, starting as early as middle school, at least for at-risk youth. Mentors are more valuable than people realize. If we have compassionate adults willing to guide at-risk youth, we could eliminate a lot of risky behavior. We could find more compassionate adults if we were willing to compensate them (yes, higher taxes) for their time.4. Increased funding for fine arts in public schools. Art and music are incredibly powerful deterrents to risky behavior. It gives kids a way to channel their frustrations into a creative and productive pathway. Plus, it exercises the right brain.5. Welfare reform: Yes, I said it. And I’m a lefty. But we need to channel more money into programs that help people get back on their feet (Dress for Success, interview skill building, low income housing, food stamps and reduced-fee child care). Also, drug testing for welfare recipients, and rehabilitation as a condition for continued assistance.Of course, exceptions should be considered on a case-by-case basis. Shit happens, and we can’t always plan for it.6. Increased funding for programs that help women leave abusive partners. It’s not just the housing and stuff that they need–they need moral support to face their fears and break away.7. Better public transportation. Some people can’t afford cars. They can’t get to Dress for Success places or to job interviews without reliable transportation. Cars are something us fortunate folks take for granted.Anything else?
great post Tara.
I’ve ben trying to think of how to explain a few points, knowing that unless a person has lived in that situation, they will blow it off like they do so many that don’t fit their own small vision of the world.
Most people in poverty don’t “choose” to be that way.
Many people fall into poverty because of reasons that are out of their control. Like a death in the family, divorce or an extended illness. when the main bread winner is gone, what choices does a family have?
That’s not the main problem. Self esteem suffers when a person can’t pay their bills. They withdraw from their friends because of the shame of needing public assistance to help over a rough time.
If you dont’ believe me, next time you go to the grocery store look around for the lady who’s clogging up the line with her WIC. Her head will be down, she’ll apologize to the people behind her for taking too long in line… Very likely there will be people behind her in line who say rude things about public handouts. (for those of you who aren’t aware, WIC is a program for women and children)
Once a person begins that slide into apologizing for being alive, what hope can they find to get out?
For those of you who believe it’s just a matter of choice, i hope it’s never you that finds their lives in pieces and need a hand.
Tara….at least you did say that you were naive
1. Sex-ed starts and ends with teching kids that they do have self-control and that self control is a very valuable asset
2. Here is reality….free childcare huh? lol…you do relaize that welfare is doled out based on number of children you have? people already have children to get more money what happens when you allow them to let someone else take care of the kids all day.
What single parents need to do is find a good church in which people can help them change what has got them into the circumstances. People will be happy to watch thier kids for a few hours for free! When they are making changes in thier life that led them to the situation to begin with. No they wont get help if the remain bullheaded and not willing to change thier lives, leading to the same mistakes over and over.
3. There are plenty of mentor programs already!!!!! Despreately short of mentors! My wife works for one, I know! And more money as never generated compassion…lolSo, I also know how true my point 2 is.
4. fine arts funding huh?…..how well do those pay? Fine arts are a great hobby, but we are educating children to use thier skills, knowledge and ability in the marketplace to produce goods and services. If you want your kid to play piano ….great! buy them private lessons at a fraction of the cost it take to provide programs in schools
5. welfare reform….YES….like I said, require minimal community service for benefits and most will decide 10 hours of service isnt worth it
6. this is laughable..more funding!..ha..Go talk to some counsulors who deal with abused women. more funding is not the answer. all a woman needs to do is make the choice to leave and people will bend over backwards to help…..the first time….after she goes back a half dozen times, people are inclined to allow her to make her choice
7. according to the census beurau Nearly three-quarters of poor households own a car; 30 percent own two or more cars……not a problem……furthermore the majority of “poor” in whichita live within walking distance of a better educaton….watc for tech skills and WSU for higher ed is very close to most poor, and if they dont live there, move there….its not like there is any cheaper place to live in wichita.
All this does nothing to address the root cause of “poor”. Most sucessful people at some point decide to be something and then every single thing they do moves them closer to that goal. To be a winner train with the winners, Do what they do, simple as that. What must be addressed is the lack of vision, the determination, motivation of the poor. There is no more powerful force than a determined human, we can plan, adapt and find a way to do anything if we are willing to do what it takes.
take sports for an example, It may take genetic luck to be micheal jordan, or lance armstrong. But anyone can make the team if they just train harder than anyone else, if you want it more than the next guy you can take his spot on the team, there is nothing but your will to stop you
We already have a system to help teens with every single issue Tara identified. It’s called parents.
Fair enough, Proudman. But some parents are miserable failures.
Should the child suffer because they had the misfortune to be born to indifferent parents? Should we just chalk it up to “Oh, the parents didn’t do their job” and wait for another generation of welfare recipients to continually bash?
I know how lucky I am. I have two parents who care, who will go to the far ends of the earth to make sure I grow up to be a responsible, decent, hardworking and educated adult.
Sadly, there are many who are not nearly as lucky.
Instead of perpetuating the cycle, why not focus on targeting these kids from broken households and teach them to not make the same mistakes?
It takes work, of course. Most kids simply follow in the footsteps of their parents. I mean that both ways: children of college educated, professional parents are more likely to pursue further education, and children of poor parents are more likely to live paycheck to paycheck, with government assistance.
Instead of the “holier than thou” mentality, why not use government resources to break this poverty cycle?
When you’re chilling in a warm home, enjoying your high speed internet, it’s hard to envision kids who grow up with nutjob parents, or parents who are constantly working, unable to provide the guidance a child needs. It’s much easier to condemn these people as lazy and selfish, than to actually recognize the problem and tackle it in the bud.
For the most part, neglected children grow up to be neglecting adults.
Like Sum1 said, it’s not always a matter of choice. Much more complicated than that. Of course, its easier to brush off poverty-laden people as “people who made bad choices”, but there are a lot of factors at play.
Dr–let me address your post with a simple anecdote. I’m a lazy, unfortunate being at times. I graduated high school in 2001, and have been basically sponging off of my parents until last year, when they threw the towel down and said “get your degree or we’ll kick your ass”. I agreed, and with their urging, I’ve been taking biology and chemistry classes to get myself into UMKC dentistry program. Dentists make about 250,000 a year in HI. I have a 4.0 now.
One of the girls in my MT class came from a broken household. Her mother made about 15,000/year (look at the cost of living in Hawaii), and spent most of the money on crack. She was in tears a few days ago, because her financial aid for spring only covered the cost of tuition and housing, and not books ($600 dollars), food, (god knows how much) and other expenses (shampoo, soap, razors, printing access which costs 7c a page, transportation which is $325 for semester Bus access and, oh yeah, child care. She’s a single mother). She’s already working 50 hours a week to make ends meet, and she’s applying at the UH bookstore for extra cash.
How much time do you think she has left to devote to her kid, and guide him to make good choices?
She’s working towards an associates degree, which will net her about 20,000 a year in Hawaii.
What’s my point? If we had swapped spots, that girl would have an Ivy leage education and I would be homeless. Dare I say it…our circumstances make all the difference in the world. I was blessed, and she wasn’t.
Regurgitating rhetoric like “poor people don’t work hard enough” misses the point. Everyone who thinks that the poverty laden are just lazy has clearly never had to walk a mile in their shoes.
It’s quite simple, in my mind. THose who grow up in broken households have to work ridiculously harder to scramble a semblance of a good living than those of us who grew up in affluent households. We should use resources to help these people who were born into unfortunate circumstances. To put them on even footing, so to speak.
Does this make sense to anyone?
Tara: “Instead of the “holier than thou” mentality, why not use government resources to break this poverty cycle?”
Because what you are advocating is nothing but a ‘holier than thou’ position. It is wrong to use the police power of government to force people to raise their children in a manner that you approve.
Your goals are very commendable. You want to change the world around you into a better place. However you need to find a way to accomplish those goals with willing participants, including the kids, parents, and the financial support.
Tara, you’ve made some very good points. There is another side to this, though. My husband, many of my friends, and I grew up in “working class families”. We never had many of the necessities most people today take for granted and certainly did not have parents who valued education. All of us struggled to get an education, worked our butts off to make something of ourselves without much help from the government or anyone else (I did have a government backed student loan, which I paid back.)Most of us had kids and because we wanted it to be different for them we provided our kids with opportunities we never dreamed of when we were their age. As a result, many of our kids struggled more than we ever would have imagined. We learned that “making things easier for them” was not in their best interest. They took much longer to grow up and learn the discipline and tenacity to become successful adults. In other words, they didn’t learn as much and grow as much because they didn’t have to struggle as much. If you look around today, kids don’t mature very quickly and that is a direct result of growing up in an affluent society and having too much handed to them.My kids did eventually grow up, but it took getting out on their own and learning to overcome the obstacles that life threw at them with out any interference or help from me or their dad. When we quit trying to give them everything they needed to be successful (we thought), they suddenly grew up. Its that simple. People need to struggle and overcome adversity in order to develop to their full potential. It’s the journey, not the destination that helps us develop in to functioning adults.
Proudman did you not see that the example was using the woefully inadequate government resources.
The government resources fell short even with her 50 hour week.
i guess what I’m trying to convey is the old adage about walking in another mans shoes.
If you’ve never found yourself homeless with children at your feet, or humbled yourself to ask the food banks for a box of food so your family can eat, then you don’t really have a true perspective of this situation.
It’s easy from the warm safety of your chairs to believe, but without the experience behind your convictions. Without the experience you can’t know you’re logic is true.
I agree with you Sum1, I’ve been humiliated on many occasions, that’s why I made a vow to myself I wouldn’t live that way. I figured I could struggle for a few years getting an education, or I could struggle for the rest of my life.Maybe I wouldn’t have been motivated if I hadn’t been hungry and humiliated. Like I said before, it’s the journey that makes us what we are. It’s not so much what happens to us, but how we choose to deal with it that makes the difference.