What does it mean (to you) to be poor?

[GhostDoggy]

I grew up in a poor family. Part of the problem was that my parents really didn't know any better, and as a result had 11 children. I even went on and chastized them for having too many children even though it meant I should not have been born.

Growing up poor meant doing without a lot of things. I accepted being poor and the consequences therein and as such didn't get my first automobile until I was 20-21. Being that I was poor, I could only afford <$1K for my first car, but it was street legal, passed emissions and safety, etc., and bought out of my own pocket.

Still, being that I grew up poor I had an appreciate for things I earned and never asked for a handout. I've never been on welfare or collected unemployment, but that is because I bust my butt working hard to get out of the poor life. In fact, I'm a little proud of my modest success.

YUet, I am amazed at the evolving meaning of what is means to be poor in the United States. Someone posted on another forum about a bill that I am greatly opposed to: Congresswoman Moore Introduces Creating Access to Rides (CAR) Act. I do not know about anyone else, but I worked hard for my money and I do not need some jokester to think I should help someone else pay for what I deem is a luxury.

I always thought part of 'being poor' meant having to do without, and the less poor one became the more they were able to get. unfortunately, it would seem that in today's socialistic environment, being poor actually means finding a way to get someone else to pay for things.

 

[conjur]

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/wi04_moore/pr120505.html

HA!

No chance of abuse of that program, eh? That's a horrible idea.

I have been without a car a few times throughout my life (the longest being about 3 months...in the winter). I rode the bus to college in those days, including a 1.25 mile walk from my house to the bus stop. I survived. As long as public transportation is available or people can get rides from family, friends, co-workers, etc. then there's no excuse.

 

[dullard]

To me, being poor is doing without luxuries but surviving just fine. Being in poverty is doing without necessities (adequate shelter, healthy food, or medical care).

I don't know anything about the CAR act, so I cannot comment on it. Ideally all poor people will have access to transportation to work and away from natural disasters - but no other guaranteed ride assistance. Currently, some of the poorest cannot work because they cannot get to work - thus they live off of welfare (many areas DON'T have taxis or public transportation, yet the jobs are far from the homes). I think we as a society should allow those people to work and allow them to get off the welfare they are on. Lets give them a chance to actually contribute to the world! Same goes for natural disasters. Look at the Katrina victims that had no money for transportation out of there and died or were stranded for days.

Beyond that, I strongly oppose transportation aid. If they want to go to some entertainment thing, let them walk.

 

[Meuge]

I don't have a car now... do they want to buy me one?

Poor means having only enough money to be able to provide a minimal shelter for your family, with enough food to eat, but nothing fancy. Car, while some may consider it a luxury, is indeed a necessity in many parts of the U.S., and is often a requirement for a job. However, this program is SOOO prone to abuse, that I don't know whether there is any real way of implementing it in such a way that it would help those who truly need it, without losing 10X more towards those who are going to abuse it.

 

[jlbenedict]

I rememeber having to use duct tape on my shoes to fix a hole, because my parents couldn't afford to purchase me a new pair

This was when I was in 9th grade I believe (1989)..
I remember eating beans and cornbread many nights for dinner... thats poor ... beans are cheap

 

[jimkyser]

I would never call myself poor at any time during my life. That said, I bought my first car, with money I earned working on a farm, when I was 17. I sold it when I was 18 to pay for college. I never had a car while in college. I lived 4+ miles from campus one year while in college, I lived on campus my first year and about a mile from campus my last two. When I lived off campus I either rode my bike or walked, and I walked mostly because I went to school in a place where there is snow from mid-November to mid-April, http://www.mtu.edu. I bought a new car when I graduated from college. Since then I have gone without a car for only one summer where I rode my bike 11+ miles each way to/from work. Living w/o a car isn't that hard.

I think requiring access to a car is stupid and a total waste of money. If someone wants to have access to a job and doesn't have a car, they should use public transportation, ride a bike or walk. If those options aren't available because of where they live, they need to move to a place where one or more of them are available.

 

[Todd33]

Anyone who thinks being poor is easy or that we live in a socialist state needs to visit a ghetto and live in another mans shoes for a while.

As often is done by the right, the poor in this country get compared to third world poor. I'm sorry this is the richest country in the world and our poor are United states Citizens, they damn well better be better off than someone in the Sudan. I believe as most liberals do that the poor in the US should be treated as well as say an Iraqi. Where is our nation building here at home? Where are our new schools, new hospitals, etc? Why do the patriotic chest thumping types always say they love America and then $hit on their own citizens? I suspect it's just a plain old racist thing.

 

[dmcowen674]

This subject comes up more and more in the U.S. because more and more are joining the poor house.

Eventually enough will be in it to wake the people up when it's too late and all wonder what happened to the great U.S. except for the rich that are not affected.

 

[RightIsWrong]

Being poor to me means reliving my childhood. I grew up in a single family home with four older sisters. We lived in the projects and received welfare, food stamps and medical. Life sure as hell wasn't easy for us like some believe think that welfare families are basking in the good life while not having to work. IIRC, we received well UNDER $300/mo in cash and $250/mo food stamps. Try raising a family of 6 on that. Many times over the course of a month before the next month's subsidies came in that we were eating like a kid in a Sally Struther's commercial.

The majority of my friends that I had have been or are in jail. I was fortunate enough to have avoided those pitfalls. I was also very lucky to have been born with a fairly high IQ and had a mother that didn't think that I should ever expect to have things handed to me. She instilled a very good work ethic in me and because of that I have two degrees, a job that pays in $70's and a beautiful family of my own now that I can promise will never have to go through what I did.

Edit: As far as the car goes....we had no car at all in my family. We walked everywhere or had to pony up gas money to family friends to get anywhere farther than we could walk. My first car was bought with money that I saved up from my first job. It was a complete beater that I bought from a friend of my mom that he sold to me for $250. I can see a need in more rural places where there isn't any public transportation at all....but there has to be very strict guidelines and enforcement of those.

 

[techs]

I have been poor. Really poor. On welfare and picking up cans and bottles for the nickel deposit.
How did this happen?
My parents hit financial difficulties before they retired. They were middle class up til then. I was left with almost nothing when they passed away.
I was doing ok. Held some good jobs. Til one day I got sick. I went to like 20 doctors and they couldn't figure out why I was running a fever almost every day. I maxed out my skimply health insurance plan. Finally my job had to let me go since I couldn't do it running a fever.
I used up my savings. I went on welfare.
Once on welfare I was put on Medicaid. It took two years til one day I was seeing doctor because I developed strep throat. I had given up on ever getting my long term illness treated. When I explained to him the detail of my long term illness he asked me if I had ever been to Africa. I hadn't. But then I remembered a woman I dated telling me she had been in the Peace Corps.
I contacted her and she had been to Africa.
The doctor sent me to a tropical disease expert.
Six months of intravenous anti-biotics and lo and behold. I got better.
I have eaten in soup kitchens, received food from food banks.
Let me tell you, it was a humbling experience.

 

[Steeplerot]

Being poor to me is having to live in abandoned buildings, eating out of dumpsters.

Having a place you pay rent for is doing well enough to me that you arent totally assed out.

Being able to pay the electric bill and a case of ramen is doing pretty good.

It's all relative. I don't think I ever felt "poor" though, a lot of the world has a tough time, a lot worse then the worst off I have seen, some better. *shrug*

Less money and modern conviences means you channel your creatvity and talents in ways others do not have the oppurtunity to and don't even realize they are capable of.

Thinking of yourself as "poor" seems like self pity.

I have more of a problem with those on the path to "wealth" as all the money in the world will never be enough to buy you happiness, in the end it will still be you that your dealing with, and you and how satisfied with who you are is the real source of wealth imo.

Money and objects come and go.