Are poor people in their situation because of choice?

Question

I know everyone and their uncle would like to blame poverty on everything but the poor people themselves. I have tried very hard to find someone who is poor and makes good choices.

I brought this point up to some of my friends who are huge proponents of "social justice" rather than "personal responsibility".

Their theory is that the environment poor people grow up in somehow takes away their ability to make good choices and there is no way they can suceed.

I simply cannot believe that in the world we live in today.
I think we are blaming everyone and everything else but ourselves.

So I made a list of every person I know who I could consider poor. Everyone of them has multiple pets, smokes, has a nicer cell phone than me, rents instead of owning, spends a lot of money on alcohol, and has the best televison service possible.

They are poor because they waste the money they have instead of saving and trying to earn more. What do you think?

Kat, my point EXACTLY. People who are poor because of other people's decisions often strive to fix their lives and better themselves like your friend.

How was your friend, a have nothing immigrant, able to change her life when coming here, but people BORN here can't? Thats my point!

Answer 1

Martin,
You have to look at it this way too. I am a single mother of three. My ex-husband went out and producted three other children with two other women while we were seperated (not yet divorced). Now he has six children and his obligation is first to me yet he just spent a year in jail because he willfully would not work and pay his child support. I take care of my children all on my own. Literally every dime I get goes toward Rent, Lights, Land line phone service and food. My children get medicaid because their father does not pay childsupport and they all have medical conditions that require monthly doctor visits. I have a job that I love and luckily for me someone else pays my car insurance for me. I do not have cable or satellite, just regular antenna, I don't drink or smoke, but I do have one pet (a boxer bull) and he mostly gets table scraps. I rent my home because I can't afford to own and guess what...no cell phone here. No internet access at home either. Sometimes there are people who make great choices and put their family first and have no choice whether they are poor or not....
Now on the other hand I believe that most people who are poor and homeless are so because they want to be. Most of these people have the ability to work, but refuse to try. There are homes and shelters and plenty of places to get clothes, etc. I believe that there is no excuse for this and have no pity for these people.
Some of us are not poor by choice or frivolity, but by circumstance.

Answer 2

Martin,
Any time you make a general statement like that, you are bound to be wrong. While it's true that some people who are poor make bad decisions with their money, there is absolutely no way you can say that all poor people are poor for the same reason.

And I have to tell you that it's really hard to save money when you barely make enough to make ends meet. It's even harder to earn more money when you couldn't afford to get a decent education which would have allowed you to get a degree. Poverty has more reasons than you have dollars, my wealthy friend, so get your nose out of the air and actually try to talk to some of these people you are judging. You might find that their expensive cell phones were bought at a major discount or were a gift from someone. You might hear stories about how a great paying job was given to another candidate whose rich daddy helped pull some strings.

Don't ask us. Ask THEM.

Answer 3

I wouldn't say that ALL poor people are in their situation due to choices. My friend came from Africa and had no money when she came here. Her father made her work at a young age and forced her to live horrible living conditions. Eventually she told her dad to F himself and focus on education. She worked hard in college and now in a well paying career.

My dad's friend is also poor. He was a vietnam vet and suffers from severe post-tramatic stress disorder. Basically, he is mentally ill and cannot function properly.

Everyone starts from somewhere and has potential to move up. It's the able body people who stay at their level forever are more likely to blame.

Answer 4

Birth

Answer 5

There are over a billion people who live on less than a dollar a day and many more billions who have less than the international poverty level of $2 a day. There are children who do not have adequate diet and have no school to go to. Just because you don't know them does not mean they do not exist.

Answer 6

i would have to agree that smoking and drinking is the easiest way to get into serious poverty, not sure about the cell phones though.

Answer 7

Different level of comfortt zones....