Since we’re all getting kind of long in the tooth, I’m sure at some time in your life you have seen real poverty. I grew up in it. Or damned close to it. I grew up on the farm my stepdad was born on. My grandparents on his side never knew of an indoor toilet in their entire lives, although my grandpa installed many in the houses he built. Their family knew real poverty and I am happy to say that my stepdad and his siblings all broke ‘the chain’ and have worked hard and created good lives for themselves. My stepdad has a tenth grade education and is the smartest and hardest working man I have ever known. All of his kids, with the exception of me, have advanced degrees and have kids that have done the same.
On the other hand, other branches of the family continued on the same path. I have known many that would and still do work harder at avoiding work than they would do if they just worked for a living. If you’ve witnessed it up close, then you know that it isn’t all one thing that causes it. It isn’t just laziness. Its also growing up thinking that way of life is, well life.
There is truth to the chain of poverty idea, although there are plenty of examples of people, like in my family, who ‘make it’ despite the odds.

The question is, what if anything do we do about those odds. Its also been proven you can’t give anybody much of anything and expect it to change much. I know Thumper was ranting but we can’t just lock them up either, unless you want to create more criminals than poor people.

Its a conundrum.

BKB