New Numbers of Just How Many Americans Are Living in Poverty

It is children in poverty that is most troubling. Elderly in poverty should be taken care of, but to some extent they chose their lot (once decent health care is in place, this will be even more valid). Children in poverty is a tough issue to solve, but one we must fight. A Democracy – any successful modern nation actually, depends upon an educated and productive population and getting children a good start in life is the bedrock of that.
While how to address poverty may be a partisan fight (government vs private charities), I believe that there is bipartisan agreement to fight poverty in our nation.

huh you are so correct but they just dont get it they will but by then it will be to late i hope not but the way this administration is spending it does not look good i worry for my daughter and all children because this will be in years to come the ultimate test of america i wish all futures to come good luck their going to need it

Some elderly chose their lot, I suppose.
However, most did the best they could with what they had to work with.
As far as education, we all agree that a solid education is needed.
Too bad we don’t have nuns teaching any more. If the teachers were allowed and trained to teach like the nuns, our schools would be in tip-top shape – kids would learn their lessons -
book-wise and discipline-wise. I can guarantee that.
Any ‘rough’ kid would have nothing on those nuns (especially the Irish ones.)

natale from mass – Good luck to you. My advise is to try and do as many things for yourself. I live in the NM, and I have turned my entire yard into a garden. I am also looking at buying guns for the first time for defense and to take up hunting. I think your husband will do fine. Where would we be without sewage systems anyway? Nowhere good!

Wow! This Hope and Change is REALLY working!
We need more and more goverment, more taxes, more control over every aspect of our lives to control “poverty”.

Kids can’t help the fact that their parents have a tv, Mark. They also can’t help the fact that the parent is on drugs (if that’s the case).
You can’t eat tv’s. TV’s don’t discipline you or help with your homework.
Instead of just feeling sorry for the kids, I wish our school systems were allowed to hold the parents responsible for the kids’ homework. This could work in the younger grades pre-K through 5th.
After that, maybe good study habits would have taken hold by then.

Over 50 and too bright so no one wants to hire me. I slipped below the poverty line due to the perfect financial storm and the unexpected loss of my wife. 2 weeks ago, Senator Schumer was on This Week and announced passage of the Emergency Unemployment Bill. It hasnt been a focus in the Senate, the Press is ignoring what was promised in the Senate, and thousands of us are losing the last of what we owned because we have no income. Get on the ball!!!!
Pete

Poverty stats mean little to me unless they’re connected with qualifiers showing many more details. College students frequently live below the poverty lines but only temporarily. They’re on the way up. Drug addicts frequently live below the poverty line because they make bad choices. They get no sympathy from me.
Many if not most who live below the poverty line after the age of 25-30 are there because they lack personal responsibility. There are certainly exceptions but the numbers are undeniably inflated by inclusion of persons who don’t employ common sense, make bad decisions and/or refuse to do what it takes to become financially stable and independent.
As the economist Walter Williams once said: “If I had to poor in any country in the world, I’d choose the United States.” I agree.
My observations indicate we have the most obese “poor” people in the world. Most seem to have cable television, cell phone and automobiles.
There are a few people out there who lived “good” lives and are poor. I feel for them and often help such people. Conversely, the poverty rolls are crowded with people who make bad choices (drugs, booze, gambling, etc…), don’t possess any notable degree of personal responsibility, are unwilling to combine resources by getting a room mate, etc… I have little sympathy for them.
Walter Williams/Dave Ramsey 2012 ;o)

I was disabled by cancer in my mid 40′s. At the time I was an independent businessman with a successful business. Because I am intelligent, I was also an international columnist and successful in a number of diverse fields. I’m 70 now and still a disabled person with chronic nerve pain due to a botched surgery. A bad lawyer told me he was dropping the case on the day of trial, he didn’t say why, but i suspect he had not prepared. My doctor turned out to be a psychopath with no training or degrees and the California Medical Board attempted to hide my case because my doctor was not a “real” doctor. Seems real doc’s were important enough to go after but the phony’s were not. This difficulty I was having continued to pile on the insane idiocies one after the other. Always some degreed person who couldn’t care less in an “Official position”. It was crazy and incredibly illegal but they can get away with it.
So how did I come out? Disability awarded myself and my disabled wife $530 a month to live in California. The slip for my yacht was more than that. So, I lost everything and was forced to move to an area where I could afford to live. Frankly, not in the united states! I hit the boat and sailed off. All the western states were too expensive to live in. I sailed to Mexico where I did well. In eight years I made enough doing legitimate work teaching Mexican people various trades and then setting them up in businesses for a small percentage. Illegal, but overlooked because I was doing people good. When I had enough money to consider returning, I bought a house and paid almost all cash. The system rapidly did all it could to take everything I had. In three years I was back in poverty and worrying were I would get the income to pay my medical bills . . .
The bill collectors were calling, I was receiving letters demanding money. I had bills from everything, and all needed items related to food clothing and shelter.
The disability system threatened to take $3,000 I had in savings even though I explained that I put it in the bank a little at a time so that I could pay my insurance and taxes that come due once a year. Otherwise, i would not be able to pay the almost $3,000 bill I get. Not good enough! I have to stuff it in a mattress and hide it illegally but I better not get caught! My credit went from a nice 748 to 300 something overnight. Now my six credit cards that were so useful are gone.
Do not tell me this is a good country! USA means little to me anymore. I am seriously disabled and can work perhaps 2-3 hours a day. However some weeks I can’t do anything. But, i can make money, if someone will allow it!
Now I’m busted. Please, someone tell me where I can get the income to live well enough to be safe. If my car breaks, if my roof leaks, I can’t fix them. I can’t walk more than 200 feet so I need a reliable car. Not going to happen though is it? If I need clothes, I can’t afford them. I come up with about $40 a month that I can use for other things and I buy at garage sales and the Salvation Army. But I’m 6′ 4 so the thrift stores don’t have clothes that fit me. I can’t live in this overtly stressful environment. I would never have known America was so terrible if I had not lived once in Europe for four years and later in Mexico for eight. Comparatively, the USA is way behind many third world countries in the way we treat out people. We may be richer, but I am certainly not.
I’m almost ready to move back to Mexico where I can self insure medically again and save tons of money! The Mexican government will allow me huge reductions on medical service because I am an American on disability. a week in ICU cost me $160 US total! The doctors come to my house for $20. I may not speak the language but it was so much better and the people actually cared about me. Even the medicine was great! Not here!
What has happened to America? If you have not lived in other countries, you don’t realize just how horrible this place called America is by comparison.
We need the change a certain president promised. We’ll never see it though. No one here actually cares anymore, so nothing happens.
That’s called decadency. A step away from apathy. If I correctly recall, that’s where the Romans were when Rome finally fell . . . Decadent and apathetic.
Is this a sign?