Poor People - Where'd They Get the Money for THAT???

I know what it's like to be poor.  I've been there.  I'm not going to go into detail in this particular blog post, but suffice it to say that being poor was a miserable thing for us - especially when we had bills to pay and could't afford to do so and had to make the decisions as to either pay a past-due utility bill or to buy food for our family.  Usually, the compromise was that we would pay less for groceries and end up with foods that were adequate to fill our bellies but not necessarily the best nutritionally - for instance: we would load up on bread from the bakery thrift store.  Our family subsisted on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Now, I don't know what has happened in the past 20-30 years (or if maybe it's been going on a lot longer and I have just noticed it more in recent years) but there are some trends that just can't go unnoticed.  Poor people are now enjoying frivolous indulgences!  I'm not talking about people on food stamps going in and buying steak and ice cream.  To me, that's no big deal... I mean, when you get food stamps you are allotted a certain dollar amount of food and you buy what you can afford.  If you can afford ice cream, well so be it!  When your food stamp allotment is gone, it's gone and you have to scrimp until you get your next month's allotment.  They have EBT cards now and from what I understand you can buy a lot more with your EBT than what you used to.  I'm not going to get into what you can and cannot buy with your EBT card.  No, what I am going to talk a little bit about is maybe the definition of being poor (or not being poor).

I remember hearing someone complain about being categorically needy or living in poverty level - an arbitrary statistic that the government throws out there that determines whether you are poor or not.  Like I said, it's an arbitrary number.  I can't determine that current dollar amount off the top of my head, but it seems to me that for most of my life we have always been at or below that number and for the most part I haven't thought much about it.  To me, being poor meant that you couldn't afford all the basic necessities of life, not yet luxuries.  So without further ado, I'm just gonna launch right into this and make my point.

I see these young "kids" now that are supposedly poor.  Now, I don't know if they are living with their parents, leeching off their parents while living in an apartment, using their student loans/grants or getting welfare... it doesn't matter.  What matters is that they claim they are poor.  They are always looking for some kind of handout or help whether it be from the government, parents, church or whatever charity will provide for their basic needs.

There is a great irony though.  These young people are sporting tattoos that would shame a seasoned sailor and enough piercings to set off metal detectors at the courthouse where they go to mitigate their traffic violations.  Some of them come walking into public places (like a grocery store) toting a purebred dog... because they just can't leave the pup at home or afford to pay a sitter or kennel.  Others go for the exotic pets because jeez... you just can't live without having some kind of animal in your apartment!  Then there's the dope... the dope, the booze and the cigarettes.  I'm not a smoker, but I was shocked the last time I saw the price of a pack of cigarettes - it's about 6 bucks... or more!  I don't even know how much it costs for weed and booze and beer and Starbucks coffee... and pet food!  And lest we forget the necessary iTunes cards and the apps that they load onto their iPhones so they can have something to do while they are illegally camping in a park at an Occupy protest or some other fruitless annoyance to the productive members of society.

My question is this: Where do they get the money for all this crap?  I'm pretty sure it doesn't come from a full-time job because NOBODY would hire a person that looks like a freak and hasn't bathed recently  or shaved in months and ignores neat grooming and clothing standards of a 21st century civilization.  Then they have the gumption to go down and protest (which is more like a giant party) against the hard-working and prosperous members of society... about the greed and lavish lifestyles of Corporate America while these poor humble peasants are languishing in their poverty... these cohabiting, irresponsible "students" then have the nerve to beg for free contraceptives.

Okay... so maybe I am making an example out of the dregs of our society but still, there are a lot of kids and young adults now who seem to have enough money to pay for electronic gadgets, new vehicles, trips to Hawaii or Europe or thereabouts, DVDs and video games, pets, cute shoes and new wardrobes - but then don't seem to have enough to pay the utility bills or put food on the table.

Don't get me wrong.  I think it's great to explore the world and enjoy some of the finer things in life... when you've saved up and can truly afford to do so.

Maybe it's just me but it appears that "being poor" is much more fun now than it was when I was poor.

It Takes a Village

In the past 20 years or so, I have often heard (mostly by the so-called "Progressives"): "It takes a village to raise a child."  What do they mean?

After many months of hard work in recording, photographing, promoting and providing equipment and support for a high school aged band, I was working at one of their final performances when a middle-aged man came up to me and shook my hand and said "thanks" and handed me a little card.  This stranger was one of the band member's dad.  Handwritten on the card was the phrase: "Thank you - it takes a village."  That card meant a lot to me because I know the spirit in which it was written.  I have long struggled with this concept though because I only agree with in partiality.

A few weeks ago I watched a video clip by MSNBC that I was appalled at.  The host claimed that our children belong to the community or the collective, rather than belonging to their parents or their family.  Nothing could be more wrong.

I believe that we all can and should do something to give back to our community and influence the lives of our children for good and to look out for and protect them however my child does not belong to the community or the government nor is it anyone else's responsibility to raise, nurture and teach and protect and provide for your child.  We, as parents, should not come to rely on the community to raise our children, though we should naturally have more compassion and look out for the orphans, widows, the fatherless and those from broken homes or wherever help is needed.

Here are some concerns over relying on the community to raise your child:

• Safety - The streets (as we so often refer to them) have an unsavory reputation for being a dangerous place for our children.  Even sending these children on public transportation can be a harrowing and worrisome experience for many parents... and for a good reason.  There are many dangerous or careless people that would seek malicious intent on a child if they were allowed a chance.  
• Bad examples - what are your children learning... and from whom?  Do you care?  There are plenty of bad examples for our children to learn from.  They need good examples.
• Delinquent kids - who provides the discipline for them?  The community does not dare to provide discipline for your child.  It is not their job.  In worst case scenarios where the discipline is left to the community, your child would end up in juvenile detention - perhaps worse.  By the time your child ends up in the hands of the courts, it may be too late.  Disciplining is the job of the parents.
• Absence of nurturing - Where does a child turn in the vacuum of appropriate nurturing and affection?  Is it any wonder why we have a problem with teenage pregnancy?  Children need proper affection and to be taught (by demonstration) what is appropriate touching and affection.  Children (even teens) are starving for attention and affection.  Loving parents provide that nurturing.  The community cannot do this.
• Confusion and lack of identity - The children of this generation suffer from a lack of identity.  Many of them aren't aware of their heritage, their religion or any hard and fast principles and morals.  They need a moral compass... somebody to tell them what is right and wrong and who they are, to define their gender and even their sexual orientation.  

We need strong communities and it is good to raise our children in these strong communities, but we can't count on it to happen.  As parents, we need to take the responsibility of raising and nurturing our children.  We shouldn't expect that the school, the church or the community will do an adequate job in doing so.  We need to reject the idea that the government should rule over our families and make the decisions that we should be making as parents.  We need to reject the idea that somebody else (the community... the village... whatever or whomever) will teach our children everything they need to know to survive in the world.  We need to reject the idea that we, as parents, are inadequate for raising our own children.

About This Blog

There are things that I think about all the time and I often start to post them on Facebook, but then I realize that they are too controversial because I have "friends" from all over the political, social and religious spectrum.  So I often delete my posts from Facebook or decide not to post what I am thinking.  I want to remain friends with them, so I need a safe place where I can post my thoughts and not end up in a war of words.  If you have discovered this blog by chance, then be warned: this is NOT Facebook and I don't post things here in an effort to appease friends.  This is NOT what you would call a "politically correct" blog. You may disagree with things that I post and that's your right to do so.  I also have the right to dismiss (delete) any posts that are caustic, hateful or contain profanity.  Those who come here to argue may be ignored or blocked.  If you want to read the blog and add your constructive input, fine.  If you came here to troll or post silly or irrelevant things or make personal attacks, then go somewhere else.  Don't try to waste my time by bringing up an argument.  The purpose for this blog is a place where I can boldly post my thoughts about things and maybe I can shed some light on some subjects that other people would dare not approach.

I would consider myself a political conservative, however there are things that I will likely post that will even bristle the hairs of many conventional conservatives.  I am coming at this from what I consider a practical approach, not partisan.