Live data from Hacker News

The U.S. Can No Longer Hide from Its Deep Poverty Problem

nytimes.com

1–10 of 238 posts

Re: The U.S. Can No Longer Hide from Its Deep Poverty Problem

#4
I don't see a reason why the U.S. can't in this article. Or did I miss something?

It worked pretty good even when they've been in the open. Recently we had a topic here where people were reporting about homeless people being carried out of the cities.

It seems to me that the U.S. got quite comfortable with their poor. Probably even working as an negative incentive for the (still) employed. Don't forget the American Dream too. I mean according to that: it's just their fault...they COULD have been rich!

Re: The U.S. Can No Longer Hide from Its Deep Poverty Problem

#7
post #5

Poverty is not a problem. It is the default state. Instead of asking what causes poverty, we need to ask what causes wealth. We also need to realize that being poor is not a good/bad thing. Again, it's the default state.

Being the default doesn't make it not a problem. In fact, poverty being the default is a problem in itself. I'd prefer it if the default were not having to worry about the future, and I think most poor people would agree.

Re: The U.S. Can No Longer Hide from Its Deep Poverty Problem

#8
post #7
post #5

Poverty is not a problem. It is the default state. Instead of asking what causes poverty, we need to ask what causes wealth. We also need to realize that being poor is not a good/bad thing. Again, it's the default state.

Being the default doesn't make it not a problem. In fact, poverty being the default is a problem in itself. I'd prefer it if the default were not having to worry about the future, and I think most poor people would agree.

I think being not poor and not worrying about the future is a bit contradictory for everyone except the very small part of top 1% who are independently wealthy. Probably under 0.1%.

Poverty is a stable, default state, everything else requires constant effort and standing the competition.

Re: The U.S. Can No Longer Hide from Its Deep Poverty Problem

#10

Americans are slowly becoming more radical as a reaction to economic pressures. With each side's policies alien to the other, compromise becomes impossible. Eventually one side will have to win out and then things will get very interesting.

> Eventually one side will have to win out and then things will get very interesting.

Well things are pretty violent already, with the deadly class war the police is fighting against the population (~1k in 2017, https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/national/police-shoo...) plus the countless arrests, macing, tasering and other violent actions of police against peaceful demonstrators, plus all the violence committed by Nazis (e.g. the Heather Heyer murder and the other actions counted as right-wing domestic terrorism). Add in the huge number of weapons circulating in the US... when the poor people (or the armed rednecks) finally feel desperate enough that will be quite a bloodbath.

Post reply on HN