Poverty, USA

Tour Poverty, USA: http://www.nccbuscc.org/cchd/povertyusa/tour2.htm

Real Words from Poverty, USA: http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/realwords.shtml

Poverty facts: http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/povfacts.shtml

Find out how you can help: http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/involved.shtml

It infuriates me that we spend $15 BILLION a month in Iraq, while so many here lose Medicaid and struggle to keep food in the cupboard.

You may be interested in this author and her work:

http://www.ahaprocess.com/

Unfortunately, there are many people out there who listen to the hateful and intolerant bigots like Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly. They're brainwashed into believing that the poor are poor on purpose and they have plenty of options in this country rather than sucking up the money that can go to the richest.

I've been fighting on a general mb with my *friends* (of over two years)about this. It is a very sad state of affairs. They don't have an original thought, they just regurgitate what they've heard the hatemongers say and treat the poor like non-humans.

It just makes me sick to my stomach. I've probably lost these people as friends, but then who wants friends like that, anyway?

She is inspiring to educators!

Good God! When did it go up to $15B? First it was $5B for a long while, then crept up to $10B. $15B!

Sickening, isn't it?

and they are bringing diseases across the border and stealing our SS numbers too. :eyes:

i was trying to put the fire on my hair the mexicans started out.

peace

I don't spend a lot of time on DU, so I was roaming around, so to speak, and on the topic forums you can see the statistics for all the topics....



Activist HQ.........................28019 messages
Bush/Conservatives..................10461 messages
Choice ..............................4393 messages
Civil Liberties......................4661 messages
Congress..............................382 messages
Democrats............................6050 messages
Disability...........................2011 messages
Drug Policy..........................1709 messages
Economy.............................20945 messages
Education............................5225 messages
Election Reform....................422648 messages
Environment/Energy..................55168 messages
GLBT................................35516 messages
Guns...............................124311 messages
Health...............................8520 messages
Israel/Palestine...................124860 messages
Justice..............................1531 messages
Media...............................26066 messages
National Security...................12779 messages
Politics/Campaigns.................122814 messages
Poverty...............................966 messages
Race/Equality.........................896 messages
Rural/Farm............................546 messages
Seniors...............................847 messages
September 11........................91123 messages
Veterans.............................1317 messages
Women's Rights.......................4746 messages


Culture Forums
Books: Fiction.......................9324 messages
Books: Non-Fiction...................3922 messages
DU Marketplace.......................1637 messages
Entertainment.......................14315 messages
Religion/Theology...................71582 messages
Science.............................20398 messages
Sports..............................37306 messages



It is posting a little skewed but you will see that poverty, race/equality, rural farm and seniors all get short shrift. There is no rock star quality to these issues and these are the basis as far as I am concerned to the difference between the repug/conservatives, and the progressives/dems. Congress is the only topic less attended to and you know that is covered elsewhere. The economy is balanced on the backs of the 4 groups, and they are sinking fast. Education and veterans get a little more attention but not much. We, we the people, may not be able to do much about israel and palestine, but I think we can do something to educate people (thanks SB) about the connections between all these issues and how the military, corporations and the current and past admiserations have used the vulnerability of stressed out, undereducated, unhappy, unhealthy, financially tapped out people to carry out their ambitions for power and money, empire and ego.

I see that when we can tap the frustration with the way the government has been giving with one hand and taking with the other, and taking and taking, that we will be able to help people feel that they can exercise the rights and responsibilities of citizens, to vote, and then hold accountable their electees. The people of NOLA started feeling that power, as they were let down, in the coldest way, when they really needed their elected officials to cut through the crap and get help to them. Who came in on the first wave just outside of NOLA with supplies? the Veterans For Peace, fresh from Crawford with supplies and muscles....and they are there still, gutting homes for refurbishing.

Okay, this is a rant.

I live in the second poorest county in KS, and though that is a statistic, and not anything like urban poverty, I see children who have no hope of college, living with parents who are depressed, on welfare, and will most likely perpetuate the cycle. I see grandparents raising their grandkids on their SS alone because if they claim the children, the parents will take the children away because they get state assistance for them. Senior transportation is cut back. Veterans are denied benefits, told to move to another region as they have their quota filled, and though they qualify, they are denied.


I have to take a deep breath here and say, I'll be back.

peace, hannah

ps, it isn't just here so don't get defensive about du, poverty/race/education etc are a collective 800 lb gorilla in the room....

Real Words from Poverty, USA...











http://www.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/realwords.shtml


Thank you, HannnaH, for the rant! :hug:

the gulf is ever widening, and those who think they are poverty-proof are not.

i was gone for awhile and just started back online.

peace and nourishment,
hannah