many of the working poor have very little time for anything because they have to work two jobs just to live. It is a vicious cycle, because one little setback - a sick child or a broken down car - can literally bring about a lost job and homelessness. This is a hopeless, extremely stressful way to live, with no extra money for anything ever.
Add to this some structural problems such as the lack of affordable child care, no health care, no dental care, no ability to save, no time for exercise or other recreation, no time or money for postsecondary training, a steady diet of cheap but non-nutritious food, and you have lives that may not be able to be improved with a smart device.
Right now, my state's economy is booming, but the sad reality is that 48% of the people are in poverty or just above.
To my mind, the biggest problem is the working poor don't make enough money, which is why I believe the minimum wage should be raised to $15/hr. Since the lack of a single payer healthcare system that is not tied to employment hurts working poor more than any other group, we need single payer healthcare. We are also downright brutal to our single moms, who have great potential; unfortunately their potential is being wasted because of our refusal to heavily subsidize child care.
In the meantime we have CEO salaries at stratospheric levels - $15 or $20 million a year when their workers have no economic security, earn low wages, have no benefits or pensions. This is because corporate charters call for officers to focus solely on increasing shareholder value at the expense of the workers, the customers and the environment. And, don't forget the increasing number of Fortune level companies (GE, Mattel, Paccar, Wells Fargo and many others) who are not paying ANY US income tax - they have managed to salt away over $2 trillion in UNTAXED profits offshore. How is that good for the American people?
The way I figure it, w0nderer, I pay a lot of taxes, but I'd be willing to pay more if we could use that money to make our lives better rather than feed the military industrial complex and wage forever war.
Ah, how much will all this cost, you ask? Well, the problem is that the Fed isn't really a quasi-governmental body. It is a body made up of bankers who create money simply by lending it out at interest. We are slaves to these bankers as long as we don't nationalize our central bank like Abraham Lincoln did and print our own money. Do this, and we can be debt free and have infrastructure improvements, healthcare, child care and even free tuition at state colleges.
This is why I'm supporting Bernie, because he wants the same things I want and has fought for these things for 40 years. Oh, he's not talking about nationalizing the central banking system like I wish he would, but the other things, yes. You can find his stances on the real kitchen table issues that face Americans at https://berniesanders.com/ and make your own decision as to whether you support him or not.
Good luck to you!
= new reply since forum marked as read