Why The U.S. Can’t End Poverty 

I believe it is more of a “won’t solve poverty” situation than a “can’t.”

“Why the US Doesn’t Want to end Poverty” is more accurate.

Inflation is far more harmful to individuals than a collapsing stock or property market because it directly affects people's cost of living, which they immediately feel. It is not surprising that the current market sentiment is extremely pessimistic. In today's economy, assistance is critical if we are to survive.

America is currently plagued by the hydra-headed evil duo of inflation and recession. The worst part about this recession is that consumers are racking up credit card debt. In April alone, credit card debt went up 20% while rates have doubled in a year. Inflation is so high that consumers are literally taking debt for basic life necessities. Collapse has indeed begun..

“The world has enough for everyone’s needs, but not enough for everyone’s greed.” -Ghandi

People that have never been poor dont realize it is hell living in poverty every day. It is almost impossible to escape.

People dont understand that the prices of things are never going back down. Those buying groceries are aware that real inflation is much over 10%. The increments dont match the income, yet certain investors still earn over $365,000 in such tough times. Wish I could accomplish that.

BECAUSE OF THE GREED OF THESE IMMENSELY WEALTHY PEOPLE!!!

My professor once stated to our class “ No one really cares about poor people “ and as I have aged to maturity he was right it’s all cap

They price a fleabag apartment at $1,500/month, a dump house at $400,000, then are mystified by what could be causing the "homeless problem."

Building wealth involves developing good habits like regularly putting money away in intervals for solid investments. Financial management is a crucial topic that most tend to shy away from, and ends up haunting them in the near future. Putting our time and effort in activities and investments that will yield a profitable return in the future is what we should be aiming for. Success depends on the actions or steps you take to achieve it. "You're not going to remember those expensive shoes you bought ten years ago, but you will remember every single morning when you look at your bank account that extra 0 in there. I promise, that's going to be way more fun to look at everyday", I pray that anyone who reads this will be successful in life

“They got money for the wars but can’t feed the poor.” -Tupac Shakur

Always remember: the system isn't broken...it's working exacly as intended

Even for working class, the underlying fear is always there. If something goes wrong like layoffs, this can be your case to consider.

I did everything right: joined the military, went to college, and grad school. I even relocated across the country twice for better career opportunities. After $80k in student loans, it’s still tough finding a job. The most I ever made was $70k/annually a couple years ago. I’m a business major and ventured into the IT industry to troubleshoot accounting software. Biggest mistake I ever made. That job was very stressful and the cookie-cut training didn’t provide solutions to clients’ unique problems. I was told to research, research & research. Then, be criticized later for taking too long. I was eventually terminated and haven’t found the same pay since. My wife is barely holding down the bills while I constantly apply to jobs. A degree is simply not enough. Now, employers want certifications which also cost money that I don’t have. I no longer think the US is the richest country in the world. It’s definitely not the most equitable after investing so much in education.

‘There is enough for everyone’s need, but not for everyone's greed’.

Growing up in poverty is extremely stressful and it makes me upset that a lot of my friends cannot relate or understand

When 3 out of every 4 Americans between the ages of 23 and 40 say that they can't afford to purchase a home, we have a systemic problem on our hands that goes beyond personal responsibility. Many Baby Boomers would be struggling in this current financial environment and they know it. Both Houses and rent have quadrupled in price, yet the median income has remain unchanged for almost 20 years despite ever growing inflation.

Title implies America actually made efforts to end it and not just punish poor people

First graph of poverty, I wonder what changed in 1980? Reagan and tax cuts. Poverty had been decreasing until then. Current economy is a pyramid scheme and we are closer to 1880s where monopolies ruled and economy was boom and bust until 1945-1980. Corporations have capitalism when economy is good and socialism when there is a bust. People and corporations should want to help pay for and solve poverty problem as it is dragging us all down and preventing amazing growth- remember corporations who hated each other coming together in ww2, and then growth and mega projects and accomplishments post ww2? Why? Why did it slow and stop? I have read some economists who term Cities as MLMs and can’t sustain without growth. Once a city and suburbs get so big they then fall into disrepair. And was said in this video not having national health care is also preventing people from pursuing their ‘happiness’, American dream, and holding back businesses from meeting their ultimate goal: make a pride cut a service and make money. Lastly I think Richard reich also pointed out that in 1970s and 1980s the stock market changed; something about a switch to paying investors, and stock buy backs, instead of reinvesting in their infrastructure and employees.

I think it's cause corporations and the government know that if there's always a homeless and impoverished population, there will always be a group of people in desperation or survival mode. With that, they can keep wages down and maximize profits cause they know someone just as desperate is waiting to replace you.

All the charity money does not go to the people but to the people running the charity 🙄

Honestly I think the problem is embedded within the structure of the society itself. Poverty is a consequence by design.

마지막 선생님 설명 너무 잘 이해가 됩니다. 감사합니다

My poor mother worked so hard, and ended up dying at 51 years old because she didn't have health insurance. She went to the ER in agonizing pain and they sent her home claiming that she likely had a UTI. She bled to death internally that night.

Getting to the upper class is not the goal. Being able to live in a stable environment until I die with the people I love is. Material wealth and life wealth cannot compare.

There is no solving 'child poverty' as long as children keep having children.

What is the instrumental soundtrack at the beginning? I have been looking but could not find.

I walked away from the war on poverty and anti poverty programs in the 70's, when it became painfully obvious to me that our government was causing and maintaining poverty......

When I was working in USA, I would often put a $10 bag of food into my checkout...to be donated to charity. USA wants to mess around across the world but cannot look after its own.

Printing all that money, and states shutting businesses down had a significant effect

This is my reaction and interpretation after listening to the new president of Argentina on the world economic forum over there in Switzerland there. After listening to him several times. I began to like all of the points that he was making and as I was liking the points that he was making with his facts I was very much reminded of an old book that I had read. The book I refer to is Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. For his speech embodied many of the same elements that were embodied in John galt's speech from that book. The new president from Argentina also introduced a few other elements from that book from the speech that was given by the character in the book Atlas Shruggedd, known as Francisco and his speech on money. His speech though shorter than Atlas shrugs material was most enlightening and entertaining to listen to in the real world as opposed to the unreal real world presented in Atlas Shrugged. On the subject of books there is one book that I highly recommend that every person on the planet would be well advised to read. It is not a book of fiction, it is a book of fact. The book's title is natural law the books author is Lysander Spooner. I have found this book to be the best little book I have ever read on law of any kind. A three chapter 17 Page book. If you read it you will understand where mankind has gone wrong by moving away from natural law and moving toward authoritarian man-made law. After considering the information in these books I decided I would take up the challenge of rewriting one of the most special laws contained within the Bill of Rights that I would rewrite the Second Amendment. I call it Second Amendment 2.1 At this point you will need to read my further post on this same chat room about the National Rifle Association. So at this point please look for my other post in the same chat room about the National Rifle Association and what I further wrote and please be advised to look up and check out my book recommendations at the end.

Legalizing bribery in our legislative systems & permitting the wealthiest to pay the least taxes may be a large part of it.

I'm not kidding when I say that the market crash and high inflation have me really stressed out and worried about retirement. I've been in the red for a while now and although people say these crisis has it perks, I'm losing my mind but I get it,Investing is a long-term game, so I will focus on the long run.

Cost of housing another critical issue contributing to poverty. Rents are sky-high compared to the average income of workers in surrounding areas.

There are truly disabled people unable to work, but a large majority of the rest in poverty wont work. This is the main problem, businesses are begging for workers. And if u live in a high cost area, Move.

If a company pays you just enough not to quit, then you do just enough work not to get fired.

It's not that they can't, it's that they won't!

My greatest worry is how do we recover from the current economic and global challenges, particularly considering the ongoing political power tussle in the states.

This video offered like… very scarce and scattered factual information. The US is so wealthy but that wealth isn’t held by the government- it’s held by corporations that operate as private entities. I mean, please correct me if I’m wrong or add further information to help each other understand better.

i always shake my head when i look at the money that goes to fund wars and military spending.

A weak dollar can signal an economic downturn, making me to ponder on what are the best possible ways to hedge against inflation, and I've overheard people say inflation is a money-eater thus worried about my savings around $200k

We can't end poverty because we think we can't end poverty. Politicians debate budgets while they eat steak for lunch. So, no one in the government attempts to do anything. Everything looks good from their office. So, what's the problem right? It's so easy to not care. And no one privately does anything. No charity showed up. And the cavalry was not coming to rescue anyone. I remember being outside one day and looking around and thought. The calvary is not coming. My fantasy at that time was that the state would remove me from my home and take me somewhere else. I grew up in extreme poverty. Moving in with relatives who only took us in because there was nowhere else for us to go. I knew deep inside that I was not welcome anywhere. Hey kids are expensive right? I was very aware of my burdensome presence. Especially when it came to family and friends. I didn't have dental care for six years. And ended up with permanent damage to my teeth. I was also injured in an accident but I was not taken to the hospital. I healed up but with permanent damage. I had surgery maybe 34 or so years later because I simply had to. One of my friends Dad was still complaining about my eating at their house as a teenager. This was 25 years after the fact. I had no response as he spoke. Because he was right. I did eat there often. At age 14 , I was sent 750 miles away with zero notice. It was literally "take your bicycle to the trash, pack one small suitcase and get in the car". I kept failing in public school. And ended up with an 8th grade education and a GED. But once I left home I was free. We couldn't even stay together as a family. At one point I didn't even see my mom for a whole year. I think I was 14 to 15 years old. When it happened. I owned a few mismatched clothing items and one jacket. I did not own one presentable outfit. No one asked me anything about how it affected me or if I was okay. I actually didn't get out of poverty until I left home at age 17. My Dad had asked me to leave home at that time because I was too expensive. He seemed so mad as he spoke. My parting gift was a very old car that he had paid $135. for. He handed me the keys and within ten minutes asked me when I was leaving. It was my 17th birthday present. My reply was quick. I told him I was leaving soon. It took me two months to finally get out. . I worked wherever I could, earning little money. I was afraid a lot. I hadn't even cried about it. Imagine that. I taught myself engineering by purchasing used hardcover books. I read voraciously. And developed a career. At age 29 I shared a cubicle with two degreed engineers. Who didn't understand how I had learned my trade. My entire career, I was asked similar questions. I never told them that I only graduated from 8th grade and had a GED I would attend engineering and management meetings and look around the conference room table. And think, oh yeah Masters from an Ivy league school. Oh that's an MBA guy there. And so on. At age 50, after all of my kids had a chance to go to college. It became my turn. I had been waiting for decades for that opportunity. I worked full time and commuted to a job 62 miles from home as I went to evening school and Saturday classes. I ended up with a business degree in 2013. At age 64 I earned my MBA. I'll never forget the past though, I tried to. But poverty gets inside and just tears you up. Especially as an adolescent and then a teenager. At that age you just don't have the tools to handle it. I will always carry those emotional wounds. It happens every time someone asks me "where are you from, which high school did you graduate from"? That's when the shame component rears its head. I'll always remember those times. And how much it hurt. Hey I had it good. I wasn't outside standing in the rain or hustling for a few dollars. I wasn't sleeping in a freaking tent on a sidewalk during winter. I could obtain a driver's license and other IDs. I know I went on a bit here. But I had something to say damnit.

Poverty has been around since Caine killed Abel. We are NOT going to solve/ get rid of it.

The problem with poverty is that, as this video shows, we are focused on how to afford to pay for poverty rather than solving the root cause in order to eliminate (or reduce) poverty. Why not focus on some of poverty's causes ... i.e. lack of work, jobs, and family dynamics limiting employment, education, opportunity, and motivation. Throwing more money at it doesn't solve it, you must address the cause. good luck CNN continues

Ending poverty means that the rich will have to be less rich. They are not willing to become less rich.

6:16 she is talking about something called the cliff effect. That is one thing that really needs to be looked at big time.

We’re taught, “work hard, be rich” when it’s more like, “work hard, die chasing becoming rich”.

*George Carlin on Homelessness:* Have you ever noticed that the only metaphor we have in our public discourse for solving problems is to declare war on it? Did you ever notice that we have no war on homelessness? You know why? Because there's no money in that problem. No money to be made off of the homeless.

The problem with poverty is that, as this video shows, we are focused on how to afford to pay for poverty rather than solving the root cause in order to eliminate (or reduce) poverty. Why not focus on some of poverty's causes ... i.e. lack of work, jobs, and family dynamics limiting employment, education, opportunity, and motivation. Throwing more money at it doesn't solve it, you must address the cause.

My father was born in 1940 - 2020 deceased. He told me 15 yrs before his passing the middle class is shrinking . He said they aren't giving out the 5% - 6 % pay increases today that he got when he was working at General Motors. He said their is enough to go around but the Top 3 % of the population control or have 90 % The worlds wealth. He said theirs enough for all to live comfortable. But the wealthy want it ALL for themselves. This inflation on Goods and services, Cars, food , houses and apartments is all by design and engineered by the wealthy to eliminate the middle class completely. They want all of what we have our homes land vehicles. They wish to make everything so expensive that we loose all of what we have. The wealthy and this Government want us to depend on the Government for total survival . The wealthy have bought and paid for the politicians to design policies that work for them and hurt everyone else.

Poverty itu pilihan, mereka nyaman hidup tanpa tanggung jawab santai tak tertekan lingkungan, hidup yg hebat

The wealthy will tell you that poverty is necessary, and they are correct. If everyone got a fair slice of the pie, the wealthy couldn't take slices larger than everyone else. In order for someone to have a larger slice, someone else has to have a smaller slice. As long as the wealthy own the government, poverty will never go away.

I'm currently on disability and I was homeless at one point while waiting for it to be approved. Things are rough out there and poverty really, really hurts. If you aren't born into wealth in this country, you are one health issue or one bad situation away from living on the streets. The wages are still so low that even full time workers live paycheck to paycheck and are never truly able to build wealth themselves. Everything about our system feels helpless, like you are perpetually swimming upstream. It doesn't have to be like this - we see so many examples of other countries taking better care of their citizens and it works well when done right. Things simply can't go on like this. Most of our biggest issues we face today can be traced back to poverty. Hell, crime itself is linked to poverty. All of this should be a no-brainer - we need to take care of our people so that we can continue to thrive as a country. What's it going to take? Another depression? Congressmen dying off? Like what is the point of having a society if the goal isn't to constantly improve it?

Yes, I think you did an amazing job and I do like the SUV that you made and I think those cars could’ve kept going. If Ford would’ve maybe changed a few things I think they could’ve still had Axel going today. Good job.

I know the best answer to your question; if it is important to you, 'hear my words that I might teach you, take my arms that I might reach you'..

Seems to me that there is a definite effort on the part of some in power to maintain a permanent poor underclass in this country. But rather than admit that, they're going to do everything they can to pin it on the individual.

As a Taiwanese, I think America is very obsessed with explaining problems and pointing out shortcomings, but they don't really like to get up from a chair and make real changes. Everyone expects to move their mouths, type, and things will get better. It's very interesting. Watching An empire is about to collapse, and the people of this empire stand beside you too to watch

I live in a tent. So what I really need is a chair. Hmmm, like " The Jerk" !!!

This is a part of overall control of people in this country. In this country government(s) do not want help people who pay taxes and work with one break of ten minutes. To scare people with possibility of homelessness, then to get them work their asses of without any vacation (if you want to take unpaid time off- fine but do not expect to find your workplace ready for you).

With markets tumbling, inflation soaring, the Fed imposing large interest-rate hike, while treasury yields are rising rapidly-which means more red ink for portfolios this quarter. How can I profit from the current volatile market, I'm still at a crossroads deciding if to liquidate my $125k bond/stocck portfolio

They literally could have asked any poor person what the situation is and they’d get there answer. But nope they’re all hiding behind their fancy desks asking themselves “why can’t we fix this” instead of solving anything.

I was worse off working two part time jobs than I was working one pt job and getting snap. I ended up in the hospital because of this pt job. Now have a ft, can’t quit the pt because I can’t afford to lose the little bit of extra cash.

Less than 3% of America’s hourly workers work for just $7.25 per hour. This is because employers simply can’t find anyone that will work for a wage that low.

My Dad made 400 bucks a week Take Home pay in 1975 raised 7 kids, bought a house and Ma stayed at home. Today that 400 bucks is worth $2200 bucks, take home pay. He was an electrician working for a rubber plant. It's not people living above their means it's the people at the top taking too much in profits. It's pay not keeping up with inflation.

Most likely, an outside factor caused this recession. The US dollar's influence as a government reserve currency is waning for the first time in decades. The ability to control inflation is no longer possible, and less money is being spent on oil and stock trading than in the past. They all lend credence to the notion that a new multilateral international order is being developed.

Whats crazy is theres enough money in the world for nobody to be lacking anything.....yet here we are .... Here we will be......its a very solveable problem but will never be solved until greed is removed from our hearts

Thank you for providing this facts! We need to educate UPPER level who making decision for hiring staff and set the price wages. We need to know that protect the main street People so that we live in peace.

The answer is real simple: they can end it but they won’t. Why they won’t is because they make millions acting like they try. If they fix the issue they lose the money they pocket.

I was amazed at how many of those people are truly out of touch to the reality of what is going on. Just because you say it on the news doesn't make it true. Our seniors are suffering. I know because I'm one of them. Many of my friends are too. Adding around $60 a month and then taking most of our food stamps away doesn't add up. It leaves us poorer than we were. Everyone is concerned about the children and I understand that because I have grandchildren. However the seniors and disabled are being ignored . There isn't any real housing that we can afford. So this report is not honest. Things aren't truly being done to help, especially those of us on a fixed income

Hi, I'm learning English, I would be very grateful with someone who could explain this sentence: "it just falling back down in our face"

The ❤❤❤ problem is that secret society membership controls the working class. Preventing honest people from gaining employment and starting new businesses.

The U.S. ruling elite does not want to end poverty. The U.S. wants an oligarchy.

I agree with the top comments here. When people make over six figures trying to solve this issue you realize that is where your issue lies. People trying to “solve” this issue don’t want to put themselves out of a job

I’m 63 and retired with a HS diploma. If I needed a job I could get one less then a week

You can just drive around and see how prevalent it is. Rural areas are very often overlooked. Just get off the interstate in “flyover country” and you’ll see what I mean.

In Finland, you have people who live in poverty as well because of various reasons... but they're guaranteed a home and food and electricity by the state. If you are homeless, and go days without eating in Finland, you've really effed up your circumstances for some reason. In USA, people are just left behind if going gets rough. We haven't solved poverty either, but at least we've tried to make it so everyone can have basic necessities. so being poor in finland and being poor in USA are two completely different things.

… right to privacy is an element of various legal traditions that intends to restrain governmental and private actions that threaten the privacy of individuals

In 1963 I made about $75 a week. Couldn't really afford to move out of my parents' home, which was completely abusive and unlivable. Didn't apply for jobs I might have liked because I would not have made enough to get away from my profoundly dysfunctional family. But, I didn't not have crippling debt from going to college. Rents for apartments were about $75/month. These figures are unrealistic for 2023.

In America most places require a car in-order to access employment, education, food, healthcare and housing. Cars can be extremely expensive and alternative modes of transportation can be a combination of unsafe and unreliable ( All the money was spent subsidizing cars). Ending car dependency is one of the biggest things America can do to eliminate poverty.

People won't solve the poverty crisis because they fear it will come at a cost of their personal financial security. It's one of the pitfalls of our current system.

Because there are many entityes (goverment, really big Corporations, that live from public money) who dont have interest in solve something that help them to garantee their society position of power

"The problem is that there are not enough chairs in the game". Simply put. Brilliant analogy.

Excellent. You hit real issues right on the nose. I had to retire because of an accident but now if I worked part time for cash you are penalized right out of any security such as health care.

It’s enough for every man’s needs not enough for every man’s greed.

The reality is that if you are making under the federal poverty level for yourself, it means you aren't working a full time job in todays America in the vast majority of cities across the country. The lowest you are going to find the majority of companies paying these days is $15 an hour. Do places pay less than that? Sure - but they are pretty few and far between especially in normal-larger sized cities. Even if you happen to make the bare minimum for your state, a 40 hour work week in virtually all states would put you above the federal poverty line. Secondly - if you happen to be living in poverty and can't even afford to take care of yourself, why in the world do you think it's a good idea to have children? It doesn't mean you will never have children but you need to get yourself into a place in life where you and whoever you are with are able to handle the cost of having a child without expecting the government to shoulder the load for you.

I think the answer is more like "won't" rather than "can't". Rich people want the poor to stay poor. This allows them to enjoy the comforts of being rich. This is why if you look at studies during the pandemic; while tons and tons of people were laid off and thrown into poverty, you have companies like Ferrari, Lamborghini, and luxury car companies netting record profits.

When I discover how much American folks have to pay to get healthcare I was shocked, like, how on earth my South American country provide free universal healthcare regardless of your income, but the "richest country in the world" doesn't.

Poor people don’t have options. When people have options they won’t join the military.

After I moved to U.S. I had to get familiar with how the private medicare worked. I couldn't just go to any doctor or facility and get the care I would need without understanding your own level of coverage. It was stressful to have to check for coverage and then to analyze all the bills I would get and to call around and chase people for any discrepancies. Where I came from I never had to worry about such thing as the doctor's office would bill the government and I would never see a single bill from them.

“Why the US wont solve poverty” Fixed it for you CNBC

Imagine interviewing anyone from the Heritage Foundation about anything that has to do with social issues, c'mon CNBC

The major issue is corporate greed. Decaying union membership means that corpos can get away with low wages. Those low wages improve the anually reported profits they are legally required to squeeze out in public corporations. They could afford to pay employees higher wages (i.e., we live in a time of record corporate profits). They actively choose not to because profit comes before employee survival. They can get away with it, now as union membership has withered and decayed following government sponsored union busting. Funny thing, those employees cannot buy more product if they have no money.

Because our elected officials truly believe spending the money we don't have to wage endless wars around the world over is more important than solving domestic issues.

The USA does not WANT to end poverty - they like it as long as its not them that are poor.

When Politicians and businesses "work" together to benefit each other, the price is paid by those of poor working class that get pushed to the edge.

Dear, U.S. Government/Politicians, Take notes from Finland on how to end poverty and homelessness. You may learn a thing or two from your counterparts from the other side of the world who know how to make their citizens of their country.

Ending poverty is not in the best interests of the corporations.

Why are people trying to raise a family on a minimum wage job? Minimum wage jobs are for high school kids, seniors and maybe even the mentally handicapped. But they’re not intended for families and for those able bodied people who are trying to raise families. Like…people need to stop trying to turn it into what’s it’s not.

I fell in this category but finally i found a a job with good wages and benefits. Do i have debt yes, but if you have good paying jobs and benefits you get out of the system. I am 64 and want to retire but because my good paying job came late in life and had lots of financial issues i continue to work, i know that once i tetire i may have to rely on some type of program to live comfortable. When good good paying opportunities are there ppl will want to work we all benefit more. Guaranteed 😊