Dr. E. Calvin Beisner- there's no "real poverty" in the US

[salex]

I recently had to deal with someone who argued that we shouldn't have free birth control because if people can afford cell phones they can afford birth control. :roll: I'm personally going without hormonal birth control right now due to a lack of health insurance and steady income. I do have a cell phone though (because yeah, its cheaper for me to keep the phone than break the contract I entered prior to unemployment) so I guess that means I'm financially A-OK :angry-banghead:

I recently had to deal with someone who argued that we shouldn't have free birth control because if people can afford cell phones they can afford birth control. It is because, obviously, this woman should not be having sex if she doesn't want a child. Because--well just because, damn it!

[lawlifelgbt]

This is such a stupid thread! Partner and I are law students; I grew up middle class, and she grew up poor. Now, due to student debt and tuition costs, we're both poor.

We have cell phones (I'm on my parents' plan still, and she recently upgraded from a flip phone to her first smartphone when Verizon was running some major rebate deal. Her monthly charge went up 10/month, if at all).

We have Macbook computers (because law students generally type all notes and study materials, and are doomed if computer crashes or breaks, we thought it best to invest and avoid loss of a semester's work or having to buy a new one halfway through. Our exam-taking software is also only compatible with newer computers).

She has cable (it bundles with her Internet for quite a cheap flat rate, and without cable, she'd pay about the same just for Internet. She needs Internet at home to be able to study at home, and also to conduct Skype, etc. interviews in a quiet, comfortable place). I have Internet (a cell phone hotspot, which my parents pay for). We share a Netflix account- that's $5 each a month for some of the best entertainment you can get during one's off hours.

We also recently got a dog (we did this to help her with her depression; taking care of something or just having a pet in general has been shown to make people feel better). We got her from a shelter and each put in 40 dollars, so no big costs there. We buy inexpensive toys (so she doesn't nip/climb on us constantly). However, she was very thin and likely malnourished in the shelter, so we shelled out for expensive, healthy dog food. This means fewer vet costs and a happier animal! She looks healthy already.

Having these things doesn't make us rich; in fact, Netflix and smartphones are, as one person said, probably the best investment we can make. It does not invalidate our struggle for money or how she goes hungry in August and December sometimes because the student loan money doesn't cover unexpected expenses, like car repairs. We live apart for now, but the past few weeks, being with her, she's totally out of money due to her car needing a new engine. I buy her basic groceries, since my parents usually bring me food when they visit where I live, so I have slightly more food money. Our first priority is the dog. We buy her food and feed her first. It's been toast, pasta, rice cheap instant coffee, and from-scratch fruit bread because fruit is cheap now and making banana bread, etc stretches it and flour is cheap, practically this whole time. The hardest thing is seeing her give me equal portions and not insisting she take some of mine too. I'm recovering from an eating disorder, and so I keep thinking "if she takes some, she won't be hungry, and I'll lose weight. Win-win." We argue sometimes because she insists I can't give her my food.

On our one year anniversary on the 4th, instead of dinner, we went to a cafe for coffee and a shared muffin, and I bought her a rose. Hardly excess spending. These tiny things aren't the luxuries he wants to portray them as; some, like electronics, are necessities.

And honestly, you're a pretty bad person if you say poor people shouldn't go out for one meal or buy a small present to celebrate an important occasion. Sorry for the long post. I'm frustrated with my situation, and it kind of spills out.

[Mama Mia]

I've worked with families with small children who were receiving chemo for leukemia who lived in their cars in parking lots while waiting for room at any available shelter. The parents would often have to leave the kids in the car while they worked in the fields. They mostly ate junk because they had no way to cook or even store perishables. the Fields are heavily sprayed with pesticides, which contributes to the high number of families with children who have cancer.

So yeah, there is real poverty in the U.S.