man, i got tired of arguing this when i was in grad school. i took several poverty courses in the urban and regional planning dept. and many of those folks had a warped thinking.

culture of poverty. i agree that there is a ghetto/project/mentality, but i also believe that just because u physically live in this state doesn't mean that your mind has to. for example, i was poor growing up but poverty was never an excuse for me not to strive. (no i am not on some ole reagan-omics of pulling yo'self up from your bootstraps) but i know that my mother conditioned my thinking whereas i wouldn't believe or think less of myself or my potential b/c we were p.

i also believe that in this capitalist country that we live in poverty is a neccesary component of the paradigm so that the lower and underclass (the reserved army). do i agree or accept the paradigm, hell no, but i do understand it.
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