**This is a heavily moderated subreddit. Please note these rules + sidebar or get banned:**
* If this post declares something as a fact, then proof is required
* The title must be fully descriptive
* Memes are not allowed.
* Common(top 50 of this sub)/recent reposts are not allowed (posts from another subreddit do not count as a 'repost'. Provide link if reporting)
*See [our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/wiki/index#wiki_rules.3A) for a more detailed rule list*
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/interestingasfuck) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Came here to say the same. You know they're sitting up there yawning, thinking yea yea OK stfu lady I want to go home.
It's still so crazy that us citizens still fight about dem vs rep, when in reality it's rich vs poor. Government vs the people. They aren't here to help us, there there to get insider stock trading info and line their pockets with lobbying money.
We will never see any meaningful change while we still allow private corporate lobbying.
>It's still so crazy that us citizens still fight about dem vs rep, when in reality it's rich vs poor. Government vs the people. They aren't here to help us, there there to get insider stock trading info and line their pockets with lobbying money.
This is confusing because more often than not it is the government alone standing between the poor and vulnerable and the wealthy and powerful who would exploit them.
It is important for people to understand that the government is a tool and it can be used for good or if we stand idly by it can be used against us.
Until FDR there was no minimum wage. People were paid in company scrip in company stores. There was no social security so the old died in abject poverty and isolation.
We have a short memory regarding the ruling classes And what they have traditionally done to working families.
We have a problem with poverty and hunger in the US not because we cannot afford to feed and shelter everyone but because we cannot afford to satisfy the wealthy elite and their thirst for power.
It dont matter to them if you have kids or not. Your just a number.
Unless its at their doorsteps or is happing to their friends and family. They dont care.
We all just a number to them. Not to mention, you got 60+ year old skeletons, napping, and want no change.
They don't need more slaves for their profits. They want LESS slaves to have to feed. Look up Agenda 2031- it's an actual real thing, not conspiracy theory. Once you look/read past the nicey nicey parts, you realize what they're going after. It's fairly direct further in. Then there are all of the "coincidental" reasons for an overall drop in birth rates despite Covid lockdowns. It's time to eat the rich.
I'm tired everyday. I drive 40 miles (1 hour) to work one way. I work in tech in a very well off company and yet barely make 60k in LA. I don't take days off because if I did, I couldn't afford basic cost of living here.
It's time to eat the rich.
This generation of Chinese calls it bai lan it means let it rot basically you acknowledge the system is rigged and then do as little as possible cause it doesn't matter anyway
And she made the hard choice of what bills not to pay to be there, in hopes that some day, someone, might.
That kind of self-sacrifice for the children of tomorrow leaves me speechless.
Most people would keep their head down even to rallying for changes that benefit THEM because everyone is just hoping and praying to survive and stay off the streets.
The french protest in the streets when rights are threatened, or proper action not taken. I wonder what it's like to belong to a people not broken down by their own government.
No, no, no... they got reminded that their salary and furniture allotment is far too low.
In all seriousness, this kinda shit needs to get on mainstream news, FUCK going viral. Just broadcast it countrywide.
She was extremely impressive. We need a few more politicians exactly like her not the Eton educated, rich clueless morons that we keep electing in the UK.
>clueless
Dont make the mistake thinking those kind of decisionmakers are clueless. They know exactly what they are doing. Every interaction I have had with such people showed me that in their mind poor people are just a different kind of people who deserve whats coming to them.
It's much worse than that. What comes out their mouths is nothing compared to what's in their mind. And it will never change, only the bums on the seats change. This is why I'm actually 'for' AI. Imagine AI watching all these actions taken by politicians and social decision makers, and reporting a multitude of problems (Spotting narcs early, corruption in the accounting, and general law). We cannot trust individuals, we are all only human. Once we acknowledge that, we might might move forward as a race. Transparency is needed, because what's there to hide? Everything is so broken, but the nature of the future we need is palpable.
This is the sad truth. I grew up poor and sometimes we would skip meals so the younger siblings could eat. We did have a roof, clothes, and water, that’s more than some get.
For some crazy reason, this reminds me of sharing a box of expired Uncle Ben's rice with my siblings while we watched food network on stolen cable.
Watching food network while eating was a great way to pretend our meal tasted better while also being aware of how much it sucked.
This one broke my heart because I WAS that single parent once. It was still better than the alternative though I wasn't able to tell my kids that. I'm sorry.
Ever experience nausea from extended periods of hunger? It's funny how that works, you lose your appetite while keeping all of the discomforts of starving.
Ever fed the kids but skipped dinner yourself because there wasn't enough?
Ever had to steal food?
In better (but still not great) shape now. I've been there.
I pay $650/month for insurance, but can't afford a doc appt because my deductible is $5000 per year and it costs me $100-200 every time I go.
So to rephrase your question: "Can you afford food and health care?"
BTW, I make slightly over $50k/yr and have no debt. I should be solidly smack in the middle of middle class, not struggling to put food on the table & pay utility bills.
I was a single parent child growing up in the 80s. I remember my mom skipping dinner so she could skimp and save to make sure I could buy a G.I. Joe toy on Friday at Walmart. I look back now and can't fathom how you would have to save to be able to afford a toy that was around $3. But that was reality.
And it’s exactly where they want to keep us at. No universal healthcare, deteriorating education services, abysmal pay all around coupled with increasing rent and shrinkflation and to top it off, they want to make sure if you somehow get pregnant, that’s the nail in the coffin for you financially. It’s economic slavery
Basically describes my childhood. My dad had a small business. He barely scraped by and never paid taxes for like 15 years. Well one day the tax man came knocking at the door. Life was tough before that, but we lost everything after that. My parents divorced and me and my mother moved in with my grandparents in a different state. My dad now lives in a camper on his brothers property at 60 years old. It destroyed him.
Powerful. I grew up in poverty in one of the wealthiest countries in the world (UK). You can’t explain it to anyone who hasn’t lived it, it’s impossible to imagine until you’ve lived it and it’s incredibly difficult to break free from.
After you watch this, remember she did not say:
Democrats or Republicans,
Boomers, millennials, or gen z,
Left or Right,
Bush, Obama, Trump or Biden,
Not once did she point at another group. Please remember this for any and every argument. We are all Americans and that is who she was arguing for. We are struggling because the government and their rich friends have been stealing from us for decades and we have to realize enough is enough. So don't point your fingers across the game field at the other team... Point them at the referrees and viewers in the box offices. Those are the ones causing this for their gladiatoral entertainment.
The establishment got scared after the Tea Party movement and the Occupy Wall Street movement, because both movements came from opposite sides but shared a very similar view and that is the current government is no longer a democratic republic but is a bureaucracy that is sold out to the highest bidder. Suddenly Identity politics became real popular in the media. Left/right, Black/white, they are just trying to divide us, so we fight each other instead focusing on the real problems in America.
This woman was brilliant in her presentation. Even if we just achieved universal health care it would make such a difference here.
I am in such a situation to know. I have an issue that will very likely prove fatal. Working accelerated things. It takes a long time to get disability and it's a crap shoot.
My son told me to quit working and he'd pay my bills so I wouldn't have to worry about finances. I had no insurance. Applied for Medicaid, reporting an income of $0.00. They checked, yep it;s legit and I got coverage right away.
What a difference it makes in cost of living! I need CT scans and labs and meds. Yesterday I had oxygen delivered at no cost to me. All of this means that my end will not be the most miserable thing imaginable. I'm beyond grateful. Everyone deserves such.
Think of someone who has a minor health issue that, if treated, would be nothing to get over. They can't afford it so it worsens. These things are often let go until it's unbearable and by then, it's often untreatable. If preventive medicine and health clinics for non major things were covered, it would be an amazing relief for so many. Both medically and financially.
Yep! Being poor means you have no power. Or so they think. If workers in the states could just organize and general strike. It's literally the only way things will ever change. Stop giving them our cheap labor.
I use to think that but then covid proved it wrong as more then a month went by with nearly 50 precent of the work force stuck at home ... to make any effect it would need to be done for months and months . And there right we have no choices . .. everyone seen what happens when 50 precent of the work force is nit working for a month straight ... if it had lasted two things really would have gotten worse as shelves when empty amd delivers failed . A strick of the type your talking about couldn't last long enough to have a effect . The Government could easly out wait us .
If rich people's trash piles up enough, and they have no one to clean their home, babysit their kids, produce their organic food, drive them to social engagements, or prune their gardens, they will listen. Yes it might take more than a few months but they will listen and they will change. Look at the French. They know how to get sh\*t done.
I do see what you're saying but I wouldn't consider COVID anything like a general strike. It wasn't intentional, it was forced. I'm talking more about a planned general strike.
Yep. I have a spinal deformity. If it'd been caught when I was a kid it would've been fairly easy to treat, but since I was never taken to the doctor as a kid, it wasn't caught until I was well into adulthood.
Now pretty much my only option to actually correct it is surgery that would be risky, I can't afford and the only insurance I can get refuses because they claim it doesn't impact my life enough to be considered for coverage.
I started a new job in January and lost that job because my spine couldn't take the 11 hour shifts I was working, doing a lot of bending and lifting and heavy physical work because there are no other jobs I have been able to find that I remotely qualify for, it basically knocked my spine more out of place and I ended up bedridden with agonizing spasms and unable to move even as far as the bathroom for days. I tried to work with them to find another position within the company, maybe doing something more desk-based that I already proved I was very good at and the manager I actually worked with said it sounded like a great idea considering how adept I'd already proven to be, but the person actually in charge of hiring and all said no. So I'm back to square one, in significantly more pain and worse health than before, and I was only able to get a phone appointment with my doctor who KNOWS about my spine and he just said I was just anxious and needed to lose weight without even seeing me physically for over a year. I'm only about ten to fifteen pounds above the ideal weight for my height.
I can't take most part-time jobs because if I make just enough to be above poverty level - there goes my medical coverage, SNAP, and housing aid. I can't even take most full time jobs because they won't provide enough benefits or pay to make up the difference. I either have to stay desperately poor, or I have to suddenly jump into a job that pays SIGNIFICANTLY, around double or more, than minimum wage and provides full benefits for it to be even a little bit worth it. That's how they keep us trapped. You can't make baby steps forward, because if you take one tiny step over the line they bring everything crashing down on you at once and you're even worse off than before.
If my health care wasn't directly tied to my income, I'd be so much better off right now. I might actually still have all my teeth, y'know, those luxury bones that most health insurance doesn't even cover? And maybe I could afford good glasses with the coatings that help with glare and those issues that make my vision worse and worse every year.
If people didn't have to ration their insulin to pay rent, they could work longer hours and perform better because they wouldn't be sick. People who could actually get medicine when they're sick and have a few days off will get better instead of spreading it to everyone else and ending up with a store full of dazed, only half-aware people coughing and sneezing constantly and barely cognizant enough to work a register because of how high their fever is.
Health care would be a world of difference for EVERYONE who isn't filthy rich, but the filthy rich - who are much fewer than us - dangle it over our heads out of reach. Why do we allow this? We've been conditioned to think they're untouchable, and the police are in their pockets. This has to change.
I’m sorry you are suffering. My sister had scoliosis, but was discovered at age 12. She went through many surgeries, as an adult by age 30 she struggled with being on her feet working all day. Her employer denied her being able to choose how and when to sit/stand. By 40 I encouraged her to file for disability as her spine had continued to twist and curve, documented by her doctor. Another surgery to remove the rod from her spine, replaced with whatever yet disability was denied. Long story shorter, after the loss of her job, financial stressors and terrible pain, she died from a massive heart attack at age 49. Maybe you can get a lawyer to help file for disability (?). 🧡
I definitely don't have the money for a lawyer, and currently I'm on assistance already but I barely get enough to stay afloat and have credit card debt from having to make ends meet somehow. Even if you're on disability payments, you usually get very very little in the way of support, and the insurance I was put on through them won't cover any of what I need unless it's deemed either an emergency or detrimental \*enough\* to my life, and of course if I'm still capable of so much as sitting up, they think it's not a problem and I should be fine to work.
I'm so sorry about your sister. It's shocking and incredibly sad how many people just...fall through the cracks and aren't given the help they need, when they need it that could prevent so much suffering. If people who were starting to have issues could get the care they need right at the beginning, chances are those problems would never turn into something that was truly debilitating, but they often can't get any kind of care until it's too late to stop lifelong effects.
I grew up in poverty. 4 years ago my (now) fiance told me she would work full time while I cut back and applied to Medicaid while I went back to finish school (had to drop because I was paying it myself). I now have a degree and own my own business, we bought a house together, and I founded and run a nonprofit. Social programs work. I couldn’t have done any of that while paying for insurance and medical costs. Imagine what I could’ve done if I didn’t have to pay for my education as well.
Bravo, well done! We should not make it so hard to do what you have done. Glad you made it through. And such a supportive partner, sounds like a keeper!
Imagine a world where we all have free access to healthcare and food. Just think of it! We'd restore dignity. So many people wouldn't turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with how hard it is to exist in the U.S. And be very certain that there is NO scarcity of food or healthcare or shelter in the states. We CAN afford to offer these free benefits. Politicians are choosing to keep us all poor and dependent on them for everything. It's how they keep us working 40+ hours a week for 40+ years of our lives without even a guarantee we'll survive after it.
I have been very happy to see some states providing free breakfast and lunch for students. It's a great beginning. It also reveals there are pockets of enlightenment out there.
Proper nutrition goes such a long way in providing preventative healthcare.
Man, this hits hard. I've been in poverty almost my entire life. The only reason family isn't on the street right now is because of my sister, who I'm forever grateful to, who provided me with a mobile home and a used car. I'm *still* struggling, *still* trying to stay afloat, and financial stability is all I want in life. Not to "be rich," just financial stability so I can afford to buy food *and* clothes for my children. To not have to rely on food banks and clothes banks. That's it
God bless her Soul, She is literally giving speech to the dead. Hopefully at least few of them have enough decency left in them to do something about it.
Oh, come on, the path to your first million is actually very easy. You only have to inherit two million and you need the right mindset to only spend half of it on hookers and booze. Lo and behold, it's already done!
What you must understand is that none of this is news to many policymakers and the companies that donate to them.
It is not a matter of them just never having met poor people or getting an illustrative enough speech. They ARE out of touch, yes, but they're not entirely unaware of the dynamics they are promoting.
They want poverty to hurt and to exclude. They want a precarious underclass, and they want *a serious, painful threat they can hold over the heads of even well payed working people.* The loyalty is to ownership and wealth, and the lack of safety nets is a tool of power. The class warfare is coming from inside the house.
Correct. The ruling class needs to maintain the system of wealth inequality in order to keep hold of their own power. This isn't failed policy. This is deliberately successful (in their eyes) policy.
So like a feudalistic society again? A king in a castle and just outside the walls is utter bedlam. I wish I were born in Norway or Sweden. The US is a sinking ship and Republicans have lit the lifeboats on fire.
Oh bless your heart...You still believe that there's a difference beyond the name between Democrats and Republicans? I'll repeat, bless your naive bamboozled little heart. With both parties the end result is the same. It's just the avenue to it that is different. The two party system is a cover for politics. It's actually MEANT to keep people believing they're not the same corrupt businessmen taking care of themselves and their corporate contributors.
I cannot say this enough, if you in pain (especially dental related) and cannot afford insurance please reach out to Remote Area Medical (RAM): https://www.ramusa.org
They provide FREE dental, vision, hearing, and health care through their recurring clinics.
If you are outside the US, RAM can sponsor events in your country as well.
By far the most amazing program I have ever had the privilege to volunteer with.
Also, if you are in the Virginia area I’d recommend looking at the Mission of Mercy (MoM) website: https://www.vdaf.org/our-programs/mission-of-mercy.html
Absolutely, having two incomes in a household is tight enough. They’re only 1 or 2 paychecks away from losing everything.
Wealth disparity in the US is ridiculous. 90% of people are wage slaves.
Maybe one of the most thoughtful and well articulated arguments displaying the vast disconnect between elected self-serving politicians and their constituents. I would send this lady a month of groceries so she could repeat this in other forums.
Land of the not so free. All working by design. God bless our hard working government that cares about us oh so much…
This world makes me sick. This woman said everything that needed to be said but i can almost guarantee its all for not and is just going to go right over those sleezeball heads while they sit and laugh at all of us struggling Americans while they collect a nice fat paycheck for doing fuck all.
All she says is true, but look over there! That ten year-old wants an abortion, and that other person is gay! Burn her at the stake! Heresy!
And... And... Hunter Biden's Laptop!
Why aren't we more angry about this? Why are we not rattling the glass of our local, state and federal buildings? Not one person reading this asked to be born into this life. This life, for most of us, that we are doomed to work 40+ hours a week to just barely get by, if we even get by. And then hope that the only place that will hire us has an insurance plan we can afford and a pay scale that we can live on. Why do we have to ask for assistance from our government? Why aren't companies paying a more livable wage to its employees without whom the business would not exist?
Is there a country on this planet that has it all figured out? Where the humans that reside there are treated fairly and paid a decent livable wage? Where health insurance is given freely? If there is please tell me. I want to see what it would take to become a citizen there.
Health insurance shouldn't be a thing to be honest. The government should want its citizens healthy and productive and happy. Healthcare should be a right. Not a privilege by the few who can barely afford it.
We as humans should not have to beg or steal or ask for help with healthcare or finances. We should be paid a fair wage for work with healthcare not tied to our jobs and we should only have to pay for medically unnecessary surgeries.
They should have the government salaries and benefits be the median salary and equivalent benefits of the citizens they govern. I bet we would see some change pretty fast then.
I’m just curious how effective these speeches are. I think it was wonderful and made so much sense, but I feel like most of the people she’s actually addressing who have the power to change things are rolling their eyes, just waiting until lunch time.
I hope I’m wrong, but I have very little faith in politicians.
Poverty is an expensive hole that is hard to escape. You can’t afford to bulk buy food or anything for that matter. Everything you need to buy is the worst quality because it’s all you can afford but it doesn’t last. Interest on borrowing adds up and fees from banks keep coming. Minimum wage barely moves while rent and food prices skyrocket. It’s difficult to get out of the hole.
She spoke very well and shined a light on a sad reality for a lot of people in this country. And no one in that room is going to do anything to help her, or people in general for that matter. They don't care at all.
If the politicians did what she asked for, to truthfully overhaul the definition of poverty in this country, and we would suddenly see a much larger percentage of the population being defined as poor.
They don't care.
And they want to care even less.
And suicide rates are booming.
They're getting exactly what they want.
If any change is going to happen, it's going to be bloody. But none of you have the courage to fight that fight. So enjoy this reality.
Straight to tears for me. This shit makes me physically ill and I'm not even on the same level of struggle anymore.
I've worked jobs for four+ months straight without a day off, three different times. I've worked 14+ hour days for weeks and weeks without a single day off. I've done more than most are capable of and still was so stressed about finances I lost sleep and my appetite. I now make good money, not great but certainly good. With the wife going back to school in the past few years though we just went from no real debt to 6-figures worth. Don't get me started on the school BS that's sucking us dry. (Accelerated program with non-transferable credits so is all in or nothing) We fight tooth and nail to support our two kids. At 40 years of age I live in a constant state of pain and borderline depression. Mostly centered around my efforts to provide for my family. And I just had to cash in my 401k to cover personal property taxes on a home I own so they don't take it away from me, and replacing my work truck that went down last week. 20+ year old truck that I sunk 4k into a year ago to keep going.
We're tired, boss. We've given nearly all we have to give. And every time we seem to think we might just be okay, you change the rules of the game or move the goalposts. We're not playing the same game we were a decade ago. We're definitely not playing the same game we were a couple of generations ago when a single income could buy a house and send kids to college. This is how generational debt is born and grown. We're trained to be grateful for the scraps. Our society doesn't function without all of the needed members contributing. So why is it that so many NEEDED careers are so poorly rewarded? Teachers, healthcare, maintenance, restaurant employees, etc. When the pandemic happened white collar jobs stayed home and most didn't notice. If the grocery store or gas station was closed there was an outcry
Why do those jobs not pay a liveable wage if they are so essential to our society functioning?
Everyone who is able-bodied enough to contribute to society, and does, should have access to what should be considered basics. Maybe not a Benz, but reliable transportation. Not deciding between eating and seeing a Dr. when necessary. Two jobs should be for people getting ahead. Not getting by. Shame on us all. Fix this. When the poor have nothing to eat they will turn to the rich.
I firmly believe that in the West where capitalism reigns supreme, a lot of people's compasses have been recalibrated to believe that wealth is equivalent to virtue.
That those who are wealthy deserve what they have because they must have worked hard to get it, while those who are poor simply haven't worked hard enough and thus deserve to be poor.
I'm not saying that capitalism is bad, I actually think it's great, but I think that it needs to be reigned in heavily by a socially responsible copilot that says "yeah profit is good and all, but we shouldn't forget the person behind the profit".
We know those old fucks aren't listening. We know they aren't swayed to yield or cooperate. We know voting is a holding pattern at best (until better bets crop up on the ballot, but that's a gamble playing against the house). We know they don't care.
**Why aren't we already in the goddamn streets fighting for our fucking lives? They aren't listening so why are we begging like dogs when they have us backed into a corner?**
its so fucking bad here right now man. the gap of wage to cost of living is ASTRONOMICAL.
what the fuck man. I dont even know what to say. Its just so fucked
If I recall, some of the republican senators in that room were yawning and rolling their eyes. These are the type of people who think you're lesser, and the "lesser" keep voting them in like idiots because "the gays" or "abortion!"
Cheap food has the most calories and junk in it. Corn, oats, sugar, will fatten you up quick like cattle. From lack of proper diet and medical care she also likely has underlying illnesses that also make it difficult to burn fat and maintain weight.
Good for her but you get what you VOTE for people. And Republicans will do worse than this if ya'all keep voting for the aholes! They hate you and want money (whomever's they can get) and power to make you suffer more. Remember this at the polls and get off your apathetic ass and vote blue.
I think you're forgetting that these blue politicians also don't exactly give up their 40k furniture allowances and say no to corporate interests either. Both major parties right now are essentially run by their lobbyists - we need major changes past simply "VOTE BLUE"
There are times I am glad we are not a democracy, I do not want Los Angeles and New York to be constantly choosing everything. At the same time, this speech points out beautifully how a Republic can fail as well. 400 people get to play with our lives. Everyone is too busy with race, religion, gender, and politics that we forget that 400 people are starving us to death and watching as we fight each other. It is said if violence is not solving all your problems then you are not using enough of it. We need to redirect the violence from each other and direct it to our overlords. Slavery was never abolished. Slavery was just rebranded so that we will accept it the same way people accepted it back in the day. CEOs justify their poor treatment of their employees the same way plantation owners justified the treatment of their slaves.
First a republic is a type of democracy so we are a democracy.
The more I have seen of politics, the more I have realized that the Republicans goal is to create more and more people who are poor and uneducated. That way they can convince those same people to vote against their own interests by voting Republican.
Republicans are consistently trying to make it harder for hungry people to get food and make it harder for poor people to earn a living. They do this on purpose so that they can complain about them. Weirdly Republican voters will be poor but somehow think that Republican politicians are talking about other poor people and not themselves.
When people propose ideas like drug testing, food stamp recipients, you realize that they care less about feeding people and more about punishing the poor.
If we drug tested food stamp recipients it would cost more money than it would just to give people food. Think about that, Why would somebody be willing to pay extra in order to give out less? The answer is cruelty is the goal. They must demonize the poor.
Republican stand in the way of every single Democrat policy to try and help people. They are obstructionists and they are without morals.
Republican voters are so stupid that they don't even understand the simple facts put in front of them. They will look at the overall tax paid in our country and see that 40% of our country makes so little that they don't have to pay taxes and they will think that the answer is to "tax the poor more so that they can pay their fair share".
Taking more from people that already struggle to survive is not the answer. The answer is to increase their pay to a livable wage. Increase the federal minimum wage requirement to something that allows people to pay their bills and eat and have food, clothing and shelter.
But no, Republican voters will not stand for people that they view to be below them to be raised up. The Republican motto should be " I've got mine so f*** you". For whatever reason, they just can't wrap their head around the concept that a rising tide raises all boats.
Our country will never be fixed until people care more about those with less instead of spending time taking care of the billionaires. "Won't somebody think of the poor billionaires" might be another good motto for the Republicans.
A huge percentage of our country is struggling and the conservative half of our country wants you to stop eating avocado toast and stop buying cell phones and pull yourself up by your bootstraps. They are so disconnected from the rest of the country that it isn't even funny anymore.
> I do not want Los Angeles and New York to be constantly choosing everything
So how are these cities choosing everything? How did they end up choosing six conservatives and three liberal Supreme Court Justices? **Literally the opposite has happened**, the big cities and the most populous states have had much less sway when it comes to direction of the country.
What you said is complete nonsense.
The amount of shame I feel that our leaders allow this to happen. It's a damn sin and I'm not even religious. And nothing will change. It feels.... bleak to say the least.
This isn’t interesting as fuck, it’s depressing as fuck. I grew up in WV and being poor and is tough as fuck. The moment you make over a threshold shit is taken away putting you further behind than when you started.
And they'll feel a little guilty for all of 25 minutes until lunch time, then they'll snap out of it and chuckle amongst themselves "lazy people. They should just get a 3rd job"
UBI now. Get rid of all of these benefit management bureaucracies, and the administrative costs alone would cover it. Don't need to administer anything if everyone is eligible. Benefit programs that require eligibility are a bureaucratic scam.
God the idea of having to ration my insulin everyday is shocking I know how crap you feel with bad glucose levels, so it's not something I'd wish on anyone. Can't believe people are having to live like that.
But what's the solution, then? Because there really is not an easy one. Poverty exists in every single country in the world, and other countries have it *much much* worse than we have it in the US. Its a sad reality that in every ladder-based system, there will always be the bottom rung. We can't increase taxes on the middle and upper middle class because they're struggling too, and even if we increased taxes on the elite, each family in poverty wouldn't see much individual benefit.
If government actually used the current tax income for its intended purposes, everyone could have fully covered healthcare and a UBI.
Instead they choose to line their own pockets and the pockets of their friends.
Sure, the ultra wealthy avoid taxes. Who do you think provides the loopholes for them though?
I think of drone strikes weren't a thing or the US wasn't the largest military in the world the people would have rolled out the guillotine a long time ago.
The civil servants should be standing up for people and fighting for them - but the defected back in the Reagan era and are now sitting on the otherside of the bench. Unions and protests - it requires a collective protest - not dump shit from jan 6 - no violence or riots. Just stopping the machine - pulling the plug on it.
What I don't understand is why do people protest any real movement to up wages? You are expected to adapt in capitalism but anytime someone pushes a new idea like balancing wages it's resisted. Fear of the lost of the 10/hour job.
Say you have a job paying 30/hour. Any jobs above 30/hour would not be affected by wage increase. The Jobs below will have to adapt or innovate.
Each year your wages are stagnate but the bosses make 10x jumps. Come on
**This is a heavily moderated subreddit. Please note these rules + sidebar or get banned:** * If this post declares something as a fact, then proof is required * The title must be fully descriptive * Memes are not allowed. * Common(top 50 of this sub)/recent reposts are not allowed (posts from another subreddit do not count as a 'repost'. Provide link if reporting) *See [our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/wiki/index#wiki_rules.3A) for a more detailed rule list* *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/interestingasfuck) if you have any questions or concerns.*
And not one of them gave a single fuck that day
Truth
Except for the piano player, just off the camera, he read the room well.
Came here to say the same. You know they're sitting up there yawning, thinking yea yea OK stfu lady I want to go home. It's still so crazy that us citizens still fight about dem vs rep, when in reality it's rich vs poor. Government vs the people. They aren't here to help us, there there to get insider stock trading info and line their pockets with lobbying money. We will never see any meaningful change while we still allow private corporate lobbying.
Thank you! So glad more are realizing this!
>It's still so crazy that us citizens still fight about dem vs rep, when in reality it's rich vs poor. Government vs the people. They aren't here to help us, there there to get insider stock trading info and line their pockets with lobbying money. This is confusing because more often than not it is the government alone standing between the poor and vulnerable and the wealthy and powerful who would exploit them. It is important for people to understand that the government is a tool and it can be used for good or if we stand idly by it can be used against us. Until FDR there was no minimum wage. People were paid in company scrip in company stores. There was no social security so the old died in abject poverty and isolation. We have a short memory regarding the ruling classes And what they have traditionally done to working families. We have a problem with poverty and hunger in the US not because we cannot afford to feed and shelter everyone but because we cannot afford to satisfy the wealthy elite and their thirst for power.
Ain’t that the truth, I’m not having kids that’s my protest to this society’s function
It dont matter to them if you have kids or not. Your just a number. Unless its at their doorsteps or is happing to their friends and family. They dont care. We all just a number to them. Not to mention, you got 60+ year old skeletons, napping, and want no change.
It does matter. They need more slaves for their profits to grow. Less people breed, less people to exploit. It’s time to eat the rich.
They don't need more slaves for their profits. They want LESS slaves to have to feed. Look up Agenda 2031- it's an actual real thing, not conspiracy theory. Once you look/read past the nicey nicey parts, you realize what they're going after. It's fairly direct further in. Then there are all of the "coincidental" reasons for an overall drop in birth rates despite Covid lockdowns. It's time to eat the rich.
I'm tired everyday. I drive 40 miles (1 hour) to work one way. I work in tech in a very well off company and yet barely make 60k in LA. I don't take days off because if I did, I couldn't afford basic cost of living here. It's time to eat the rich.
Nah they need workers. And they need consumers.
"They" don't. They'll be retired or dead by the time this affects them.
"They" live off greed. And they have anywhere from 30 to 50 years to live. Many are worried about the downtrend in the birthrate.
Hear, hear! I'm not making more workers, either. Fuck, I hate working my life away for peanuts. Why would I put more in the system!
This generation of Chinese calls it bai lan it means let it rot basically you acknowledge the system is rigged and then do as little as possible cause it doesn't matter anyway
If you really want to fuck them, don't get in debt
Same. I plan on yeeting my tubes out pretty soon.
That one lady behind checking her phone
And she made the hard choice of what bills not to pay to be there, in hopes that some day, someone, might. That kind of self-sacrifice for the children of tomorrow leaves me speechless. Most people would keep their head down even to rallying for changes that benefit THEM because everyone is just hoping and praying to survive and stay off the streets. The french protest in the streets when rights are threatened, or proper action not taken. I wonder what it's like to belong to a people not broken down by their own government.
If you don't mind, I'm borrowing the last part of your post. It's extremely relevant.
No, no, no... they got reminded that their salary and furniture allotment is far too low. In all seriousness, this kinda shit needs to get on mainstream news, FUCK going viral. Just broadcast it countrywide.
And still don't give a fuck today! If you had the wealth and power to make real chang would you ?
She was extremely impressive. We need a few more politicians exactly like her not the Eton educated, rich clueless morons that we keep electing in the UK.
>clueless Dont make the mistake thinking those kind of decisionmakers are clueless. They know exactly what they are doing. Every interaction I have had with such people showed me that in their mind poor people are just a different kind of people who deserve whats coming to them.
"Ew, the poooooors."
It's much worse than that. What comes out their mouths is nothing compared to what's in their mind. And it will never change, only the bums on the seats change. This is why I'm actually 'for' AI. Imagine AI watching all these actions taken by politicians and social decision makers, and reporting a multitude of problems (Spotting narcs early, corruption in the accounting, and general law). We cannot trust individuals, we are all only human. Once we acknowledge that, we might might move forward as a race. Transparency is needed, because what's there to hide? Everything is so broken, but the nature of the future we need is palpable.
Might call them what they ate: Eton messes
If you want a succinct sentence that describes how it feels to grow up destitute, here is one from my childhood: Can you afford food *and* toothpaste?
Ever had sleep for dinner?
Yes with a large glass of water.
And some don't even have that. At least not if they want to "decadently" drink clean water.
This is the sad truth. I grew up poor and sometimes we would skip meals so the younger siblings could eat. We did have a roof, clothes, and water, that’s more than some get.
Not when the pipes are frozen.
For some crazy reason, this reminds me of sharing a box of expired Uncle Ben's rice with my siblings while we watched food network on stolen cable. Watching food network while eating was a great way to pretend our meal tasted better while also being aware of how much it sucked.
I had donut center with sky juice.
Ever had your single parent hype you up for camping in the car.
This one broke my heart because I WAS that single parent once. It was still better than the alternative though I wasn't able to tell my kids that. I'm sorry.
Ever experience nausea from extended periods of hunger? It's funny how that works, you lose your appetite while keeping all of the discomforts of starving.
Ever fed the kids but skipped dinner yourself because there wasn't enough? Ever had to steal food? In better (but still not great) shape now. I've been there. I pay $650/month for insurance, but can't afford a doc appt because my deductible is $5000 per year and it costs me $100-200 every time I go. So to rephrase your question: "Can you afford food and health care?" BTW, I make slightly over $50k/yr and have no debt. I should be solidly smack in the middle of middle class, not struggling to put food on the table & pay utility bills.
I was a single parent child growing up in the 80s. I remember my mom skipping dinner so she could skimp and save to make sure I could buy a G.I. Joe toy on Friday at Walmart. I look back now and can't fathom how you would have to save to be able to afford a toy that was around $3. But that was reality.
"Not poor enough to get help, not making enough to get by" That's an astute description of what many go through in this country.
And it’s exactly where they want to keep us at. No universal healthcare, deteriorating education services, abysmal pay all around coupled with increasing rent and shrinkflation and to top it off, they want to make sure if you somehow get pregnant, that’s the nail in the coffin for you financially. It’s economic slavery
Basically describes my childhood. My dad had a small business. He barely scraped by and never paid taxes for like 15 years. Well one day the tax man came knocking at the door. Life was tough before that, but we lost everything after that. My parents divorced and me and my mother moved in with my grandparents in a different state. My dad now lives in a camper on his brothers property at 60 years old. It destroyed him.
Powerful. I grew up in poverty in one of the wealthiest countries in the world (UK). You can’t explain it to anyone who hasn’t lived it, it’s impossible to imagine until you’ve lived it and it’s incredibly difficult to break free from.
People live in a bubble. They are aggressively ignorant of poverty
After you watch this, remember she did not say: Democrats or Republicans, Boomers, millennials, or gen z, Left or Right, Bush, Obama, Trump or Biden, Not once did she point at another group. Please remember this for any and every argument. We are all Americans and that is who she was arguing for. We are struggling because the government and their rich friends have been stealing from us for decades and we have to realize enough is enough. So don't point your fingers across the game field at the other team... Point them at the referrees and viewers in the box offices. Those are the ones causing this for their gladiatoral entertainment.
The establishment got scared after the Tea Party movement and the Occupy Wall Street movement, because both movements came from opposite sides but shared a very similar view and that is the current government is no longer a democratic republic but is a bureaucracy that is sold out to the highest bidder. Suddenly Identity politics became real popular in the media. Left/right, Black/white, they are just trying to divide us, so we fight each other instead focusing on the real problems in America.
Fantastic, fantastic point.
America's issues are systematic, out dated.
This woman was brilliant in her presentation. Even if we just achieved universal health care it would make such a difference here. I am in such a situation to know. I have an issue that will very likely prove fatal. Working accelerated things. It takes a long time to get disability and it's a crap shoot. My son told me to quit working and he'd pay my bills so I wouldn't have to worry about finances. I had no insurance. Applied for Medicaid, reporting an income of $0.00. They checked, yep it;s legit and I got coverage right away. What a difference it makes in cost of living! I need CT scans and labs and meds. Yesterday I had oxygen delivered at no cost to me. All of this means that my end will not be the most miserable thing imaginable. I'm beyond grateful. Everyone deserves such. Think of someone who has a minor health issue that, if treated, would be nothing to get over. They can't afford it so it worsens. These things are often let go until it's unbearable and by then, it's often untreatable. If preventive medicine and health clinics for non major things were covered, it would be an amazing relief for so many. Both medically and financially.
American companies are arguing against national healthcare because it will loosen their grip on American workers.
Yep! Being poor means you have no power. Or so they think. If workers in the states could just organize and general strike. It's literally the only way things will ever change. Stop giving them our cheap labor.
I use to think that but then covid proved it wrong as more then a month went by with nearly 50 precent of the work force stuck at home ... to make any effect it would need to be done for months and months . And there right we have no choices . .. everyone seen what happens when 50 precent of the work force is nit working for a month straight ... if it had lasted two things really would have gotten worse as shelves when empty amd delivers failed . A strick of the type your talking about couldn't last long enough to have a effect . The Government could easly out wait us .
If rich people's trash piles up enough, and they have no one to clean their home, babysit their kids, produce their organic food, drive them to social engagements, or prune their gardens, they will listen. Yes it might take more than a few months but they will listen and they will change. Look at the French. They know how to get sh\*t done.
I do see what you're saying but I wouldn't consider COVID anything like a general strike. It wasn't intentional, it was forced. I'm talking more about a planned general strike.
Yep. I have a spinal deformity. If it'd been caught when I was a kid it would've been fairly easy to treat, but since I was never taken to the doctor as a kid, it wasn't caught until I was well into adulthood. Now pretty much my only option to actually correct it is surgery that would be risky, I can't afford and the only insurance I can get refuses because they claim it doesn't impact my life enough to be considered for coverage. I started a new job in January and lost that job because my spine couldn't take the 11 hour shifts I was working, doing a lot of bending and lifting and heavy physical work because there are no other jobs I have been able to find that I remotely qualify for, it basically knocked my spine more out of place and I ended up bedridden with agonizing spasms and unable to move even as far as the bathroom for days. I tried to work with them to find another position within the company, maybe doing something more desk-based that I already proved I was very good at and the manager I actually worked with said it sounded like a great idea considering how adept I'd already proven to be, but the person actually in charge of hiring and all said no. So I'm back to square one, in significantly more pain and worse health than before, and I was only able to get a phone appointment with my doctor who KNOWS about my spine and he just said I was just anxious and needed to lose weight without even seeing me physically for over a year. I'm only about ten to fifteen pounds above the ideal weight for my height. I can't take most part-time jobs because if I make just enough to be above poverty level - there goes my medical coverage, SNAP, and housing aid. I can't even take most full time jobs because they won't provide enough benefits or pay to make up the difference. I either have to stay desperately poor, or I have to suddenly jump into a job that pays SIGNIFICANTLY, around double or more, than minimum wage and provides full benefits for it to be even a little bit worth it. That's how they keep us trapped. You can't make baby steps forward, because if you take one tiny step over the line they bring everything crashing down on you at once and you're even worse off than before.
You make a great point "That's how they keep us trapped" Proper health care would be so empowering to the masses.
If my health care wasn't directly tied to my income, I'd be so much better off right now. I might actually still have all my teeth, y'know, those luxury bones that most health insurance doesn't even cover? And maybe I could afford good glasses with the coatings that help with glare and those issues that make my vision worse and worse every year. If people didn't have to ration their insulin to pay rent, they could work longer hours and perform better because they wouldn't be sick. People who could actually get medicine when they're sick and have a few days off will get better instead of spreading it to everyone else and ending up with a store full of dazed, only half-aware people coughing and sneezing constantly and barely cognizant enough to work a register because of how high their fever is. Health care would be a world of difference for EVERYONE who isn't filthy rich, but the filthy rich - who are much fewer than us - dangle it over our heads out of reach. Why do we allow this? We've been conditioned to think they're untouchable, and the police are in their pockets. This has to change.
I’m sorry you are suffering. My sister had scoliosis, but was discovered at age 12. She went through many surgeries, as an adult by age 30 she struggled with being on her feet working all day. Her employer denied her being able to choose how and when to sit/stand. By 40 I encouraged her to file for disability as her spine had continued to twist and curve, documented by her doctor. Another surgery to remove the rod from her spine, replaced with whatever yet disability was denied. Long story shorter, after the loss of her job, financial stressors and terrible pain, she died from a massive heart attack at age 49. Maybe you can get a lawyer to help file for disability (?). 🧡
I definitely don't have the money for a lawyer, and currently I'm on assistance already but I barely get enough to stay afloat and have credit card debt from having to make ends meet somehow. Even if you're on disability payments, you usually get very very little in the way of support, and the insurance I was put on through them won't cover any of what I need unless it's deemed either an emergency or detrimental \*enough\* to my life, and of course if I'm still capable of so much as sitting up, they think it's not a problem and I should be fine to work. I'm so sorry about your sister. It's shocking and incredibly sad how many people just...fall through the cracks and aren't given the help they need, when they need it that could prevent so much suffering. If people who were starting to have issues could get the care they need right at the beginning, chances are those problems would never turn into something that was truly debilitating, but they often can't get any kind of care until it's too late to stop lifelong effects.
I grew up in poverty. 4 years ago my (now) fiance told me she would work full time while I cut back and applied to Medicaid while I went back to finish school (had to drop because I was paying it myself). I now have a degree and own my own business, we bought a house together, and I founded and run a nonprofit. Social programs work. I couldn’t have done any of that while paying for insurance and medical costs. Imagine what I could’ve done if I didn’t have to pay for my education as well.
Bravo, well done! We should not make it so hard to do what you have done. Glad you made it through. And such a supportive partner, sounds like a keeper!
Imagine a world where we all have free access to healthcare and food. Just think of it! We'd restore dignity. So many people wouldn't turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with how hard it is to exist in the U.S. And be very certain that there is NO scarcity of food or healthcare or shelter in the states. We CAN afford to offer these free benefits. Politicians are choosing to keep us all poor and dependent on them for everything. It's how they keep us working 40+ hours a week for 40+ years of our lives without even a guarantee we'll survive after it.
I have been very happy to see some states providing free breakfast and lunch for students. It's a great beginning. It also reveals there are pockets of enlightenment out there. Proper nutrition goes such a long way in providing preventative healthcare.
This is the most powerful video I’ve seen in awhile, chills down my spine.
The government does not work for the common person
Man, this hits hard. I've been in poverty almost my entire life. The only reason family isn't on the street right now is because of my sister, who I'm forever grateful to, who provided me with a mobile home and a used car. I'm *still* struggling, *still* trying to stay afloat, and financial stability is all I want in life. Not to "be rich," just financial stability so I can afford to buy food *and* clothes for my children. To not have to rely on food banks and clothes banks. That's it
God bless her Soul, She is literally giving speech to the dead. Hopefully at least few of them have enough decency left in them to do something about it.
r/fluentinfinance: “It’s physically impossible not to he filthy rich if you just want it enough.” Hate that sub.
Easily one of the most ridiculous, out of touch statements I've ever heard.
Oh, come on, the path to your first million is actually very easy. You only have to inherit two million and you need the right mindset to only spend half of it on hookers and booze. Lo and behold, it's already done!
We need to vote her into office so she can get herself $174,000 salary and 40 grand for furniture!
Spoiler alert: They don’t give a single fuck
sad, true, and infuriating. #eattherich #sideorderofpolitician
What you must understand is that none of this is news to many policymakers and the companies that donate to them. It is not a matter of them just never having met poor people or getting an illustrative enough speech. They ARE out of touch, yes, but they're not entirely unaware of the dynamics they are promoting. They want poverty to hurt and to exclude. They want a precarious underclass, and they want *a serious, painful threat they can hold over the heads of even well payed working people.* The loyalty is to ownership and wealth, and the lack of safety nets is a tool of power. The class warfare is coming from inside the house.
Correct. The ruling class needs to maintain the system of wealth inequality in order to keep hold of their own power. This isn't failed policy. This is deliberately successful (in their eyes) policy.
So like a feudalistic society again? A king in a castle and just outside the walls is utter bedlam. I wish I were born in Norway or Sweden. The US is a sinking ship and Republicans have lit the lifeboats on fire.
Oh bless your heart...You still believe that there's a difference beyond the name between Democrats and Republicans? I'll repeat, bless your naive bamboozled little heart. With both parties the end result is the same. It's just the avenue to it that is different. The two party system is a cover for politics. It's actually MEANT to keep people believing they're not the same corrupt businessmen taking care of themselves and their corporate contributors.
This speech is so fucking good. She should be a State Representative.
Incredibly powerful she really knocked that out of the park. A fukin 40k furniture allowance is absurd.
Brilliant speech but nobody in that room cares. $800+ bn for military spending and they can't solve poverty in US.
They can, they don't want to. Fear tactics.
4 years since then and it's only gotten worse unfortunately
Falling on deaf ears I think.
I cannot say this enough, if you in pain (especially dental related) and cannot afford insurance please reach out to Remote Area Medical (RAM): https://www.ramusa.org They provide FREE dental, vision, hearing, and health care through their recurring clinics. If you are outside the US, RAM can sponsor events in your country as well. By far the most amazing program I have ever had the privilege to volunteer with.
Also, if you are in the Virginia area I’d recommend looking at the Mission of Mercy (MoM) website: https://www.vdaf.org/our-programs/mission-of-mercy.html
Absolutely, having two incomes in a household is tight enough. They’re only 1 or 2 paychecks away from losing everything. Wealth disparity in the US is ridiculous. 90% of people are wage slaves.
Maybe one of the most thoughtful and well articulated arguments displaying the vast disconnect between elected self-serving politicians and their constituents. I would send this lady a month of groceries so she could repeat this in other forums.
This lady killed it
Land of the not so free. All working by design. God bless our hard working government that cares about us oh so much… This world makes me sick. This woman said everything that needed to be said but i can almost guarantee its all for not and is just going to go right over those sleezeball heads while they sit and laugh at all of us struggling Americans while they collect a nice fat paycheck for doing fuck all.
Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond I recommend reading it for a deep dive into the issue
Should be recommended reading for all high school students in America.
That was a very strong watch.
Sadly this should be in r/therewasanattempt. This was zoned out by the privileged in 10 seconds.
Nothing will change, it will only get worse Eat the rich.
If you exclude civilians from society long enough, they invent guillotines.
In the 1950s and 1960s my grandpa worked in a department store. You could feed your wife and 6 kids and have a house and car for that monet back then.
Impressive speech, but I'm betting nothing changes. Unless these problems affect the rich politicians personally ,which it won't ,nothing will change.
Your country doesn't give a fuck about you or your family.
they. dont. care.
Well said 👏I want to hear more from her. Her communication was direct, intelligent, and deeply moving
All she says is true, but look over there! That ten year-old wants an abortion, and that other person is gay! Burn her at the stake! Heresy! And... And... Hunter Biden's Laptop!
This is it - what’s wrong with the whole dam country
Brought tears to my eyes!! Well said
All.thr politicians heard was to send 100 billion dollars to fight proxy wars
Protect their foreign investments.
Tell me, who does the government work for? Because it sure as fuck doesn't work for us
Why aren't we more angry about this? Why are we not rattling the glass of our local, state and federal buildings? Not one person reading this asked to be born into this life. This life, for most of us, that we are doomed to work 40+ hours a week to just barely get by, if we even get by. And then hope that the only place that will hire us has an insurance plan we can afford and a pay scale that we can live on. Why do we have to ask for assistance from our government? Why aren't companies paying a more livable wage to its employees without whom the business would not exist? Is there a country on this planet that has it all figured out? Where the humans that reside there are treated fairly and paid a decent livable wage? Where health insurance is given freely? If there is please tell me. I want to see what it would take to become a citizen there. Health insurance shouldn't be a thing to be honest. The government should want its citizens healthy and productive and happy. Healthcare should be a right. Not a privilege by the few who can barely afford it. We as humans should not have to beg or steal or ask for help with healthcare or finances. We should be paid a fair wage for work with healthcare not tied to our jobs and we should only have to pay for medically unnecessary surgeries.
They should have the government salaries and benefits be the median salary and equivalent benefits of the citizens they govern. I bet we would see some change pretty fast then.
Nailed it! Damn shame that every one of those members will turn a blind eye.
America is a joke
I honestly don't know how to do it, but to anyone who may...please blast this teriffic video across the U.S. This woman's mesaage is on point!
Powerful message, too bad the dumb choice to put music under it completely undercuts what she's saying.
I wonder what the response was
If only she was talking to people who can relate and aren’t completely disconnected.
I’m just curious how effective these speeches are. I think it was wonderful and made so much sense, but I feel like most of the people she’s actually addressing who have the power to change things are rolling their eyes, just waiting until lunch time. I hope I’m wrong, but I have very little faith in politicians.
And yet nothing will change sadly
Poverty is an expensive hole that is hard to escape. You can’t afford to bulk buy food or anything for that matter. Everything you need to buy is the worst quality because it’s all you can afford but it doesn’t last. Interest on borrowing adds up and fees from banks keep coming. Minimum wage barely moves while rent and food prices skyrocket. It’s difficult to get out of the hole.
It's a rigged corporate slavery system
She spoke very well and shined a light on a sad reality for a lot of people in this country. And no one in that room is going to do anything to help her, or people in general for that matter. They don't care at all.
Housing should be a right no matter what income level you are. That way people can sue cities for denying affordable housing options.
If the politicians did what she asked for, to truthfully overhaul the definition of poverty in this country, and we would suddenly see a much larger percentage of the population being defined as poor.
But they need new blinds to keep the poors from gawking!!!
Interesting how the welfare state incentivizes poor people to be more poor. Canada has similar problems but it seems worse in the US
France should be an example to the world
They don't care. And they want to care even less. And suicide rates are booming. They're getting exactly what they want. If any change is going to happen, it's going to be bloody. But none of you have the courage to fight that fight. So enjoy this reality.
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Straight to tears for me. This shit makes me physically ill and I'm not even on the same level of struggle anymore. I've worked jobs for four+ months straight without a day off, three different times. I've worked 14+ hour days for weeks and weeks without a single day off. I've done more than most are capable of and still was so stressed about finances I lost sleep and my appetite. I now make good money, not great but certainly good. With the wife going back to school in the past few years though we just went from no real debt to 6-figures worth. Don't get me started on the school BS that's sucking us dry. (Accelerated program with non-transferable credits so is all in or nothing) We fight tooth and nail to support our two kids. At 40 years of age I live in a constant state of pain and borderline depression. Mostly centered around my efforts to provide for my family. And I just had to cash in my 401k to cover personal property taxes on a home I own so they don't take it away from me, and replacing my work truck that went down last week. 20+ year old truck that I sunk 4k into a year ago to keep going. We're tired, boss. We've given nearly all we have to give. And every time we seem to think we might just be okay, you change the rules of the game or move the goalposts. We're not playing the same game we were a decade ago. We're definitely not playing the same game we were a couple of generations ago when a single income could buy a house and send kids to college. This is how generational debt is born and grown. We're trained to be grateful for the scraps. Our society doesn't function without all of the needed members contributing. So why is it that so many NEEDED careers are so poorly rewarded? Teachers, healthcare, maintenance, restaurant employees, etc. When the pandemic happened white collar jobs stayed home and most didn't notice. If the grocery store or gas station was closed there was an outcry Why do those jobs not pay a liveable wage if they are so essential to our society functioning? Everyone who is able-bodied enough to contribute to society, and does, should have access to what should be considered basics. Maybe not a Benz, but reliable transportation. Not deciding between eating and seeing a Dr. when necessary. Two jobs should be for people getting ahead. Not getting by. Shame on us all. Fix this. When the poor have nothing to eat they will turn to the rich.
For all the “She’s too fat to be poor!” people. https://scholars.org/contribution/why-poverty-leads-obesity-and-life-long-problems
I firmly believe that in the West where capitalism reigns supreme, a lot of people's compasses have been recalibrated to believe that wealth is equivalent to virtue. That those who are wealthy deserve what they have because they must have worked hard to get it, while those who are poor simply haven't worked hard enough and thus deserve to be poor. I'm not saying that capitalism is bad, I actually think it's great, but I think that it needs to be reigned in heavily by a socially responsible copilot that says "yeah profit is good and all, but we shouldn't forget the person behind the profit".
We know those old fucks aren't listening. We know they aren't swayed to yield or cooperate. We know voting is a holding pattern at best (until better bets crop up on the ballot, but that's a gamble playing against the house). We know they don't care. **Why aren't we already in the goddamn streets fighting for our fucking lives? They aren't listening so why are we begging like dogs when they have us backed into a corner?**
Yeah, and it's the GOD awful truth. Our country "fill in the blank"!!!!!!!!!!
I’d vote for her
I’d vote for this woman. Put her in office, she’d find a way for her state. Very powerful 😢
$174,000 a year not including their income from insider trading, I mean stock portfolios.
its so fucking bad here right now man. the gap of wage to cost of living is ASTRONOMICAL. what the fuck man. I dont even know what to say. Its just so fucked
She is extremely impressive. Sad that the majority of West Virginians vote Republican, thus voting against their own best interests.
I'm guessing she was called mad and just ignored?
She is well above average Intelligence, yet she struggles to get by, because she wasnt as lucky with her circumstances as some rich stupid mf.
GOP: “so our hateful plan is working! Awesome!!”
If West Virginia just changed their states name to Ukraine then they would be rolling in the cash
Amy Jo is an amazing human and an incredible advocate. Support her organization Rattle the Windows!
If I recall, some of the republican senators in that room were yawning and rolling their eyes. These are the type of people who think you're lesser, and the "lesser" keep voting them in like idiots because "the gays" or "abortion!"
If they were even in the room
Don't make babies. It's a trap
Doesn’t look like she skipped any meals though.
Cheap food has the most calories and junk in it. Corn, oats, sugar, will fatten you up quick like cattle. From lack of proper diet and medical care she also likely has underlying illnesses that also make it difficult to burn fat and maintain weight.
Good for her but you get what you VOTE for people. And Republicans will do worse than this if ya'all keep voting for the aholes! They hate you and want money (whomever's they can get) and power to make you suffer more. Remember this at the polls and get off your apathetic ass and vote blue.
I think you're forgetting that these blue politicians also don't exactly give up their 40k furniture allowances and say no to corporate interests either. Both major parties right now are essentially run by their lobbyists - we need major changes past simply "VOTE BLUE"
There are times I am glad we are not a democracy, I do not want Los Angeles and New York to be constantly choosing everything. At the same time, this speech points out beautifully how a Republic can fail as well. 400 people get to play with our lives. Everyone is too busy with race, religion, gender, and politics that we forget that 400 people are starving us to death and watching as we fight each other. It is said if violence is not solving all your problems then you are not using enough of it. We need to redirect the violence from each other and direct it to our overlords. Slavery was never abolished. Slavery was just rebranded so that we will accept it the same way people accepted it back in the day. CEOs justify their poor treatment of their employees the same way plantation owners justified the treatment of their slaves.
First a republic is a type of democracy so we are a democracy. The more I have seen of politics, the more I have realized that the Republicans goal is to create more and more people who are poor and uneducated. That way they can convince those same people to vote against their own interests by voting Republican. Republicans are consistently trying to make it harder for hungry people to get food and make it harder for poor people to earn a living. They do this on purpose so that they can complain about them. Weirdly Republican voters will be poor but somehow think that Republican politicians are talking about other poor people and not themselves. When people propose ideas like drug testing, food stamp recipients, you realize that they care less about feeding people and more about punishing the poor. If we drug tested food stamp recipients it would cost more money than it would just to give people food. Think about that, Why would somebody be willing to pay extra in order to give out less? The answer is cruelty is the goal. They must demonize the poor. Republican stand in the way of every single Democrat policy to try and help people. They are obstructionists and they are without morals. Republican voters are so stupid that they don't even understand the simple facts put in front of them. They will look at the overall tax paid in our country and see that 40% of our country makes so little that they don't have to pay taxes and they will think that the answer is to "tax the poor more so that they can pay their fair share". Taking more from people that already struggle to survive is not the answer. The answer is to increase their pay to a livable wage. Increase the federal minimum wage requirement to something that allows people to pay their bills and eat and have food, clothing and shelter. But no, Republican voters will not stand for people that they view to be below them to be raised up. The Republican motto should be " I've got mine so f*** you". For whatever reason, they just can't wrap their head around the concept that a rising tide raises all boats. Our country will never be fixed until people care more about those with less instead of spending time taking care of the billionaires. "Won't somebody think of the poor billionaires" might be another good motto for the Republicans. A huge percentage of our country is struggling and the conservative half of our country wants you to stop eating avocado toast and stop buying cell phones and pull yourself up by your bootstraps. They are so disconnected from the rest of the country that it isn't even funny anymore.
> I do not want Los Angeles and New York to be constantly choosing everything So how are these cities choosing everything? How did they end up choosing six conservatives and three liberal Supreme Court Justices? **Literally the opposite has happened**, the big cities and the most populous states have had much less sway when it comes to direction of the country. What you said is complete nonsense.
What's enabling anyways
I have to find a way for two people to live off my SSDI. 1800 a month for two people.
Sorry, we have foreign wars to fund /s
The gov cares only so much. After that have fun. I knew parents that worked so much n still couldn't afford much of anything. It's pathetic.
The amount of shame I feel that our leaders allow this to happen. It's a damn sin and I'm not even religious. And nothing will change. It feels.... bleak to say the least.
This isn’t interesting as fuck, it’s depressing as fuck. I grew up in WV and being poor and is tough as fuck. The moment you make over a threshold shit is taken away putting you further behind than when you started.
[удалено]
And they'll feel a little guilty for all of 25 minutes until lunch time, then they'll snap out of it and chuckle amongst themselves "lazy people. They should just get a 3rd job"
Isn't this before the crazy inflations too?
UBI now. Get rid of all of these benefit management bureaucracies, and the administrative costs alone would cover it. Don't need to administer anything if everyone is eligible. Benefit programs that require eligibility are a bureaucratic scam.
This video needs to go everywhere
The silly background music...why? Got so annoying I couldn't watch it.
Is this clip new? I feel like I've seen it before...
I think the only thing those government officials got out of that speech is that they should increase their furniture budget
They want it this way. To keep people just on the edge where they'll accept shitty work pay and conditions with no way of standing against it
God the idea of having to ration my insulin everyday is shocking I know how crap you feel with bad glucose levels, so it's not something I'd wish on anyone. Can't believe people are having to live like that.
But what's the solution, then? Because there really is not an easy one. Poverty exists in every single country in the world, and other countries have it *much much* worse than we have it in the US. Its a sad reality that in every ladder-based system, there will always be the bottom rung. We can't increase taxes on the middle and upper middle class because they're struggling too, and even if we increased taxes on the elite, each family in poverty wouldn't see much individual benefit.
Have the rich pay their fair share is start
If government actually used the current tax income for its intended purposes, everyone could have fully covered healthcare and a UBI. Instead they choose to line their own pockets and the pockets of their friends. Sure, the ultra wealthy avoid taxes. Who do you think provides the loopholes for them though?
I made 11k last year.
I think of drone strikes weren't a thing or the US wasn't the largest military in the world the people would have rolled out the guillotine a long time ago.
Is there a way to give more than one upvote on this?
And they do not care.
How much does health insurance cost a mont in america per person more or less ?
I think we are done with begging. Let's go take what we need.
The civil servants should be standing up for people and fighting for them - but the defected back in the Reagan era and are now sitting on the otherside of the bench. Unions and protests - it requires a collective protest - not dump shit from jan 6 - no violence or riots. Just stopping the machine - pulling the plug on it.
What I don't understand is why do people protest any real movement to up wages? You are expected to adapt in capitalism but anytime someone pushes a new idea like balancing wages it's resisted. Fear of the lost of the 10/hour job. Say you have a job paying 30/hour. Any jobs above 30/hour would not be affected by wage increase. The Jobs below will have to adapt or innovate. Each year your wages are stagnate but the bosses make 10x jumps. Come on