12-16-2015, 08:09 PM
(This post was last modified: 12-16-2015, 09:00 PM by BoFox.
Edit Reason: sic
)
No way to avoid taxes. That's the way of life. ;-P
As to the hobo wet dream - yeah, subsidize the factory workers as well (like with the farmers being subsidized), rather than handing out food stamps for free to a perfectly capable 25-year old who screwed up with drugs instead of graduating from high school and isn't even trying to make up with some kind of vocational rehabilitation. Subsidize all would-be laid-off middle aged workers, greatly discouraging companies from doing any further lay-offs here in America (close to the point of actually preventing further migration of jobs to overseas sources).
Nicely pointed out - agreed. Hats off to that.
A family of 3 kids (as that was what I was talking about as you quoted from me in that post, unless you started thinking of a family of just 3)? I dare you to live on that budget for just one month. It's certainly do-able, but not easy, and not that healthy. Gwyneth Paltrow thought that she could manage to survive on food stamps for a week, and carefully worked out a budget. Yet, she miserably failed just 4 days in:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morn...r-days-in/
She just doesn't know how to eat UN-healthy like those who have to live off crackers and peanut butter. And this isn't how I would want to feed my kids unless we could barely afford living in a trailer (double-wide would be necessary with 3+ kids), for $600/mo in the redneck part of the woods.
Again, I assume you meant with 3 kids. I could definitely live well like you did in the year 2000, with that Playstation 2 that you bought for $300 (while I get to buy it for $10 from a thrift store today). We just have to wait 5-15 years to get our hands on anything that came out (like with that new Star Wars movie at the theater, or that minivan with 250K miles for $1000 instead of $40000 brand new and hope it runs fine for 2 years without breaking down). Financial comfortability just isn't there with that income, with a haircut costing $20 (or $15 at the cheapest for that crap haircut) - unless you do absolutely everything at home including washing cloth diapers, pulling out that abscessed tooth using pliers, etc.
Pretty much everybody in a 2nd world country like Mexico (let alone a 3rd world country) would feel rich with a $70K income, even with 10 kids, but that's because a fine burger (with 1/2 pound beef) cost $1 at their local restaurants rather than $10+ at restaurants around here, and a haircut cost 50 cents rather than $20. Much of the same stuff here just cost an arm and a leg, even at Walmart or Target where the cheapest bottle of shampoo cost $5 (for a large bottle of crap shampoo, that is). In Mexico, a bundle of 4 bottles of pretty much the same thing would go for $1.
Car insurance is another thing entirely. Rates are actually higher for poorer people. And in big cities, rates actually double or quadruple. Want a car in Brooklyn, but got rear-ended a few years ago which wasn't even your fault? The price is $350-400/mo just for minimum required coverage no matter the car.
What sucks about this in America is that it's NOT easy for the kids' future if they do not get support from elsewhere like college pell grant and scholarships, without forcing kids to take out a massive student loan against themselves if they want a serious college degree.
Just don't make the same assumption Gwyneth Paltrow did. Take the challenge yourself for 1 month or even 1 week - and see how easy (or hard) it actually is (if your have 6 kids still in your household, just multiply $70K income by 8/5). I have many family relatives who seriously struggle - one of my cousins with an $80K income is still struggling in Texas, but finally able to START paying off the loans at last.
Sickbeast, you still don't think it's easy with your income, even though you have a nice pension - having to rent out the basement and all? Of course you're middle class, as you're able to take your family on a cruise to the Caribbean, but do you think a $70K salary alone is EASY for a family with 3 kids in the US/Canada? I think it's a considerate financial challenge just to manage a comfortable level of living - else, the wife/mother would feel forced to take on a full-time job as well - even if it means daycare... DAYCARE, baby, DAYCARE FOR THE POOR KIDS!!
P.S. - By "poor", I meant "lower class" - just a matter of semantics.
As to the hobo wet dream - yeah, subsidize the factory workers as well (like with the farmers being subsidized), rather than handing out food stamps for free to a perfectly capable 25-year old who screwed up with drugs instead of graduating from high school and isn't even trying to make up with some kind of vocational rehabilitation. Subsidize all would-be laid-off middle aged workers, greatly discouraging companies from doing any further lay-offs here in America (close to the point of actually preventing further migration of jobs to overseas sources).
Quote:Forgot to hit the second point- wealth and how good you are at being a parent are very often polar opposites. Don't ever confuse how much you spoil your children with how good of a parent you are- I say that in *NO WAY* to be demeaning, I have caught myself feeling bad because I couldn't buy my kids certain things when they were younger that they wanted, all of my children now say I should have worked less and they would have had less so I could have spent more time with them when they were younger. Seriously, that new toy probably isn't worth the time it will take away from your children. Again, not bashing you on this point in any way- I have made that mistake myself.
Nicely pointed out - agreed. Hats off to that.
Quote:Using responsible numbers for food, $650 a month for a family of 3 is more than reasonable-
A family of 3 kids (as that was what I was talking about as you quoted from me in that post, unless you started thinking of a family of just 3)? I dare you to live on that budget for just one month. It's certainly do-able, but not easy, and not that healthy. Gwyneth Paltrow thought that she could manage to survive on food stamps for a week, and carefully worked out a budget. Yet, she miserably failed just 4 days in:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morn...r-days-in/
She just doesn't know how to eat UN-healthy like those who have to live off crackers and peanut butter. And this isn't how I would want to feed my kids unless we could barely afford living in a trailer (double-wide would be necessary with 3+ kids), for $600/mo in the redneck part of the woods.
Quote:If you can't live well with a family of 3 at $70K a year, you suck with money.
Again, I assume you meant with 3 kids. I could definitely live well like you did in the year 2000, with that Playstation 2 that you bought for $300 (while I get to buy it for $10 from a thrift store today). We just have to wait 5-15 years to get our hands on anything that came out (like with that new Star Wars movie at the theater, or that minivan with 250K miles for $1000 instead of $40000 brand new and hope it runs fine for 2 years without breaking down). Financial comfortability just isn't there with that income, with a haircut costing $20 (or $15 at the cheapest for that crap haircut) - unless you do absolutely everything at home including washing cloth diapers, pulling out that abscessed tooth using pliers, etc.
Pretty much everybody in a 2nd world country like Mexico (let alone a 3rd world country) would feel rich with a $70K income, even with 10 kids, but that's because a fine burger (with 1/2 pound beef) cost $1 at their local restaurants rather than $10+ at restaurants around here, and a haircut cost 50 cents rather than $20. Much of the same stuff here just cost an arm and a leg, even at Walmart or Target where the cheapest bottle of shampoo cost $5 (for a large bottle of crap shampoo, that is). In Mexico, a bundle of 4 bottles of pretty much the same thing would go for $1.
Car insurance is another thing entirely. Rates are actually higher for poorer people. And in big cities, rates actually double or quadruple. Want a car in Brooklyn, but got rear-ended a few years ago which wasn't even your fault? The price is $350-400/mo just for minimum required coverage no matter the car.
What sucks about this in America is that it's NOT easy for the kids' future if they do not get support from elsewhere like college pell grant and scholarships, without forcing kids to take out a massive student loan against themselves if they want a serious college degree.
Just don't make the same assumption Gwyneth Paltrow did. Take the challenge yourself for 1 month or even 1 week - and see how easy (or hard) it actually is (if your have 6 kids still in your household, just multiply $70K income by 8/5). I have many family relatives who seriously struggle - one of my cousins with an $80K income is still struggling in Texas, but finally able to START paying off the loans at last.
Sickbeast, you still don't think it's easy with your income, even though you have a nice pension - having to rent out the basement and all? Of course you're middle class, as you're able to take your family on a cruise to the Caribbean, but do you think a $70K salary alone is EASY for a family with 3 kids in the US/Canada? I think it's a considerate financial challenge just to manage a comfortable level of living - else, the wife/mother would feel forced to take on a full-time job as well - even if it means daycare... DAYCARE, baby, DAYCARE FOR THE POOR KIDS!!
P.S. - By "poor", I meant "lower class" - just a matter of semantics.