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Originally Posted by AlmoundJoy18
The poverty level is relative to what state you live in (in the United States) and/or what country you live in. By state, poor people are based on what they have in relation to what other people have in that same state. Poor people in NYC may have all of those possesions, but compared to other people in NYC, they are poor. Each state's poverty level is different, meaning that the poor people in NYC may be the equivalent of the middle class or well-to-do people in Louisiana. Therefore the rates of poverty between different states cannot be compared to one another because the results can only be misleading and inaccurate.
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Which is why the people (classified as poverty-stricken) in New Orleans appear to be whiners when our media provide us with stories on people in India, Mexico, the Philippines, etc. who live in cardboard boxes and have insufficient food.
By your concept, someone who lives in the Hamptons (like a butler) who can't afford cable TV is poverty-stricken. I wouldn't concede more than "not wealthy."
A universal standard of poverty, such as sufficient shelter, clothing, and nutrition, would be a much more logical yardstick. Anything else is misleading and inaccurate.