Originally Posted by Cynthetiq

in 2 foreign countries India and Philippines where poverty is TRUE destitution, they saw the images of the "poor" people here in America. When people found out I was from America asked,"How come your poor people are FAT???????????"

When I looked around at the squalor and the shanty towns that people setup with real beggars that are SKIN AND BONES, some with medical conditions like scurvy, infections, etc, I think I can safely say, Poor people here in America make POOR decisions on how they live. Not ALL do, but MOST. I know this because my wife grew up quite poor getting things out of the mission boxes, food from community pantries, etc. She made decisions that HELPED her get out of poverty. Did her mother make thos same choices? No she still makes BAD DECISIONS about money. Massachusetts has quite poor people, either you are well off or you are poor, it's been that way there for many generations.