Quote: Originally Posted by nasum Helps to not be a gangbanger or various other type of hoodlum. 1 in 80 million is president of the ing country...

So your argument is that 1 in 4 black men are criminals and that anyone of them could be President if they "acted right/white?" Riddle me this: why is it that black people are stopped 7 times the frequency of white people, yet when stopped, white people are 4 times as likely to have drug paraphernalia? Btw, doing or posessing drugs does not make you a gangbanger or hoodlum. Your statement says a lot about your racist views and ignorance.

Quote: Think of how stupid the average person is, and then remember that half of them are worse than that - George Carlin (also, stupidity isn't really a policy issue unles syou're talking about public education, but public education does teach evolution and the dumbies are just brainwashed by their church)

So why are people able to be brainwashed despite being taught proper science? Why are most people dummies? Aren't environmental variables important? Wages, nutrition, quality of schools?

Quote: The poverty line thing is a bit sketchy as it relates to an income for a family with x amount of children. If you're in a family of four with only one income of $15,080 ($7.25 x 2,080) then you qualify for aid in numerous ways and won't be left on the street to die.

And if you're a single person, you're screwed. Don't forget to factor in federal taxes, FICA, insurance, and other good stuff that would probably reduce $15k to $11k net.

As far as being left in the street to die? Of course not. But that doesn't mean that they'll live in a nice apt, have nice parks, a good library, good schools, and a myriad of other social services that will allieve their lot in any meaningful way for upward socio-economic mobility.