This is why so many people can&#x27;t work their way out of it. $300 sneakers to look cool in the ghetto or a community college class? A $600 iphone or a laptop for your kids? A new tat or new clothes for your kids?  When I lived in a &#x27;up and coming&#x27; urban neighborhood, my unemployed&#x2F;welfare neighbors had nicer shoes and phones than I did. But they partied until 2 or 3 while I had to go to bed early for work.<p>Part of the problem of being poor is lack of self-control and lack of planning and how that all culminates into a endless party&#x2F;bling lifestyle. This is why education is seen as the solution to being poor, not necessarily a lifetime of handouts. Income distribution hits the laws of diminishing returns pretty fast. Some people, unfortunately, can&#x27;t accept this for political reasons, hence all my drive-by downvotes.