Can you live on $9 an hour? Play this game.

[neatokimmo]

$9 an hour is almost $19K a year. Real world I could do it no problems because I do. After I max out the 401K that is about what I have left.

 

[mom2alix]

If you want to see interesting go to the following article... it shows that a person making minimum wage only 1 month per week can live as well as someone making $60,000/year.

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/en...um-wage-has-more-disposable-income-family-mak

All through the magic of entitlements (welfare)... frankly it is hard to imagine any incentive for people on welfare to actually look for a real job when they make more without a job than they do with one.

This article is really skewed. The tax figure for the family of 4 making $60,000 is grossly inflated. In 2010, such a family would have paid $4,590 in payroll taxes (Medicare and SS) and with the given facts their Federal Tax liability would have been about $266, although later in the article he says that there is one provider making $60,000 which would disqualify them for the $1200 childcare credit, however then they also would not need the $9600 in childcare so their disposable income would presumably be $43,966. I didn't look at MS income tax, but wouldn't trust those numbers based on his misrepresentation of Federal and Payroll. Either way, his figures are way off and his hypothesis doesn't hold water.

Also Economic benefit does not equal disposable income.

Basically both sides seem to be filled with folks who have crazy scenarios and are bad at math.

ETA - On another note - did anyone pass the typing test? I'm feeling like a real loser because apparently I'm way worse at typing than I thought! LOL

 

[fromscratchmom]

actually it is no game. It is very up front about the fact that is a plea for money and makes no attempt to hide its messages. It states them straight out and in no uncertain terms after every question and every curveball, "you lose, something unfair happened and you can do nothing intelligent about it" statement it makes.

obviously, every individual person in life has a different experience than every other individual. but the intentional message that the majority are oppressed and unable to make smart decisions is dishonest and insulting to the real people with real needs as well as to the intended audience of its intended messages.

and here is another from my personal experience. I try do "good works" in my life. I help those in need where ever opportunities present themselves from 100s of man-hours of my own personal labor helping an elderly hoarder who had had several strokes get moved out from under her stacks of dangerous mess; to giving charitable money; to facilitating the financial giving of others who have less time but are looking for the opportunities to share their wealth and of all the people I've known in all these ventures who really care and help others none of them engaged in these types of campaigns designed to distort the very real needs that some people do have for bad ends.

 

[ThisIsTheYear]

I lasted only until day 27 because I opted to pay $400 to save my pet. In real life, I paid $3k to save my cat and he ended up passing away a few days later on Christmas. It took me a year to pay the bill off, but I would do it again in a heartbeat.

 

[Sagginit]

anyone pass the typing test? in real life i type all day and i know i type faster than that yet it kept failing me.

i hate to debate the politics behind it but it felt really depressing....like some people are screwed in life no matter what decision they make so please donate. i give to charity but a simple please help always does more for me than gloom and doom. personally after all those animal commercials i find the sound of sarah mclachlan sad.

 

[Colleen27]

If you want to see interesting go to the following article... it shows that a person making minimum wage only 1 month per week can live as well as someone making $60,000/year.

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/en...um-wage-has-more-disposable-income-family-mak

All through the magic of entitlements (welfare)... frankly it is hard to imagine any incentive for people on welfare to actually look for a real job when they make more without a job than they do with one.

That's as much bull as the original link ($3 for a package of spaghetti, really?), just with a different bias. $1800/year benefit for school lunches? That's 4 kids getting both breakfast and lunch every day. Housing assistance? That's a 2+ year waitlist to live in a slum; most families who apply never receive a dime. $1200+ in utility assistance? Not going to happen - not only are there caps on how much a family can receive in a year, there are also requirements for paying on one's own between requests.

Hyperbole on either side of the equation doesn't help anything.

 

[mrudman]

anyone pass the typing test? in real life i type all day and i know i type faster than that yet it kept failing me.

I passed it first time.. not sure why it would keep failing you



Ended up with like $600 at the end of the month, but didn't do a lot of what needed to be done (dentist, fix pet, allow kid to go to b-day party, etc).

I agree though, the grocery prices seemed high.. $3 for box of spaghetti? $4 for PB? $4 cereal?

 

[nunzia]

I agree. In the last two years I've read two books about middle-class, college-educated people going out to live a "minimum wage" lifestyle . . . and they had very different experiences:

The author of Nickle and Dimed started out with the idea that it would be impossible. She tried to live like a middle-class person suddenly thrown in to the lower class. She rented hotel rooms, maintained a car, ate fast food meals. She was doing all the things she knew from her middle class life, but she was doing them at the lowest possible cost. She ignored things that minimum-wage people do to make ends meet: Sharing housing, using social programs, working two jobs. She couldn't make ends meet and left the reader with a message that "it's hopeless".

On the other hand, the author of Scratch Beginnings had a different philosophy: He decided he'd do anything possible to get himself on his feet. He started in a homeless shelter, worked a regular job and took extra work on Sundays, went to a revival just to get a meal, bought cheap food at places like Family Dollar and treated himself to fast food once a week, and generally took advantage of every opportunity that came his way. In spite of the fact that he was badly injured at work, in less than a year, he had a place to live, a vehicle, and money in the bank.

I've also read both of these and together they are a great set on how attitude and common sense can push you forward or keep you back.

 

[punkin]

okay, so I went back and did the whole thing and there was actually a roommate option - but then he turned out to be noisy.

The grocery items were unworkable. No canned or frozen vegetable or ground meat?

It's funny that they bring up the Nickel and Dimed author but totally neglect to mention the book that refuted those claims by the guy who started homeless with $20 in his pocket and by the end of the experiment was living in an apartment with a good job and electronics.

No beans for cheap protein either.

 

[tlbwriter]

anyone pass the typing test? in real life i type all day and i know i type faster than that yet it kept failing me.

I passed it. And much to my surprise, I passed the math question and was able to tutor my own child.

I looked at this from a different direction that many here did, and probably from a different direction that was intended. I want to put teenagers in front of it and say "See? Here is what could happen if you don't get some decent job training."

 

[nunzia]

That's as much bull as the original link ($3 for a package of spaghetti, really?), just with a different bias. $1800/year benefit for school lunches? That's 4 kids getting both breakfast and lunch every day. Housing assistance? That's a 2+ year waitlist to live in a slum; most families who apply never receive a dime. $1200+ in utility assistance? Not going to happen - not only are there caps on how much a family can receive in a year, there are also requirements for paying on one's own between requests.

Hyperbole on either side of the equation doesn't help anything.

I thought that one was skewed as well..all these things are, but the point can still be valid. In our town last school year ALL students got free breakfast and lunch..no income requirements..there are many many who totally play the system and like mooching more than working. I work at a church that does alot of aid...I'd say 70 percent of all phone calls we get are those making the rounds month after month to all the local churches and other helping agencies playing the game..food vouchers, food pantrys, utility assistance, rent assistance and they get so mad we don't have gasoline vouchers...many come in and after filling out their form have NO income for the household..they are 'waiting for disability to start' or food stamps 'ran out' (or were sold) and there is always drama about being kicked out for no reason or losing their workman's comp because their car broke down and they couldn't make an appointment..etc. etc. People always say, "well, I feel sorry for them because I wouldn't want to live like that..but many of them DO, and I don't want to subsidize it..a helping hand is one thing, enabling a way of life user is another. The kicker is many many times after all the sob stories and the folks get an appointment to come get aid..they don't even show up...there ARE jobs here..lower paying for the most part, but the jobs go unfilled and the folks keep making their rounds..they even froget what church they called and how many times we've helped them. We aren't doing anyone favors 'helping' this way..meanwhile, many of those who truly need help just struggle through without their hand out.

 

[MinnieForMe]

I don't have to play the game! We could NOT live on $9.00 an hour as it wouldn't even pay our mortgage with taxes. However, we do have a 5 year mortgage so if I had a 30 year mortgage perhaps I could scrap by but it would be miserable! We are truly blessed, made good decisions when we were starting out and are now very, truly grateful for what we have!

 

[williamson_ja]

I've lived through similar situations, so it wasn't that hard to me. I had almost $400 at the end of the month. People who are on tight budgets just have to actually live like they are on a tight budget. We all make hard decisions. If you do it right, you can move up and do all right

 

[dvcgirl]

No way we could live on $9 an hour....with just that one paycheck. And we have no debt at all...own our home and cars.

We'd be down to 300 or so after paying property taxes, home insurance and the barest of bare bones catastrophic health care. No dental.

Our utilities (with no cable or internet)....would eat up just about all of the rest.

Still haven't put gas in the car or picked up a "pay as you go" cell phone.....that we'd have to share. Oh, and then we'd have to *eat*!

If two of us had $9 an hour jobs...we'd make it. Wouldn't be able to much of anything. We'd never go anywhere. We'd have to get rid of our dog, because we couldn't afford him anymore. And chicken thighs (on sale) would be a treat that we'd mix in with the beans and rice we'd be eating every day.

I get that some of the choices are a bit over the top, but I'm glad for me it was just a game, and not my life.

 

[tlbwriter]

In our town last school year ALL students got free breakfast and lunch..no income requirements..there are many many who totally play the system and like mooching more than working.

I'm not sure what you're saying here... my daughter's school offers free breakfast for all students and they're trying to get free lunches for everyone. Are parents who accept that "mooching?" My daughter doesn't eat the free breakfast at school, but I don't think she could pay for it even if she wanted to.

 

[Marionnette]

I'm not sure what you're saying here... my daughter's school offers free breakfast for all students and they're trying to get free lunches for everyone. Are parents who accept that "mooching?" My daughter doesn't eat the free breakfast at school, but I don't think she could pay for it even if she wanted to.

I might not go so far as to call it mooching, but there is somethig morally wrong with accepting assistance meant for those who are struggling when you are capable of paying.

 

[tlbwriter]

I might not go so far as to call it mooching, but there is somethig morally wrong with accepting assistance meant for those who are struggling when you are capable of paying.

But what are you supposed to do when the school says lunch is free and doesn't give you the option to pay?

 

[Marionnette]

But what are you supposed to do when the school says lunch is free and doesn't give you the option to pay?

How about packing your own? Lots of people do it. It's not that hard.

 

[tlbwriter]

How about packing your own? Lots of people do it. It's not that hard.

No, it's not hard, but it's time-consuming, it's inconvenient due to my child's class schedule and locker location, and it's one more thing to carry when she's already carrying books and a musical instrument. Not to mention that sometimes she simply wants the lunch being offered. Why should we go to extra trouble just so we don't eat the free meal that's being offered to everyone, or else be considered moochers?

 

[Marionnette]

No, it's not hard, but it's time-consuming, it's inconvenient due to my child's class schedule and locker location, and it's one more thing to carry when she's already carrying books and a musical instrument. Not to mention that sometimes she simply wants the lunch being offered. Why should we go to extra trouble just so we don't eat the free meal that's being offered to everyone, or else be considered moochers?

You do it because it is the morally correct thing to do. Sometimes doing the right thing is not the easiest thing. It's so much easier to take advantage of a program that was not intended for use by someone who can afford to feed their child.

And I already said that I would not go so far as to use the term "moochers".