mickeyfan2
DIS Legend
- Joined
- May 21, 2004
- Messages
- 16,084
totalia said:Free lunchs? Where did that come from? I never ever had a free lunch in school. Where do you think thats coming from?
In the USA we have free lunch programs at our schools. Maybe they don't have this in Canada.
I was doing a US citizen (as the ones in NOLA are). I cannot compare that with Canada.
totalia said:My sister gets $200 a month for her son from child tax credit. At $1400 a month, that puts her wage at $1600. BEFORE deductions. Now, let's do the math....
For Canada I am not disputing your numbers. BTW doesn't Canada have child support payments from the biological dad?
totalia said:I really don't think you know what your talking about. I don't think you've had to struggle to make ends meet. It can be done yes, but doing it for years and years on end? Lets see YOU live that way.
Yes I do and I am not a single mother who lives in Canada.
totalia said:Your sister may have gotten money in her divorce settlement but my sister gets NOTHING from her ex because he's a druggie thats been in and out of rehab at least three times, and is forced by the gvt to have weekly drug tests to protect her child. My brother in law is a slimeball that hasn't been able to keep a job at any place more than three weeks in his life.
Why so hostile. I have nothing to do with your sister's situation.
First of all it was not my sister but a close girlfriend. Second her ex was an abusive alcoholic with no net worth. She got the job and with the help of our state got the house. The deal with the state is that they own part a % of the home. That % goes down over a 10 year period. After 10 years it is 0%. All the state does is secure you the loan, you make all of the payments.
totalia said:Your sister doesn't have it so bad. Your sister doesn't know what poverty is. I don't mean that to be offensive but when you have to crawl through the window in your sisters car to get to the drivers seat because if you open the door you can't close it because she can't afford to have it fixed...
So she has a car. I am not disputing how poor your sister is. This is not a competition that I would want to win. My sister, who lives on less than your sister (and she has never been married) has it as hard as your sister. So don't tell me. It maybe easier for her, since her big sister helps when it gets really bad. But what are big sisters for?
totalia said:When YOU have to do that, THEN you can talk to me about poverty.
So stop talking albout poverty.
totalia said:Oh and my sisters tax refund for last year was $150. Our tax refund is based on how much we make during the year. Not on what you need.
My friends tax refund is based on tax credits her in the US. Again we cannot compare this with Canada.
totalia said:Gods, I wish I received $23000 a year. I and many others can only dream.
Last year, I made $1300 a month. With deductions, that came to about $14000 a year. Thats $10 000 below poverty level in my country. After all of my bills, I barely had enough to live on with about $100 a month left over for something fun.
This year I will make about $1700 a month. That's about $20 000 a year. Thats the first time I've ever even seen that much money. When I got the job, I almost cried. I spent alot of money to get here and alot in student loans.
If I can barely make it on $14 000 a year, what makes you think that a sigle mother with a child can make it for years on that kind of wage?.
I wish you and your sister all of the best. As I said this is comparing two different countries and that will never be a valid comparison.
totalia said:Yes, its possible. But if you have lived this kind of life in abject poverty... if you have, if your parents have, if your grandparents have...
How easy do you think it is to get out?
Yes my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents all lived in abject poverty. I did get out of it and am working to bring my sister out of it too. Not easy but and some of my cousins are living proof.
totalia said:I've gone a week without ANYTHING in my stomach. I know what starving is.
In my town we have a rescue mission that serves two meals a day and provides housing to anybody who needs it. I donate to them. If you lived in my country you could have eaten there and not gone without food for a week. Maybe we have more umbrellas here than in Canada. I always thought that Canada had more programs for the poor than us. Was I wrong?