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Comment by kkjjkgjjgg | Hacker News Reader

Silly question, but what typically causes prolonged poverty?

Apart from illnesses (including mental illnesses and addiction), isn't it mostly a matter of finding a reasonably paid job eventually?

I have known times when I had little money, but it was in part also because I did not want a job and tried other things. But at least when I was younger, I think falling back onto a job would have been an option. Wouldn't it for most people? I mean even if you have to look for two years, wouldn't most "normal" people be able to get a job eventually?

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Some job types just die out and the workers can‘t catch on because they did very specific work that isn‘t required anymore and they don‘t have much experience in other tasks. Yes, there are ways to relearn another trade or a similar one but it gets harder the older you get. Often the case with parents who have taken a longer break from working because they‘re taking care of their children or even people taking care of an ill family member.

OK, but in the timeframe of two years for finding another job?

Where does one live in those two years while they are looking for this job? With no income they may end up in a shelter or their car, sleeping half on and off, mentally and physically exhausted. They then have a host of problems that come with being homeless. How many jobs hire homeless people?

Make a list of the jobs that aren't "reasonably paid" then note that our society runs on a certain percentage of people being in those jobs at all times. US govt has a detailed breakdown if you're interested.

I would say falling out with your parents is a common cause of poverty. Which can be due to homophobia, alcohol abuse, abuse, any number of things. But the parent's issues have a knock on effect on the child.

Once you're in poverty it's difficult to get out. You lack a car (which makes everything more expensive and time consuming), lose confidence, get hungry and can no longer think straight... instead of up skilling it is difficult enough just to balance food and the bills.

Everything is more expensive when you are poor. For example, having to buy a car and putting a disproportionate amount of your income into petrol makes it very difficult to find jobs outside your neighbourhood. And moving costs money. So when you get stuck in an unattractive area, it’s difficult to get out.

Another example is education. It’s difficult to educate yourself when you need to work 2 jobs just to eat and pay your rent and bills. There are stories of people managing it, but that is an unattainable utopia for a large number of people.

Sure, but the internet is almost free, and these days you would look for jobs on the internet?

I don't say it is easy, just wondering what is wrong if you never manage to find a job?

Sure, but you still need to go there to work. You need money to buy a car, and you need the car to get paid. Of course, some vultures will lend you a couple of quid to buy something, but then the astronomical interest rates just add up to your problems. And pray that nothing unexpected happens, like the unreliable car you just bought for £500 breaking down before you finished paying for it, because then you don’t have a job anymore and it takes weeks to get support from the government. And good luck you if you have children.

Also, people who can’t keep up with bills are not going to have easy access to the Internet either. There are libraries and such, but it adds yet more friction and stress. There are loads of things you don’t necessarily realise if you haven’t been in such a situation or really thought about it. Every one of them is not a huge problem in itself, but it all adds up.

Mental aspects are also important. People familiar with symptoms of depression and chronic anxiety know how debilitating they can be.

It definitely is not impossible to get out of poverty, just very hard.

But if you are poor, you either don't have a computer, or you bought a $150 new laptop at Staples which you thought was a great deal, but is ridiculously slow, has a 5 minute battery, and gets destroyed by a 10 year old Thinkpad X230. Being poor requires you to buy lots of reasonably priced junk just to get by. Your daily life is just full of substandard things that wastes time and money, and increases stress.

And internet isn't free if you have outstanding payments with the sole internet provider in your area. (This is not hypothetical, by the way.)

You can work 2 jobs 60+ hours a week and still be poor because wages have not kept up with cost of living increases, especially when it comes to housing and healthcare.

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