I am troubled by the "redistribution of resources" that cheap essay writer talks about and how I am truly tired of feeling as though I have something to be ashamed of because I worked hard to achieve a modicum of success and that my children were then raised in a neighborhood far better than the one that I was raised in, and that somehow I am now expected to pay for those folks left behind in that neighborhood. Years of hard work and sacrifice along with determination pulled me and many like me out of being the in the lower class of our society. I would prefer to see others do the same for themselves and quit expecting society to take care of it for them. Their parents are responsible for their welfare, not society. Their parents are responsible for seeing that they get a good education, not society. The opportunities do abound in our country, and if one is willing to work hard one can move up and out of poverty. It isn't easy, but society did not put you there, and society cannot save you from yourself. While I certainly believe in trying to help people who fall down on their luck because of circumstances beyond their control, the majority of the poor in this country are not people just down on their luck. They are people who make foolish decisions and then expect others to take care of them. If you choose to do drugs, and it is a choice, then there are consequences. If you choose to have children that you cannot afford to raise, then that is foolish and irresponsible. Sorry but that is the cold hard truth. If you do not have a job, then you should be spending at least 8 hours a day looking for one as that is your job to become a productive member of society. As long as we are going to take care of folks, there is little incentive for changing the status quo. Being hungry and poor is a great motivator- or at least it should be.

We have to insist on better jobs and dealing with the ramifications of the terrible pockets of poverty, drugs, unstable families, etc. that are what's really holding many children back. And while the inner city is the most obvious place to start, especially with the racial issues still percolating, there are many impoverished pockets in other areas of the country.

Thoughts of an inner-city 'kibbutz' or the programs abroad in places like India where women have some sort of co-op based on a goat and a handful of seeds come to mind. Not everything has to be about the latest technology to get people connected and to learn hope.