applekisses said:

i've sold CDs! forgot about that.

FunkMistress said:[quote]

XxAxX said:

you know and I know it doesn't matter, don't let it anger you. some people will never understand your point of view, your life experience. it's ok, keep your head up girl! keep it positive.

applekisses said:

Why is that okay for you but not for others? You do what you have to do, but only if it fits certain criteria? It's so subjective. Can't you see that everyone has their own experience in this struggle and we should quit judging each other for it?

butterfli25: Girl, you're right. I'm guilty of reacting out of anger, but this shit does anger me. I'm more angry at the system that not only keeps most of us struggling, but pits us against each other. We're all victims of a divide-and-conquer scheme. Applekisses, I don't think you're a bad person. I think you're repeating what's been fed to you. We're meant to fight each other here on the bottom instead of uniting and directing our efforts to those at the top who keep us down here. It's not accidental. I'll keep hoping, praying and working for a day when that changes.

FunkMistress said:

I'm sorry...I don't understand...what does having a $350 purse have to do with survival? I've already said I support people getting aid if they need it.

applekisses said:

Hi Apples. Maybe her Coach bag was fake. There are plenty of them rolling around.

I know what it's like to be on food stamps. I grew up poor. My mother used to receive them and medical assistance for me my 2 brothers and 3 sisters. And she also worked. Work wasn't enough to pay all the bills, so she did need some help. I used to be ashamed and embarrassed to go to the grocery store to buy food. The cruel kids I grew up around would tease you mercilessly until you would cry. I don't think you should collect them if you truly don't need them, but some people do. I've never been on food stamps as an adult, and hopefully will never have to be. You have to be pretty much destitute to collect any food stamps, cash or medical benefits here. And it's really ashame because the cost of living has become so high that it's sickening. Everytime you turn around, some bill is getting raised. Take heating bills, for example. The crooks in government tell you to wear socks and extra layers of clothing to bed and keep your themostat low. I'm supposed to freeze my ass off, but (excuse me) the motherfuckers in control of the country right now, can crank their shit up without a care in the world. The rest of us are just supposed to suck it up and like it. Heat is a damn necessity, NOT a luxury.
[Edited 1/23/06 13:12pm]

1sexymf said:

FunkMistress said:[quote]

XxAxX said:

just as you don't have to like my perspective.

you aren't living to impress me and i am SURELY not living to impress you.

i think it's pretty clear from what i said that my remarks are not a personal attack on you. if you take them that way? if you're one of the people who cheats the system and thinks its cool?????


that's on you, not on me
[Edited 1/23/06 12:12pm]

i'm surprised no one has remarked upon the abysmal failure of the states to enforce child support legislation they've enacted.

IF the fathers of every single child were required to support their children through maturity - financially if not emotionally - this would be less than half the issue it is today.
[Edited 1/23/06 12:15pm]

XxAxX said:

fathers are required to pay child support. some work and get paid under the table in order to not have to pay. some have never worked a day in their lives or have dodged the system by quiting a job everytime child support catches up with them some are dead and children can't collect soc sec because the father's have never worked. there are all kinds of circumstances that are different for everyone. they can catch some but not all. it seems that those who are taking advantage of the system stand out. but these people are not all of the people. there always comes the bad with the good. a simple across the board straight arrow approach to what should be done and shouldn't be done looks good on paper but does not always work in real life.

matt said:

Just once I would love to see you make a post that is one sentence long....its like everytime you post its some long winded court deposition...

Will this do?

applekisses said:

Well obviously she did not want the 20.00 purse from target (who would) she wanted the 350.00 dollar purse from coach, so she got the purse she wanted and provided food for he family at the same time. She found a practical way to provide for her family and have the handbag she wanted. Who knows maybe she bought it on her credit card...trust me us ghetto ass people can get credit cards and manage them just as well as uppity rich ass people. You are confusing practical with narrow mindedness...because in your post you said





You were being narrow-minded in the fact that you are prejudging her on the fact that because she has wic coupons then therefore she should not have a coach handbag. You don't know why she has to use wic coupons for her food. Atleast she is providing for her family, Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. Oh let me guess the next stereotypical thing that will come up...The chick was not white.
[Edited 1/24/06 1:19am]

matt said:

Ohh look miracles happen

jone70 said:

(emphasis added)

One day the trolleybus route that I take to and from work was basically shut down due to a car accident that blocked traffic. (You'd think that Metro would have a few backup diesel-powered buses that could be deployed when a trolley route needs to be diverted off the wires, but I guess not.) Anyway, I had work to do, and I didn't feel like standing on the sidewalk all morning, so I hailed a taxi and got to work that way.

When I got home that evening, I decided to do a little math. I concluded that even if I took a taxi to and from work every day, it'd still be cheaper than owning a car and paying for parking downtown.

It's interesting how I paid the expenses of owning a car and thought nothing of it -- at one point I even had two of them -- yet riding in a taxi feels like a "luxury" expense.

notoriousj said:

I do think, though, that a brief or oral argument is a better analogy. If a deposition question gets too long-winded, it will likely prompt an objection.

matt said:

Well its not like you drove the beamer as much as the miata....here is how you payed for it...you hustled your ass...but then again according to some people on here you are only allowed luxury items if you do not receive gov. funds. Nevermind my parents who worked for the same company for 20 years, lost their jobs when their company moved to mexico....they still managed to pay for two cars (luxury items) my college tuition all the stuff me and my sister needed for school and were receiving assistance for 2 months until my dad started his new full time job. I think even that was the year my mom funded a trip to NY for me...oops luxury item.

matt said:

I've got an objection for ya bub...object this...
[Edited 1/24/06 1:40am]

notoriousj said:

Objection. Move to strike counsel's emoticon, Your Honor.

matt said:

I object...councel has no grounds to object to my use of an emoticon, your honor.

notoriousj said:

That's true, and unlike the Miata, which I financed, I owned the Bimmer outright. OTOH, the Miata basically went unused for about four months out of the year... it sat in the garage depreciating for 1/3 of the year while I continued to write out a check every month for the loan payment, as well as another check that paid for full insurance coverage on a car I wasn't driving. (Okay, I took it out for a quick drive a few times to keep the battery charged and prevent the tires from flat-spotting.) And I didn't think twice about it.



Hmmm... what constitutes "receiving government funds"? I (legally) paid no federal income tax for 2000, thanks to the Lifetime Learning Credit. Getting a tax credit is arguably receiving government funds. And those were some pretty significant government funds... literally thousands of dollars.

Unfortunately, as a result, I didn't get one of those "tax rebate checks" in 2001. You know, those government funds most adult Americans received that year? I had to wait until I did my tax return the next year to collect those government funds.

Now that I think about it, my $54 monthly transit pass... I guess I'm also receiving government funds there, since all public transportation systems in this country are heavily subsidized. Perhaps my Apple PowerBook G4 should be confiscated... surely that's a "luxury item." I should have to settle for a PC running Windows instead.

My sister was on food stamps and recieved WIC for her kids while she was in school studying to be a PA. She did four years of school in two and worked 40 hours a week at minimum wage at night in a gas station store. She deserved every bit of help she received.
She and her family look like the GotRocks.She almost never pays more than ten dollars for anything. She shops at second hand stores, consignment shops,garage sales in summer,outlet mall clearances.She still shops like this even though she and her husband have a good income now.
It wouldn't be easy, but I bet you could get a Coach bag in a consignment shop in a "good" neighborhood for a fraction of it's original price.We just bought a beautiful Jessica McClintock dress for my 13 year old niece,never been worn-$230 tags still on for $7 at a consignment shop winter clearance sale.

notoriousj said:[quote]

applekisses said:

You're cracking me up. Keep rolling those eyes! (And...for the record, the woman was white.)
Judging someone for having a Coach handbag is not being narrow-minded It's about being PRACTICAL. A Coach handbag is not a basic human necessity or even a human right. In addition, SHE is not the sole provider for her family...the GOVERNMENT is helping her...and I will say it again...I have NO PROBLEM with people getting assistance if they really need it...but, anyone who can afford a $350 purse or is spending money on luxury items should not be doing so if they are in a financial bind. This is my idea of being financially responsible and my opinion...why get so bent out of shape about it? You're acting like I'm saying "Kill all people who get foodstamps! They all suck!" Which is not what I'm saying or what I believe AT ALL. I'm not a bad person, really and I have had my share of being poor. I'm not rich by any means and grew up in a working-class home.
Also, how am I living in a "glass house"? If you're referring to losing all of my possessions in a fire (I didn't have renter's insurance) and friends here offering to help me...well...I've said before and I'll say it again...I am deeply appreciative of all the help people have given me here. My friends here have changed my life and I will forever be grateful to them. Although, when Tackam suggested I register for things I needed...I was afraid it might be used against me and that is one of a few reasons I was against the idea at first. The assistance I've gotten has been used against me a few different times here.
[Edited 1/24/06 7:22am]

shellyevon said:

Your sister is an inspiration...and I have loads of respect for her. She needed assistance and got it, but was still practical. And, in my error, I didn't think about being able to buy expensive items at consignment shops, etc. Thanks for pointing that out...maybe that's what the woman at the grocery store did.

matt said:

So how is it you date if you don't have a car?

TheCatWoman said:

Why is it necessary to have a car to date?

1sexymf said:

Well, I guess two can meet, or take a taxi or train.
But don't ya wanna have sex in the car?

matt said:

Well none of these "friends" owned cars (and I haven't had one since 1997) so that wasn't an option for any of us. And there is no way taking cabs everywhere is cheaper than $1.75 (and it was $1.50 when I lived in Chicago) for the subway/bus.

applekisses said:

You are a sweetheart .Sometimes people do "work the system" but I'd like to believe that most of them eventually find how to pay their own way.I hope so anyway.
[Edited 1/24/06 8:09am]

shellyevon said:

Thanks...I appreciate that. I also believe that most people eventually get back up on their feet. Everyone needs help when they are down and out...my thing is that when that happens I was raised to become more financially responsible (i.e. a cheap-ass ) so that I can eventually get my life back on track.