Article: This is why Poor People's Bad Decisions Make Perfect Sense

While endured my trials, I am in control of my attitude and outlook....

And like so many, and I see Alethea on a similar boat, you never see us complain, not those with a Jedi spirit...

We get tired, exasperated, grumpy, but, itvis just us "flapping our wings".....

While I took the trials with a grain of salt, my wife was devastated....

A Jedi mindset is different, but I think anyone can learn it... Just some take longer than others...

I liked the article, but I think what is viewed as a bad decision by people who have food in the cupboard and light and heat, isn't necessarily a bad decision to a mother (or father) that has to feed kids and keep them warm.
People who tend to make judgements are those that can afford to.

Poor attitude makes poor people. A Positive attitude with positive action will prevail. Don't expect it to be easy, it never is.

“Where would I find enough leather
To cover the entire surface of the earth?
But with leather soles beneath my feet,
It’s as if the whole world has been covered.”
― Shantideva

This quote exemplifies the attitude I find most prevalent in this thread- change your behavior to fit your circumstances, rather than the circumstances themself. Which can be beneficial- if one can't change their situation, why worry about it? Make the best of it by trying to glean as much enjoyment and meaning from it as possible.

However, such an attitude can also be dangerous, because it can make people apathetic to real world problems or victim-blame the poor (in this situation): "well I've been poor and got out of it with a good attitude and hard work, they can too so why should I worry about them". Society never advanced because people decided to accept and be happy with their lot- the eradication of slavery, the right to vote, overtime pay, the 40 hour workweek, desegregation etc. all occurred because people were fed up with the status quo and decided to take action to change their circumstances. IMO, in the case of the current economic climate, things are only going to get worse because the population is unwilling to fight for their rights and are willing to work longer and harder for less.

Hypatia wrote: “Where would I find enough leather
To cover the entire surface of the earth?
But with leather soles beneath my feet,
It’s as if the whole world has been covered.”
― Shantideva

This quote exemplifies the attitude I find most prevalent in this thread- change your behavior to fit your circumstances, rather than the circumstances themself. Which can be beneficial- if one can't change their situation, why worry about it? Make the best of it by trying to glean as much enjoyment and meaning from it as possible.

However, such an attitude can also be dangerous, because it can make people apathetic to real world problems or victim-blame the poor (in this situation): "well I've been poor and got out of it with a good attitude and hard work, they can too so why should I worry about them". Society never advanced because people decided to accept and be happy with their lot- the eradication of slavery, the right to vote, overtime pay, the 40 hour workweek, desegregation etc. all occurred because people were fed up with the status quo and decided to take action to change their circumstances. IMO, in the case of the current economic climate, things are only going to get worse because the population is unwilling to fight for their rights and are willing to work longer and harder for less.

I would have to agree with what youve said, but I think the idea of it being "dangerous" comes down to the interpretation of "attitude". A "change of attitude" is not about being happy with their lot. On the contrary I dont believe that anyone in those sorts of situations should just shrug it off and accept it. When I talk about changing attitude I mean the way in which people deal with the situation in terms of their mental and emotional health.

As a hypothetical example, someone in those circumstances who makes the decision to use drugs or alcohol, is going to have a vastly different experience to someone who decided to take up running or decides to get involved in their church as their coping mechanism. Neither option will resolve their circumstances, but the over all well being of the person taking the second option will be higher as the benefits of exercise on mental health or participation in community have a far more positive impact than the alternative.

Changing your attitude has nothing to do with giving up or just accepting. Its about how you manage the experience and its effects.

I wholeheartedly agree that people should try to utilize constructive coping behaviors when possible to deal with harmful life circumstances such as poverty. But this only addresses the symptoms of the problem, not the disease itself.

This thread has been on my mind for the last weeks or so, and I found myself wondering about the "WHY" of bad decision making. Going from the original authors comments I started thinking about the physical and psychological impact of being exposed to that constant stress and exhaustion both physical and mental.

Anyway, to cut a very long story short, during my research I stumbled across an interesting study thats been looking into the effect that poverty has on a persons cognitive function.

This is a quote from one of the better articles explaining the research - "The condition of poverty imposed a mental burden akin to losing 13 IQ points "

www.citylab.com/work/2013/08/how-poverty-taxes-brain/6716/


Thoughts?

Didn't mean to spam just kept re typing this comment over and over again because I miss read the whole point of the thread. Though on topic, I don't agree with some of the things in the article. I stayed up to late and I keep miss reading things because I am falling asleep sorry lol

Brenna wrote: This is a quote from one of the better articles explaining the research - "The condition of poverty imposed a mental burden akin to losing 13 IQ points "

www.citylab.com/work/2013/08/how-poverty-taxes-brain/6716/


Thoughts?

Interesting...

As I have lived in near poverty, not always, but, to be quite honest, I made 64k one year, and pissed it all away... Nothing to show... Was I poor, and didnt realize it?

Schooling needs to teach money management, and better living skills...

The limited bandwidth idea is just a fancy way of saying "I can only do so much"... The mantra of those in financial hardship...

Before I became a jedi (officially) , I wondered why it seemed religious people always had money, nice houses, clothes, whatever... I think I might have been using my limited bandwidth for the wrong reasons... As I have focused more on my own improvement, I have noticed a, um, a releasing of the stress from not having money, and somehow, my bills are getting caught up... Weird...

Thank you for sharing, I need to think on this more...

I think if you believe you are in control of your destiny you will never be poor. Poor is not just about money.