Kristof

“The chance of a person who was born to a family in the bottom 10 percent of the income distribution rising to the top 10 percent as an adult is about the same as the chance that a dad who is 5 feet 6 inches tall having a son who grows up to be over 6 feet 1 inch tall,” Krueger observed in a speech. “It happens, but not often.”

I thoroughly agree with Krueger. There is a cycle of poverty we often see. When a family without an education, or access to food and healthcare has kids, the poverty is handed down to the children. Their children grow up and continue this desolate cycle. In truth, the government or various charities are really the only ones to end this cycle when they intervene providing healthcare, employment or financial assistance. Yes, a select few may escape this process, but many cannot avoid this fate.

“Rich kids make a lot of bad choices,” Professor Reardon notes. “They just don’t come with the same sort of consequences.” Rick acknowledged that he had made bad choices. He drank, took drugs and was arrested about 30 times. But he also found the strength to give up alcohol when he felt he was turning into his father.

This quote struck a chord within me. There is a drastic difference between the rich and poor regarding bad choices, in this instance drugs and alcohol. For example, when a rich kid develops a reliance on marijuana, and the addiction is discovered and addressed, there is usually a support system of sorts among family and peers. The best therapists and rehabilitation centers are sought. Over time, most are able to regain their sense of purpose and overcome their addiction . However, these necessary factors of family, education and employment are lacking in poor communities. The poor have nothing to lose and they are unable to say no to these bad choices. As a result, prison, juvenile detention centers and group homes are often the outcome for poor kids. Most kids are unable to receive the appropriate and most effective treatment found in the best rehab facilities and drug use continues until death or when diseases are contracted.

"And now Rick is dead. He died of heart disease last month in his home in Yamhill at age 65.

I visited him the day before he died, as he was pained and struggling to walk..."

Even in a clinic for the poor a co-pay still exists. When the situation becomes serious and a specialist  is needed, it is often hard to come by as the cost is too high. Healthcare is not  ''low cost to the poor." The poor are not living as long compared to the middle and upper class. Rick died at age 65, a painful, agonizing death. His passing was in vain as his is life was valued at a meager $600  to pay for the possession of a car. The poor are forced prioritize what is considered important and what is not as much. Rick's health took the backseat and ultimately he paid the price.