Some 'interesting' facts

[minx]

First an article from the FLS


www.fredericksburg.com/news/local/caroline/area-has-a-higher-rate-of-evictions-than-the-national/article_f9c19996-a300-5204-b668-225f7d882226.html

Next an article from the WaPo (please note that it references the Federal Register, and has a link to the actual study there)

www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/05/25/the-shocking-number-of-americans-who-cant-cover-a-400-expense/?utm_term=.a8f323e96dfd

The short story - people can't afford to pay rent, and it doesn't take much for someone to get pushed over the edge.  I know more than one person who was foreclosed on due to an unexpected work loss, or a medical emergency.  Once you lose one place, it becomes harder to find another, and so-on.  The fact that most Americans can't pay for a car repair without being pushed to or over the edge, should scare the crap out of people who actually do have money.

Why is this?  Rally asks.  After all, there are plenty of manufacturing jobs and trucking jobs out there.
This is true - there are jobs out there.  Unfortunately, there're not here.  It costs money to relocate.  I have been lucky enough to have stayed in the same place and house here for 20 years.  When we moved here, the actual cost of the move itself (furniture, boarding the dog for a few days, gas and a hotel room overnight while we waited to get into the house), was a cool 2 grand.  That was 20 years ago, and I didn't include the costs for selling the old home and buying this one in that figure)
If it cost us $2 grand back then, I'm sure it hasn't gone down.  So, if I can't afford $400 for new tires on the car, how the hell am I going to afford to take a trip to another state to stay in a hotel for a day while I interview for a job and look for a new place to live?

As for trucking - you still have to go to school to get a CDL - that's a cool $4 grand, and there's no money back if you can't make it at the end.  Part of getting a Class A license (to drive a big rig) is the ability to pull yourself into the trailer from the ground with only one hand.  Pretty much rules out anyone with a shoulder or back injury right there.  And since even short-haul has long hours, you can't drive a truck unless you don't have to worry about child care.


But I'm probably preaching to the choir for the most part, so let me put this in terms that Rally can understand.

No money to pay rent = more reliance on things like food stamps = more money out of YOUR pocket
No housing you can afford here = worker goes elsewhere = longer lines and waits at stores, movies and grocery stores (there are only so many teens to go around you know)
No workers = degrading of services, or businesses closing.  If I run a small ham radio business that I need two employees for, I can only pay but so much - if I can't afford to find employees willing to accept $11/hr, I'll have no choice but to close.

And the thing that should scare the bejeezus out of you (but probably won't knowing you) - there is a severe shortage of health care workers in the US right now.  We're going to talk about the shortage that will affect you the most though - Certified Nursing Assistants.  These are the people who take care of you once you become disabled, or old enough to need help with things like getting out of bed.  Home care is not covered by health insurance, so you're coughing up those bucks yourself.

MIL was in independent living, and was unwilling to go to assisted living.  (10 years ago).  She paid $25K for two months on home care (not round-the-clock either) in an attempt to stay in her house.  That's how I know it's not covered by insurance - she fell in the middle of the night, and had to be admitted to the hospital.  When my SIL called the insurance to 'cancel' the home health care, they told her that they didn't cover that shit.

But let's talk about everyone's fear - the nursing home.  If you're in a nursing home, it's pretty much a given that you can no longer care for yourself.  Rally has some savings, so he's going in as private-pay, meaning that he'll be able to get into a good one.  That's usually around $15K/mo for the base price, and then you add on incidentals, like laundry, cost of outings (your doctor won't come to you of course), soap, ect.  The people who actually are in charge of your day-to-day care are not the nurses (they're the supervisors, and will come in and give you your medications), but the CNAs.  Being a CNA is hard back-breaking, and usually fairly gross labor (it's never fun changing an adult diaper you know).  For all of this, most CNAs get paid a little over minimum wage (maybe $10/hr), and receive minimal benefits.  You are on your feet your entire shift, lifting people, bathing them, and feeding them in some cases.  
And you can trust me 100% on this - if you're even partially assholish to them, you can expect to be last on the list of priorities.  It's amazing how long it can take to answer a call bell for a patient who is going to just be a total asshole to you.
Wouldn't you want someone who is getting paid enough to have a shorter commute, and who is happy?

Same is increasingly going for hospitals too BTW - not enough workers to properly care for all the patients on the floor.  At the end of the day as Rally would like to note, it is all about money.  Doesn't matter how good your insurance is, or how much money you make.  If you're sick and there are 2 nurses for 6 patients, you only can only go higher on the list if you're really nice and don't complain a lot, cause life is too short, and they're not getting paid enough.

So, I would think that for the sake of selfishness, you'd want to get the government to find better ways to get people affordable housing within a reasonable distance of where they work, have decent childcare available, and pay for affordable education.

[Dave's Not Here Man]

And to be honest, even with all of that you are really only addressing the tip of the iceberg. Low and low-middle income already know that the system is a trap, and the cards are stacked against them. The less you have the more you pay. Late payment fees, higher interest on loans and credit before that late payment, let alone after it, and so many other unfair and unethical practices and businesses that cash in on their struggle. Take title loans for example. You are so completely fucked that the one thing you actually do own, you use as collateral for a 300% loan to pay your rent. Well gee let's see, you can't afford 1500 bucks for the rent but somehow going to be able to pay back 4500 for loaning you the 15. Or you pay back 4000 of it and something else happens, and they come snatch your shit in the middle of the night. Now you not only owe the other 500, but towing and storage costs and god knows what other fees were in the loan contract. This is the best example I can think of but by no means the only one. 

Then you have middle income or so called "the middle class". Do you know why there are fewer and fewer people in this category? Because everyone in it is one bad thing away from it all going to shit and bad shit happens all the time. People in this class used to have careers, many working their entire careers for one company and the companies did a lot better job of taking care of employees with benefits, perks, etc. and could survive a day or two if Becky had a baby, or Lou had to bury his wife.  That's over. Done. You are reading something from a person that was a member of that middle class and had a couple of bad things, not one, and it all went to shit. I'm now getting older and have several medical issues myself. Don't ask me how I'll ever get back to where I was just 10 years ago, because I don't expect to.

Then you have your "comfortable" people, who never had kids, paid cash for everything, and live off of their government job pension and have a nice rainy day fund. Guess what? They are just as vulnerable. One. Bad. Thing. And they get a rude awakening. It's not until you get into the real money that a fall on the ice that leaves you in need of 24/7 care, or a house fire, or any one of a million other things, that you have what counts as security.

Over and beyond affordable housing is health care. That's the #1 thing in my view. Look up the data on bankruptcies and you'll see that a huge percentage of personal bankruptcies are a direct result of medical bills. That being said, I don't know the impact, be it positive or negative, would have on healthcare workers. I think the reason for the shortages we hear about have a lot to do with the cost of education and the low pay for those who do the lion's share of the actual care before and after treatment. Not to be overlooked are caregivers outside of the system; spouses, for example. Not only do they carry the burden of providing food, housing, clothing, medicines, child care, etcetcetcetcetcetcetc, but also being the caregiver. Would they do that shit for 10 an hour? Fuck no.

Now that I think about it, affordable housing doesn't even make my top 2. Second would be that education I mentioned above. Why would a person spend a couple thousand dollars to go to school to train for a 10/hr job? Now if the community college were free, perhaps that would make at least a little more sense. What if it were free for literally anyone, no matter their means, to attend a 2 year program at a local community college?

I think the net gain from these two things would be enormous if done the right way, and the demand for affordable housing and other social programs would be greatly reduced.

[minx]

You make many excellent points. I am 100% for free community college or job training after HS. The only thing that I worry about with it is that school or training program is somehow monitored or accredited so that students (and the government) don't get ripped off - too many 'for profit' programs out there that swear you'll get a great job at the end that don't deliver.

And not only do we need affordable health care for ALL citizens, but we also desperately need doctors and nurses to administer said care as well. If you're a certain type of specialist, you're probably rolling in the dough, but we have a huge shortage of primary care and geriatric doctors. This is a huge, huge problem. It's great to have health insurance, but what good will it do you when your doctor isn't trained to look at all of the side effects of your many medications to realize that you're at 90% risk of a major fall due to your age and those side-effects? And of course, good luck if you need to see a psychiatrist - they are few and far between. I'm not joking when I say I live in fear of mine deciding to retire. We have a HUGE healthcare crisis in this country between lack of insurance, and lack of access to regular care (not preventive care, just regular routine maintenance - like reminding you that you need to come in once a year type of stuff).

So I agree - #1 - healthcare
We need to get everyone affordable insurance, and I for one would like to see that insurance be a universal coverage so that everyone has equal insurance - it can be paid for on a sliding scale, but I shouldn't have access to a free MRI as part of my premium, while John has to pay for his, because his employer wants to save a buck.
We also need to create incentives for doctors to go into primary care, and for nurses at every level - we are entering into a severe nursing shortage. Hospitals are having problems finding staff nurses, and nursing homes are not doing any better.
We also need to start funding for elder care and respite programs. One would think this is a no-brainer. Study after study has shown that keeping someone in their home with a family member is less expensive, and has a better outcome for the patient. But as John noted, it's backbreaking work - the caregiver should be able to have an affordable break - either someone to come in and help occasionally, or a decent place that their loved one can go for a weekend.

#2 - school and training - and part of 'regular' school should be bringing back home ec and woodshop classes. When I was in school, we had to suffer through a semester of each. OTOH, while I am not the world's greatest cook, I more that have the ability to plan a meal and cook it. I know how to draw up a simple budget and balance a checkbook, and I can sew a button back on to a shirt. I also know how to use a hammer and a saw if needed. Yes, parents should be imparting these skills, but hearing it from more than one source can't hurt either.
I also think that there needs to be better career counseling at the HS level, and it needs to start as soon as you enter HS - waiting until your junior or senior year to ask about your life plans is a little late.

As you noted John, for a large majority of people, it only takes one bad event to set the ball rolling. I have a good friend who was living a comfortable middle-class existence. She did have health issues, but they were manageable. Kids were doing great, marriage was doing great. Then out of the blue, husband decided to leave her because he found someone new. Instantly half of the family income was gone. He didn't want to pay alimony or child support because he needed to set up housekeeping with the new woman, and the kids were older (one in college, two in HS). So, bad, but still manageable.
Then she got a series of kidney infections, and ended up in the hospital several times, eventually needing surgery. So, medical bills. Husband was not only refusing to contribute financially, but the new woman was harassing the kids. So now a lawyer was needed. More $$$. Husband was fired from his job, so no real hope of getting any of the back money he owed either.
Finally ended up with her having a saddleblock embolism, and spending a week in a coma in the ICU, followed by 2 months in a rehab center. Bankruptcy followed, along with the loss of *her* job as well.
This all took less than a year to occur.

And she's a very lucky and fortunate person. She has a ton of friends and family fairly close by. Everyone pitched in to help keep her head above water financially as much as we could, and we made sure they had food on the table if nothing else. Her ILs have also come through a ton also. Plus, her old employer paid for an attorney to do all of the paperwork for SSI and shepard it through the system, so she was able to qualify on her first attempt.

People really like to think they have their shit together, so they're safe. To me, it's like whistling past the graveyard.