I see the foodstamp threads here almost daily, and I notice how few actually understand the culture of the "entitled".

Some posters have lived or grown up in some crummy areas, and most of us can piece together the ethos of the "entitlement" mentality, but few realize the "ins and outs" that go into becoming a successful ghetto queen



This is based on my own experience growing up and living in a run-down, former steel mill, Pittsburgh suburb.

The median HOUSEHOLD income where I live is $25k/year! No shit! A lot of my friends growing up, neighbors, customers, etc...were or are on .gov assistance in some form.





This is for informational purposes; this is not an apologetic essay, this is purely to inform.





So, just how do these folks manage to suck up so many resources and still expect more?

Amazingly, it comes down to status. Not their status as a productive citizen, but status within their own culture. Many simply don't care about things like gainful employment, higher education, home ownership, or investments, let alone a career...not because they are viewed as negative, but because it is accepted in their own culture that these are almost unattainable goals and not worth working towards. Nobody cares if you have a job or if you sell crack; if you are making money in some capacity above assistance, you have moved up a notch in status!



Let me repeat that: In "ghetto" culture, the difference between a low level crack dealer and working a full time job is almost nil. Nobody will fault you much if you quit your job bagging groceries to sell weed and play X-Box all day; as long as you are not getting arrested constantly and you help provide for whatever children you may have, you are doing pretty damn good and can receive respect from your peers. If you can maintain these simple things, you may even be considered a "role model" in your own little microcosm of the world



But, respect isn't earned by just exhibiting the most basic of responsibilities...just as many middle class workers struggle to outdo their neighbors in toys and houses, and may snub their noses at those who are not at the same level as them, hood rats do that same thing on a smaller economic scale.

Clothing is of significant importance to them and is the first thing that advertises their status level. Having the right clothes literally means everything to them, and scuffed white sneakers or non name brand clothes will bump them down in social standing and make them the subject of much ridicule.



For women, not only clothes but expensive nail and hair treatments and salon visits tell others their level of status in their ghetto culture.

This is why you will see these videos of ghetto queens w/ weaves and perms and shiny 3" long nails, compalining of having no food to eat because food stamps are late. For them, to sacrifice their social standing is worth being hungry, or their children being hungry, for a day or 2. That's right, if they don't constantly maintain their created level of status, they will drop like a rock through gossip channels and be viewed as something less in the eyes of their peers...this will not do.



They literally have nothing else to hold onto or live for. Their level of ghetto status defines them as people and they will sacrifice all sorts of necessities to maintain that image.



So in addition to clothes and hairstyles, brand name cigarettes (Newports usually), nice cellphones, and other accessories like large TVs and cable, help to define their status and are important as part of the whole "package".



The next big bump is a car; if you just HAVE a car in some areas you have arrived Never mind that welfare paid for it, or the exhaust scrapes and the brakes squeal...you are now mobile! You can decide who rides and who doesn't; you can ride people to the store, ride your neighbors to get valuable prescriptions filled or ride drug dealers around...all lucrative to you as the car owner. In fact, just HAVING a car may be your hustle to get you some extra cash over your welfare money!



But soon, you will feel envious of the next higher ups in the ghetto society; those with "nice" cars. These guys are at the top. They have the whole package...nice clothes and accessories, hair, name brand cigarettes, etc...and a nice shiny car. They get to snub their nose at others, women want to have sex w/ them to get some of their status and/or money, everyone wants to be their friend, people will ask for their help and they get to play "godfather". It can be quite a rush!



So how do these folks make it to the apex of ghetto culture? The same way everyone in that world else does; a combination of cheating the system and earning extra money. Some may have jobs, and decide to live in the ghetto as a patriarchal figure, but many sell drugs, collect disability, workers comp, money from frivolous lawsuits, crime, or any combination of these things. Some just work the existing scams well and maybe got "lucky" w/ a child or two from a father who can actually afford to pay child support, but once they have arrived at that level, they will do everything in their power to stay at that level, otherwise they will be ridiculed within their own culture beyond belief.



So just what do these types of scams entail?

I'll give a brief rundown of some of the most common ones I am aware of in my state, I'm sure other members here can add some:



*Selling food stamps for cash; usually $0.50 on the dollar. Many drug dealers or just struggling working class people will buy them; some stores will even accept them and pay out cash on the spot, ringing them as a grocery purchase and just declaring some losses here and there on their books. Usually a single person can expect about $250/month in food...when you have kids it starts adding up quick; think $600-$800/month in just food stamps.



*Cash assistance. Straight up free money. Some can get this and others can't as IIRC, if you owe the court system, you cannot collect cash assistance. An extra $150/month for a single person to buy shampoo, razor blades and X-Box games, $300+ for single moms.



*WIC products can and do get sold sometimes.



*"Babysitter" money; the .gov grants about $125/week to a friend or relative who watches your child "x" amount of hours a week while you work, or look for a job, or just say your working. The "babysitter", is usually just a friend or relative who watches the kid(s) maybe a day a week, or never, and gives you the cash, or most of it. 3 kids at $375/week adds up to a nice extra chunk of change per month!



*SSI/SSDI scams. This is the one that burns me as I am not opposed to assisting disabled people...if I wasn't forced to pay for the legitimately disabled, I would gladly sacrifice part of my pay to help them. Anyway, how this works is hood rats in jail or on the street, explain how to scam medical doctors and psychologists into believeing that they have some sort of mental problem or physical disability. I actually listened to a guy explain to me once, in detail, how to convince a doctor you had a slipped disk, regardless of x-rays, and get free drugs and disability checks. Often, Bi-polar disorder is faked and a check is collected as well...there are a myriad of illnesses to choose from, some taking a bit more acting than others, but all within reach of the determined hood rat. Usual payments are about $600ish/month in cash, but the real money is in the precriptions.



*Doctor shopping. There is so much money in prescription narcotics on both the legal and illegal end that it is mind boggling. Often, a hood rat will find regular buyers for his/her prescriptions and spend that money on hood rat stuff every month. Sometimes, when times are lean, they may call a doctor w/ a sob story about dropping their pills down the toilet, or the dog eating them...whatever, an extra 'script is just pure profit. Sometimes, doctors are in on it, taking money for larger prescriptions
every month or early refills. They are selling drugs, but it's not out
in the open, so many involved w/ it may not consider themselves any sort
of drug dealer. Benzodiazpenes are some of the easiest to get, like Xanax or Klonopin, but the big money is in opiates like OxyContin or fentanyl patches. These can sell for big money on the street and net the ghetto goblin an easy $2000 or more a month!



*Babies; we all know how this works. Children will not only increase your "income" from the .gov, but, if your "Babie's Daddy" has a job, he may even pay you MORE money every month!



*Frivolous lawsuits...I don't need to explain this one.



*And the various other abuses of whatever .gov programs are out there; housing assistance, rent rebates, utility assistance...you name it. There are networks in place to disseminate the information about any and all .gov assistance programs and all the "free money" available to them. They need not worry about missing out on some critical piece of information as everybody in their social structure shares the common goal of defrauding all forms of government out of every penny possible.



The prevailing sentiment is that they are poor because of somebody else's fault, but they have decided to reject blue collar culture and focus on their own; thus, nothing matters to them as much as getting the newest desirable sneakers, or some abortion of a car, or a bigger TV, because their own pecking order in THEIR culture is what is important. They have no interest in contributing to the prevailing US society.



So these are the methods used to climb the social ladder of the ghetto. I hope that sheds some light on things for those without any experience in ghetto culture.
Speed

Good read.

So I was right. . . they're like children.

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck. God damn leaches. They should burn at the stake.

Ruby Payne does a lot of work on this.





Poor people only worship things. Middle class worship gainful employment and hard work. High class only recognize rank and asset management, not directly money.

 



If you want lower class people to enjoy education, you have to tie it into things. "You need an education so you don't get ripped off!"

Good post.



Most of the ghetto folks I've associated with are downright proud to be bucking the system.



It's an odd co-existence. Fuck the .gov, I do what I want.



They don't need the .gov,it's just stupid to not take advantage of free money in that setting.

Very well summed up. Spot on. I have coexisted with goblins for eons. So far one of the best rackets I have seen is a guy who lives across the tracks from here, who runs a BBQ business out of his yard, cash only. All food produced comes from the foodstamps/WIC/cash assistance from his stable of single mothers. They all make out very well on the hefty profit. I gotta give the guy some credit. Pretty slick idea.

ETA: Fuck no I am not condoning it, but it was smart of him. And hell no I ain't turning him in. I have a family.

That was an interesting read.  Thanks for your insight.

Thanks,very interesting.

The man speaks the truth

It never ceases to amaze me when I see some posters on here get it completely wrong when it comes to the mindset of your average ghetto dweller/hood rat etc. Mostly they just ascribe WAY more intelligence to them and their motivations. Your average person sucking off the government tit is plain DUMB, yes they may be good at what they do but like the OP says, that comes from a lifetime of growing up in and around people who game the system. It's not like they figured it out on their own.

Reading shit like that almost makes me want this country to implode in on it self.

One could argue that not only is it about status, but it is about constantly satisfying oneself first to the exclusion of others; selfishness.  All of the issues mentioned above are about satisfying me, look at me, and no one is more important than me. Selfishness at it's peak.

Nope you can't change culture. You can wipe one out but you can't change it.

I worked at a camp that put non-violent felons (probation violators) in a street job for nine months rather than go back to real prison. They paid room and board and any fines/court costs they had outstanding.

I had one violator that worked hard, got all the over-time the quarry offered, and saved darn near every penny he made. Upon release he got cut a check for 19K. I asked him what he was going to do with it and he just smiled and said he was going to triple it by the end of the night in Richmond and thanks for the seed money.

At least he was honest in that regard.

Don't forget the SSI angle worked with the school kids––-in pretty much every church in a "poor" area in New Orleans, for instance, members of the church teach their fellows how to get the kids diagnosed as learning disabled for extra money every month.  One of the worst parts of this particular vicious cycle is the fact that to be "learning disabled," the kids cannot do very well in school––meaning that the schools also constantly get more money showered on them to "help."  Not that most of that money aids the leeches, but they don't care about its needless expenditure either.

Excellent read, yo.

The way I see it "Ghetto" Culture comes down to:
(a.) Wearing Sport Wear Clothing (preferably very baggy in order to conceal weapons)
(b.) Having a piece
(c.) Listening to Rap that Glorifies "Ghetto" culture
(d.) NOT going to School and Studying because that means participating within the system
(e.) Protecting their "turf" against different ethnicities and gangs

Success being having nice flashy posessions and having no visible means of income, while primping themselves
at parks and basketball courts and going to parties. In short: being the Big Fish in a little pond.
Since women are attracted to wealth and social status, they flock to hoods who exhibit this kind of behavior, which invariably
reinforces it.

End Government Entitlement programs (Food Stamps, Subsidized Housing, etc),
and legalize drug laws...and you pretty much wipe out this culture.
End Government Programs which reward women to have children out of wedlock: by denying Women Money for Children,
puts pressure on Women to keep their cunts closed, and they in turn apply pressure on their boyfriends to get a job.

I think that is part of it, and also the group works to keep intrepid crabs from climbing out of the bucket.

When I was a kid we weren't well off.  When my classmates were planning for college, the attitude I got from my family was, "College is for rich kids.  You're not a rich kid, so you don't have to worry about it."

One of the best things I did was joining the AF and getting away from those attitudes.

Reported.

That is right on

excellent read!
Do they still sell the stamps now that they have the dignity card? I know the card covers more now so maybe it's not neccasary.



I know several ex-coworkers that made a life of sueing. They became the envy of some of my other coworkers.

I had a stroke about two years ago at 30. My Stepmom tried to get a handcapped permit, but I said no.

We did get foodstamps. Although I can't get SSI, and I have meet with me several times. My right side is

fucked up, and I have seizers. Bad ones. I have worked from 16 - 30.

But maybe I will go to the ghetto and get Bi-Polar.

Ya know as I was about to click on this, I wasn't really expecting much, but am now pleasantly surprised. Thanks for the insight. Now off to the jacuzzi. Monotony really.

It's what happens when children grow old without growing up.

Card now gets "borrowed" for the cash. So yes.

There needs to be a society-level push to stigmatize welfare.

That wouldn't work out well. I would love it to, but if you stigmatize it, you'll make a deeper sub class of people that feel they are being repressed. Too much "pushing" (real or not), and they'll blow worse than ever.





Just start slowly cutting it off and have it gone in 15 years.



This shit is like heroin.





 

Oh how nice.



There is a serious problem with this country.  There are more people taking from the system then paying into it.  It is not sustainable.  What are we going to do?  Print more money sell more debt to China?  Will there be hyperinflation?  Will I see a 1 Trillion Dollar Note in my life time?  I honestly feel this country is on it's last legs.  Since when did it become "What can your country do for you?"



 

You do realize every government agency has an internal IG unit, right? If your not lying about this scumbag IM me.


I love working those cases.

EDIT: There's no reason to worry about your family. They system is anonymous as far as tips are concerned. You can give a fake name and call from a pay phone if it makes you feel better.

Very good read.

And the prevailing wisdom is that attitude is exactly what is going to keep them that way.

About ten years ago, I walked a guy who grew up in a ghetto here in Houston through understanding why a 401k was better than new rims.  It was literally like a light bulb went off.  He was actually embarassed that he didn't understand that already.

I think that people who have no experience with those folks don't understand how small their world really is.

Take a look around, we are on our way now,and have been for some time.

Have some patience.

Thanks for the offer. But there is a delicate balance in my AO. It is live and let live from the top of the food chain to the bottom, badges, health inspectors, and even that ambitious city council member. If that makes me part of the problem, so fuckin be it.

Seriously, you hit the report button on that?  Hell dude, I've been here for for 7 years and I haven't hit the report button once that I can remember.  Unwind your panties, you're not hall monitor here.

My mother, a teacher and school administrator in the Baltimore system couldn't understand why so many parents were pushing for their kids to be declared "retarded".
Even after extensive testing revealed no developmental problems or actual disabilities. Many of them were just low I.Q., some of them didn't even suffer that.

It wasn't until one of her black coworkers explained to her that a label of "retarded" gets you a bump on your welfare check that she figured out it was a SOP in the ghetto.

For what?

I was watching a call-in show on C-SPAN during the welfare reform debate in Congress, back when the GOP got elected in the '90s and held Slick Willy's feet to the fire on the subject.  Some welfare queen called in, bragging that she was PROUD to be on welfare.  She was teaching her daughter to play the system as well.  She was downright vicious and gleeful about it.  To top it all of, of course, she was getting cable tv while on welfare in order to be watching C-SPAN.  Your tax dollars at work.  

Actually, I would argue selfishness is reality.  Much of the reason we have such fucked up social programs and money pits, is because we have convinced ourselves otherwise.   Everything boils down to incentives, and people making individual selfish decisions from their own point of view.  If you want to change behavior, you have to change the incentives.  And you have to change the incentives, you have to have a true in depth understanding of what those incentives are.

The number of economic and legal "reforms" attempted in the Soviet Union is an amazing thing to study.  It wasn't that people running things didn't know the system was fucked, it was that they refused to acknowledge the fundamental reasons why - usually for ideological reasons.  Thus, every attempt to incentivize better production and behavior only worsened the problem.

IBTL

And yeah I'm pissed too

This post just screams for:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jukQX2pl2Q

Seriously.

Interesting post.



I have a question:



A person from a welfare family can turn legal age (18 or 21) and then go right down and apply for welfare? There is no requirement that they have held a job or even graduated high school, it is just automatically given to the person?

Reported? IBTL?







 

here

I will say it too

reading shit like this makes me wonder when this country will implode




report that to whoever

Good read.

 

Thanks Speed! Good read....

Hurry and read it all before the old fat disgruntled fudds get yet another good thread locked!!!!

Well I guess I'll block you.....You reported him for what exactly?





Never-mind you are blocked so don't even reply
 

that's why nobody will shed a tear when they are put down like stray dogs when the uprisings come.....and they will come.

well, i think that's all a good idea.  now, how do you get 'em off the government tit now they've been on it for 3-4 generations?  that's a riot in the making there.  they'll kill each other in the streets, and everyone that's in their way.  

maybe it's the toilet flush this country needs.  

-tom