Things like this really tick me off and Itâs not political or anything but itâs the fact that you think all that money is there. Hereâs what I mean;
That weekly check comes to, according to you, 290. Most places DO NOT pay for your half hour lunch that is required by law. So your beginning number was wrong. $7.25 x 7.5 hours a day x 5 days a week only gets you $271.88. Â Most people in America get paid bi-weekly, so letâs double it to get the budget. $543.75. Thatâs GROSS, not NET. Out of that comes anywhere between 10% and 15% taxes depending on state so weâll low ball it at 10%. Automatically down to $489.38 a pay check. Now health insurance. Usually anywhere from 70-100 a pay check for the cheapest plans. Again, weâll low ball and go $70. So now we have $419.39 a paycheck. x 2 Â = $839.Â
Eight hundred thirty nine dollars. A MONTH.
But again, you seem to think thatâs fair. So letâs proceed. You say rent is $500? Okay. This person now has $339 left to buy groceries for the whole month, pay utilities, car payment, car insurance, and gas money to get to work.Â
Those are the bare needs. You have to eat. You have to pay for heat, water, garbage removal, gas and or electricity because apartments do not always include things and rarely all of the above. Most cities in America do not have public transportation. Mine doesnât despite the fact that our population is over 15,000 people, not counting a taxi. If you have a car, you have to pay that. If you have a car, legally you have to have car insurance. You have to pay that. You have to have gas in that car to get to work to make that money.
Now if you can tell me you can get all of that out of $339 youâre lying.
You are so focused on rent that you arenât thinking about everything else people have to pay for. Rent was an example. This is a breakdown of the budget you gave me and itâs not possible to live off that in 2017 America.Â
And BECAUSE this person makes over $800 a month, they probably wonât qualify for financial aid or food stamps. $800 is the line in my state where they wonât help you. No food stamps, financial aid, or government housing if you make more than $800 a month.Â
Why does it bother you that people deserve to live above the poverty line?