Regarding poverty, well, I dunno. Panick mentioned trickle-down economics and, as near as I can tell, it really doesn't work. It puts too much money with too small a group of people who can, almost arbitrarily, decide whether to sprinkle the cash on down. It gives these people too much power and leaves a situation when the CEOs and whatnot are the modern-day equivalent lords and ladies of medieval Europe, with us floundering far, far beneath them. Bottom-up economics, or whatever the neat little term is, at least places the power with the bourgeois. Yes, some will take advantage of the system, but it does far less harm, in my opinion, for a bunch of welfare gals to poop out babies just to increase their welfare check than to have a CEO give themselves a huge bonus when their company is going bankrupt. It also provides a means of the bourgeois to punish corrupt or ill-meaning CEOs and their businesses. If we have all the money, and we don't give it to them, well, they did bad. Now, true, it may place more burden on the bourgeois itself, but I think that's simply the price that has to be paid for the overall sense of economic stability. Of course, I'm not an economist and my opinion is just that. But there it is nonetheless.

I also feel that poverty is the result of two things: lack of personal responsibility and ignorance/conviction. On the one hand, you have people who do nothing but bemoan their fate without doing much, if anything, to help themselves. They have no long-term sight, seeing only the here and now, and the hedonistic temptations therein. My cousin, for example, falls within this category. He dropped out of HS, hasn't gotten a job (and really, realistically, probably couldn't without a diploma) and does nothing but sit at home all day, playing WoW. He bemoans jobs for not hiring, he bemoans his situation at his parent's place and yet fails to see that only he himself can cause change in his life. Similarly, I feel that those who stand out by highway off-ramps, holding up homeless signs, are in the same caste. While some may genuinely be trying to make a fresh start, it is possible, if much harder, to do it without leeching on other people's emotions and finances. Need does not necessitate acquisition. On the other hand, you have folks like senior citizens, who fall through the cracks, so to speak. I volunteer at the local Senior Center and see it everytime I'm down there. These people have nothing better in life than to visit the Center then go home. Sometimes I wonder if the Center itself is their only reason for continuing to live. Some have had their families abandon them because their too much of a hassle. Some can't afford to go anywhere else because of medication costs. If it weren't for a free bus service, a good portion of them couldn't come down at all. Sure, some people know about the situation, but very little have any conviction to do anything. The City is more harm than help, unfortunately. They donate nigh useless stuff to the Center and take any quality items, preventing things like upgraded computers. My computer now, the POS that it is, is all-around much better than anything they have down there. The City also recently has tried to get the Center to move to a much smaller facility (i.e. just one room) when the current facility is practically too small as is. Our Center alone has over 3000 Seniors who are members; it's a considerable chunk of individuals and a good portion of those come from other, nearby cities whose Centers are not as diverse in their acitivities. But yet, no one does anything. No one seems to have the conviction to do anything. Now, unfortunately, in my opinion, both symptoms reinforce the other. If no one does anything to help themselves, no one else does anything and the situation remains the same, and the circle continues. It's a hard cycle to break. And I wouldn't even know where to begin...

Lastly Kelly,

I haven't read it all in their entirety, but you may want to check out Barack Obama's website. They do list out his plans if he were to become Presidency. Granted, it is on his website, so the truth value of that plan is naturally rather suspect, but they seem to be a bit more detailed than what McCain's website has. But again, I haven't read either of them in their entirety, yet, so I could be entirely wrong.

Just my two cents. See...I don't ALWAYS present arguments. These are all just opinions. Ignore them as it pleases you.