"Determination, patience and grit" go a long way only because other people don't have them. There's a limited number of opportunities and only the people with t

"Determination, patience and grit" go a long way only because other people don't have them. There's a limited number of opportunities and only the people with the most "determination, patience and grit" (among other less moralistic factors) will get them. It's not that you have to pass a set threshold of grit, you have to beat your neighbor. Living in poverty and in absence of financial security already demands a certain amount of grit just for baseline survival, and hopelessness drains the rest. But regardless of the fairness of the situation, the existence of poverty is bad for everyone, and education is a way out of poverty. And in a democracy, education is and valuable end in itself.