>Every time my family had any money, they bought stuff. Not stuff we needed, but stupid crap. Definitely not calculated decisions to make progress to getting ou

>Every time my family had any money, they bought stuff. Not stuff we needed, but stupid crap. Definitely not calculated decisions to make progress to getting out of poverty. Growing up my family did the same (waste money), but frankly, it didn't matter. It's not like a $300 check can do much to help a person, let alone a family, progress out of poverty. From my experience education is pretty much the only thing that works to move people out of poverty, and it is very expensive and exclusive.