The six year old born into poverty doesn't get a choice, regardless of race, because the chances are very high that he's the son of a single mother who either h

The six year old born into poverty doesn't get a choice, regardless of race, because the chances are very high that he's the son of a single mother who either has access to a support network (grandparents, aunts/uncles) and works day and night OR who does little and relies on assistance and disability. If that child is African-American, circumstances are often crueler. 1 in 9 black men (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/us/28cnd-prison.html http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/28/us/28cnd-prison.html) in the key fatherhood ranges for 20-34 are in jail or prison. The cultural issue is that in spite of (or because of) government intervention, the African-American family is in shambles. Public assistance essentially requires that able-bodied males get out of the picture, which is a large contributor to the fact that a two-parent household has been the exception for several generations. At the same time, society has become more cruel to the poor -- factory jobs don't exist, you need a car to function in society, and tax policy encourages the decay of cities in favor of suburbs, which are segregated by class. (no car, no life in suburb) Most people in technical fields don't get this. The vast majority are from middle class backgrounds and got started with computers 'on their own' at home. There are no computers at home in poor families with a few hundred bucks a month in income.