The poor should eat gruel and play with things they build out of discarded refuse, or they're not poor! Seriously though, children are ridiculously expensive w

The poor should eat gruel and play with things they build out of discarded refuse, or they're not poor! Seriously though, children are ridiculously expensive with their need to be entertained. If you're in the inner city then having your kids indoors playing video games is cheaper/safer/better for society than letting them roam the streets. Even if you purchased all that stuff new it'd be around $1,500. Given 10 hours a day consumption (from the article) and a device lifespan of 3 years then the cost is around 10 cents/hour to keep your kid off the streets, off drugs and engaged in some kind of activity. Compare to going to the movies (guessing at $10/hr), after-school clubs ($2/hr), summer camp ($1.50/hr), renting a DVD ($0.50/hr), smoking weed ($20/hr) or reading a book ($1/hr) then video games are one of the most cost effective ways for poor people to entertain children.