[jbdlfan]

I think some attitudes toward poverty can be a bit off the mark. In this area, much like Appalachia, there is what is called "generational poverty." Families that have been so marred and entrenched that they don't know how to get out. I've studied this phenomenon quite a bit recently. So many things that we take for granted many of these folks have no clue how to do. Many, many of the students from my school never see the 11th grade. They are terrible readers and have been told they don't need to read to get by. The drug culture outside the bubble is a very powerful force that can't be underestimated.