Poverty in your area?

[ontheroad]

This is first time I've lived full-time among the rural poor. We have the highest unemployment rate in the state, the smallest number of white colour jobs, inadequate housing and many people living without any health care.

We don't have visible homelessness, but people live in adobes or trailers without heat; no running water, and some without electricity and gas. They call it "living off the grid." I haven't coined a name for it yet.

When I lived in a large urban area, I saw poverty every single day. In particular, two different men panhandled in my neighbourhood. So, the minute I got off the subway, I encountered the Limp; and then at the corner of my street, I always met the Strut. These were my personal names for them!

Generally I forked over money to a homeless person I encountered during the day or Limp and Strut 2-5 times per week. Nothing much, but enough for me not to think they were going hungry. Of course, I never knew where they slept.

PS - Just read the budget for homeless was approved

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070221/ap_on_go_ot/homeless_grants (broken link)

[Lannie]

There's rampant poverty in some areas of Savannah. The west side is especially impoverished. In some places you will see a beautiful home right next door to a shack, literally. I drove around one day when I first moved here and just could not believe it. When I say poverty, I mean deep, desperate poverty. This town has so much "old" money and it's rich in many, many ways. It's quite the shame, in my humble opinion, to allow much of the city to live in the conditions they do. I've been told "that's just the way it's always been here".