Full video: https://youtu.be/zf_KSz1v6Vc

Also if you havent been able to tell from the new rules - I am quite sick of people blaming systemic problems and billionaire's greedy consequences on "lazy people" or "welfare queens". Update your 1980s thinking already! For the love of humanity and reality.

Unsurprising to most people here I assume, but very interesting to me that often more wealthy postcodes get lower prices on things like Uber Eats for fast food while lower wealth postcodes get higher prices.

Many people decry it as exploitation of the poor, not realizing the obvious conclusion is that these pricing models have determined that poorer people tend to be LESS price sensitive than richer people when it comes to unnecessary luxuries, indicating that there is in fact a connection between poor spending habits and poverty that is substantial enough to inform pricing decisions.

The most effective solution to surveillance pricing is to become more price elastic, especially for luxuries like food delivery, where the biggest volatility will be. Make tighter decisions about what to buy and how much you are willing to spend, this behavior will result in your profile being modified to offer lower prices on luxuries and in general. The point of these systems is to maximize price for people who will not care about the price, and to bring the price down to a lower but still profitable level if that difference changes whether or not a sale is made because both of these things increase profits. Become someone for whom the prices will be made lower.

Adding: have responded to a couple comments with more practical advice. I work in data science (not pricing specifically) so happy to offer advice based on my understanding of how these systems work if anyone has specific questions.

Even before i was born my parents were broke
They wanted to abort me but they couldnt afford it so my mom sold her phone to do it but she couldnt go to the place to abort me so it didn’t happen

I wish she did, now im 14 soon to be 15, no mates, no gf, never heard a im proud of you or i love you, surviving in poverty and all my mates and everyone that i knew left me. why? Because i live in a council estate (if your not from uk its a place filled with houses that the council built for people that struggle with poverty, it’s usually really normalized for gangs and criminals to live on these blocks) as yk living in poverty and thinking you have to provide for your family ruins your mental health, ever since i found out i need to provide i start doing bad shit to get money (i cant speak about it on this app). They found out after i got arrested. After all my school mates found out. And they all live in good houses with perfect familys. They all left me
Ignoring me on whatsapp, snapchat going outside and shi without me

Im so lost in life right now, i got no clue what to do
I still need to find a way to provide
Im so lonely that the only notification i get is low battery
Im mentally tired
I need help

Poverty is a complex issue with no single cause, and different countries face different challenges. I've seen people argue that education, job creation, affordable healthcare, housing, social safety nets, economic growth, and access to financial services are all key pieces of the puzzle.

In your opinion, which solution has the greatest long-term impact on reducing poverty, and why?

If you've worked in development, volunteered, studied the topic, or have personal experience, I'd really appreciate hearing your perspective. I'm interested in practical, evidence-based ideas as well as examples of programs or policies that have worked in different parts of the world.

But it sure as hell does its best to keep you there.

I'm not angry we all got to survive some way (If you're going to comment that it's death for the mouse or anything about how I killed the mouse by letting it go just know that I literally can't do anything about it so why even spread negativity like that but I understand that I did wrong you don't have to keep rubbing it in my face) Plus I don't live in that house anymore after they was trying to say that I stole from them so I hope the mouse does come back and I hope there's more in that house TLDR IF YOU'RE GOING TO TRY TO BE NEGATIVE AT ALL DON'T COMMENT

Fox News ran a segment on a Manhattan encampment last week. I went through the city's own data on the claims in it.

The correspondent walks into an encampment during the heat wave, narrates the contents of someone's suitcase on camera, and says the people living there don't want jobs and don't want to go inside.

I pulled the numbers on that. A few things I found:

- NYC's right to shelter means roughly 97 percent of the city's homeless population is in a shelter. So the problem isn't that shelters are full. It's that there's a bed and no exit. (State Comptroller, March 2026)

- The city placed a record 13,000+ households into homes with CityFHEPS vouchers in FY2024, a 42 percent jump. The shelter population still rose about 50 percent, largely from asylum seekers ineligible for those vouchers.

- The most recent citywide housing survey put the net rental vacancy rate at 1.4 percent.

- Across more than 4,148 encampment sweeps, the number of people offered permanent housing through a voucher application, direct placement, or supportive housing transfer was zero. The city spent over $6.4 million on those sweeps since 2024.

I also didn't let Mamdani off the hook. He pledged to end sweeps, reversed in February, restarted them in May. Legal Aid and the Coalition for the Homeless called it a broken promise and I think they're right.

Everything's sourced and linked. Full piece linked above.

Disclosure: my Substack, no paywall.

I'm in a tough spot. I've been struggling to keep up with my mortgage payments for months. I've tried negotiating with the bank and tried refinancing and nothing worked

Now I'm facing foreclosure. The bank has given me a deadline. If I don't sell soon, they'll take the house and auction it off. I'll lose everything

My realtor told me a traditional listing would take 60-90 days. Maybe longer. I don't have that kind of time.

I started looking for alternatives. Found a cash buyer called Bright Home Offer. They say they can close in a week without any repairs needed or endless showings

I’ve heard that these things have happened at those companies before. The company will offer an amount and then lower that amount just before finalizing the deal. Something will be found during the inspection process and will be used for re-negotiation. Before you know it, you are being offered a lot less than expected

Are there hidden fees? Closing costs they don't mention? Fine print that traps you?

I don't have the luxury of being picky. But I also don't want to get taken advantage of when I'm already at my lowest

We uprooted our lives and purchased a condo now we can’t even afford food or rent - let me add that I had to purchase a new central air unit in the midst of all of the remodels that was 11K

I'm so tired right now. I'm probably doing better than most because I get a pension through the VA and therefore mostly free medical care, and I have multiple housemates so I have a place to live, but it freaking sucks not being able to put anything aside. Like, current problems: I have a friend who's saving up to file bankruptcy, so I try to help them out, both my cats need minor surgery, I'd love to be able to save up for a vehicle, and I even have a friend who I could make payments to if that wasn't lower priority than the aforementioned things (the surgery and bankruptcy need to happen fairly quickly), I have another friend who's recently lost their mother and their home situation is...unstable, to say the least. And one of my other friends can barely afford to go to work. Like, they literally run out of food on a regular basis and have no access to even food pantries in their area. And these are just the people I know with the most immediate needs. I just hate that so many people I care about are on the same sinking boat, barely able to keep our heads above water if that, and there are so many people out there with so much money who wouldn't spit on people like us to put us out if we were on fire. Like, all of these people I know, we actively try to help each other out when we can, since we're usually not all doing bad at the same time. Anyway, that helps a little, to rant about it. Suggestions might be helpful, if you'd like. Maybe there's something we hadn't heard about or tried yet...

Voter turnout in the United States is vastly unequal: richer people are more likely to vote than poorer people. In 2016, voting participation rate for families in the lowest income category was 48%, a bit more than half of the 86% rate for families in the highest income category.

If the poor are less likely to vote then they have a lower probability of having their interests and preferences reflected in public policy

I am aware of many reasons for this discrepancy between poor and wealthy individuals: Lack of transportation and/or babysitter; work, too difficult to register, lack of education and/or knowledge of the issues, apathy (aka feeling like your vote doesn’t matter), etc.

Overall, democrats are WILDLY more sympathetic to lower income folks than republicans. If voter turnout of low-income folks equaled that of wealthy individuals, it would greatly benefit them.

Republicans are attempting to make it ten times harder for the poor to vote than it already is, thru the SAVE act. I urge all of you who aren’t registered to vote to do so now, before it becomes even more difficult. Then VOTE!

I don’t want this to turn into a political post, but it’s somewhat inevitable; but please try to keep politics out of it as much as possible and focus on the main question, WHY don’t you vote?

I was working with $320 for groceries and I BARELY got any groceries!!! I spent $57 in meat and over $120 of non-food items! It’s still have to get paper towels, toilet paper, paper plates, etc.

I go to multiple different stores to even out prices and I’m still struggling! We’re a family of 3 with a 46k income after taxes. I’m unfortunately a SAHM due to my fiancés job taking priority no matter the time of day or night. We can’t afford daycare nor is there a reasonable stay at home job where I live. Plus we don’t live by family that can watch our toddler.

I’m so tired of my fiance working 60hr weeks, making $18.50hr and we are barely surviving through life. I want to go back to work so bad it’s unreal. I’m exhausted, and my fiance is even more so.

Edit: I’m getting so much hate it feels unreal. This was just a complaint I made because I feel exhausted. My $120 I spent on groceries is bulk items such as shampoo, cleaning agents, including for a tire that went flat and costed us $89 to replace. I do buy paper towels and paper towels right now and that lasts us over a month because I don’t use them often. I’m spending like $20 total a month for those 😱

We get paid twice a month so we will get another $320 for groceries in two weeks time.

Yes I’m pregnant again, and how DARE I????? I did say I used birth control with spermicide condoms and yall downvote me beyond oblivion for that as well. I couldn’t get an abortion as we realized I was pregnant at 19 weeks. I live in a 6 week ban state and pills don’t remove a fetus that old. Yes, we are removing our tubes once this next one is born so don’t you guys worry about that~ Yall are such awful people to someone who is running on hard times. This was a rant and nothing more. And yall make it seem like I’m doing absolutely nothing and sucking my thumbs while my fiance works?

I did have a job, multiple during this time period. My fiancés job is very demanding of him and he constantly gets called in. I worked at McDonald’s, Walmart, dollar general, and dollar tree. I had to quit them as my pay level was lower than my fiancés and his job took priority. They are also the only place that will switch our schedules around each other too. I am actively trying to work there as well to make money, they have too many workers currently but I’m next on the list!

Yall don’t read comments either because you guys comment the same thing 30+ times!!!!! I’m done commenting so yall can continue to dog on me for our situation. Thank you guys for being so awful 🤍

I'm 25. In Belarus. In college. With 17-year-olds.

They have parents who pay for everything. I have a laptop from 2018 and a backpack with holes.

I'm not tired of studying. I love what I do. I love when something works. When the bot replies. When the site loads.

I'm tired of being invisible. Of being 25 and still counting coins. Of watching classmates get new phones while I pray my laptop survives one more day.

People say "be your own boss." So I am. And my boss pays me nothing. My boss works 16 hours a day. My boss cries in the bathroom between lectures.

I joke about sugar daddies. Sometimes I'm not joking. Because what if I just stopped? What if someone just took care of me for once?

Not forever. Just long enough to breathe.

I chose this path. I know. But I didn't choose to be invisible. I didn't choose to work twice as hard and get half the respect.

I lie to my parents. Say everything is fine. Say I'm growing. I don't tell them I cry over bills. I don't tell them I'm drowning.

At 25 in Belarus — too old for college, too young to quit, and too proud to admit I'm scared.

Just don't ask me how I'm doing. I'll lie anyway.

I've noticed discussions about poverty on here can turn political fast. There seem to be a lot of opposing views on how to solve poverty. It's left me wondering if there's stuff we can all agree on concerning this problem.

If we as mankind are ever gonna solve poverty, I guess we'd better start with the stuff that's most easily agreed upon.

So what is that?