You Own a Business? "You Didn't Build That," Says Obama

[Anonymous]

We need more "pull yourself up by the bootstraps" self-made men like Mitt Romney. He started out life behind the eight ball. His father was only the CEO of American Motors and the Governor of Michigan. I am glad Mitt was able to overcome his lack of opportunities and advantages and actually make a success of himself without any help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Turns out that Mitt Romney is running some commercials with "outraged" small businessmen upset over Obama's (edited) remarks. Full of indignation that the governnment had nothing to do with their success, harumpth, harumph. As NPR reported the other day, at least one (a NH business) received a government-backed loan, other Small Business Administration financing and has contracts with the US Coast Guard and the Navy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a level of subsistence and then there are the extras. Poor must eat, we should feed them. Poor must have shelter, we should provide them shelter, poor need education. We should provide them shelter. I'll even go so far as they need healthcare, so we should provide that and childcare, within reason.

However, in an effort to make sure the poor don't feel different because they are poor, we provide them money and give them discretion how to spend it. Poor people need basics to subsist and education to succeed not cash in hand. I am sorry, but sending a check and saying spent it on what you want is stupid. And if you don't want make someone poor feel bad and you therefore give them granite countertops and gym memberships, they have no incentive to not be poor anymore.

I am making sweeping generalizations, but the point is I work hard and I don't have granite countertops, a gym membership and I'll paying for my kids education for years after they go to school or they will. I am tired of being told I need to take care of other people's kids too. I worked my way out of the poverty level and others can too. And yes, I got subsisitence help from the government and I am ok with that. I kept food on the table when mom worked after dad died. But granite countertops are ridiculous. Helping the poor has gotten so derailed.

Dude, get a grip! How many poor people do you think actually have granite table tops?! I know you're feeling bitter about some people out your way who happen to have these amenities but I would bet my house that that's only a few people.

[Anonymous]

After I read through this thread, this story started sounding familiar. I looked up the names of these places and checked on the minimum and maximum income limits for renting these places.

One place is called Stockwell Manor; another is called Bryson at Woodland Park. This link will lead you to the minimum and maximum income based on unit size and family size. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/rha/rentalhousingprograms/fcrp-mirp-chart.htm

For example, if you want to rent a two-bedroom unit and you have a family of four, you must have a minimum income of $27,429 and you cannot have an income higher than $71,900. The income minimums actually keep the very very poor out of these communities but might be within reach of the working poor. But the reality is that a lot of these types of housing are aimed more at providing workforce housing - so, say, a teacher, or a firefighter could afford to live near their work rather than driving in from rural Virginia.

Personally if I lived in a community like this, I would prefer it if it had some affordable housing - so I can have teachers as neighbors or firefighters or cashiers or janitors (who also want to be near their jobs). And remember this is only a few units - it's not like they're going to crowd out the upper middle class professionals. This is good social policy and makes the community better for everyone (at least in my view) in that people are not completely segregated by class. Just like public education and public roads, adding a few units of housing which is affordable to people who are not upper middle class is a public good.

[Anonymous]

15:00 again - Would be curious to know if the pp who is so up in arms about this thinks that teachers, firefighters, janitors, and cashiers don't deserve granite counters.

That's an interesting question now that I think about it. Just who is worthy of granite counters?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:After I read through this thread, this story started sounding familiar. I looked up the names of these places and checked on the minimum and maximum income limits for renting these places.

One place is called Stockwell Manor; another is called Bryson at Woodland Park. This link will lead you to the minimum and maximum income based on unit size and family size. http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/rha/rentalhousingprograms/fcrp-mirp-chart.htm

For example, if you want to rent a two-bedroom unit and you have a family of four, you must have a minimum income of $27,429 and you cannot have an income higher than $71,900. The income minimums actually keep the very very poor out of these communities but might be within reach of the working poor. But the reality is that a lot of these types of housing are aimed more at providing workforce housing - so, say, a teacher, or a firefighter could afford to live near their work rather than driving in from rural Virginia.

Personally if I lived in a community like this, I would prefer it if it had some affordable housing - so I can have teachers as neighbors or firefighters or cashiers or janitors (who also want to be near their jobs). And remember this is only a few units - it's not like they're going to crowd out the upper middle class professionals. This is good social policy and makes the community better for everyone (at least in my view) in that people are not completely segregated by class. Just like public education and public roads, adding a few units of housing which is affordable to people who are not upper middle class is a public good.

Stop making such excellent sense. You'll confuse some people!