How to divide by zero
There is a mathematical fact that you can not divide by zero.
Why? Because everything multiplied by zero results in zero.
So when you try to divide by zero you will never receive an answer because zero is not factorable.
Yet we expect the 47% to not only accomplish this feat but to do so on a daily basis.
You see when American Express started their publicly available credit card they marketed to the upper income brackets. And then Master Card came on the scene. And they wanted to get in on that hot middle class action in the 70's so they marketed to the middle class. And then other credit companies like Visa did the same.
The thing is in doing so they changed the economy. Because now we have people making purchases they actually can not afford, look at credit card default/bankruptcy rates if you have doubts, but in doing so they placed pressure on supply and demand in such a way as to increase greatly the cost of goods and services. Remember the doldrums of the Carter Administration? OPEC was not the only source of that economic backslide but the new availability of credit allowed some to make purchases they once could not and that was a factor in the inflation of the time.
And that inflation has been steady since then. I actually have never seen an across the board reduction in the cost of living in my lifetime, and in this economic system which is cyclical, that is an anomaly that is getting little attention when the significance is truly profound.
And on the other hand the real food of our economic system, labor, has had barely a lift in regards to buying power in that same time frame. On top of socially irresponsible tax cutting putting more money into the pockets of the rich at the expense of the 47% who then are deprived of needed government services once available and now gone due to budget cuts.
Back to dividing by zero.
Now in a normal month a poor person in the 80's would typically run out of aid money one or two days a month if expenses were not metered well.
Now even living in subsidized housing my aid is gone in a week, and usually within one or two days. So I spend my days doing little. What can I do? Even doing things that are free costs money.
Go to the park? If it isn't in walking distance you need transit fare. And once there you are active, usually, so you tend to get hungry and thirsty. But you can't go to a restaurant or market to satiate that need, they require money for their products and you have none. This is made more difficult by companies such as Starbucks that use a drier on their old grounds that also emits the scent of coffee over the neighborhood. Not really fair to those of us without the funds to buy coffee to have to endure the scented lure.
Well you say, why don't you bring it with you from home? Why do you have to get the $5 coffee?
Besides the fact that beans don't pack or hold up well in a lunch sack, they tend to ferment quickly, they are heavy and messy. Most poor persons don't have a vehicle they can store food and water in as they go about their day. And on day trips when I have tried to pack all I needed for the day I was told in some venues to leave because the amount of luggage made me appear homeless. As to buying the high dollar coffee, that goes back to the vehicle issue and time something else the 47% has to struggle to find, you go to where the product is available. Going around trying to find the cheapest coffee is a luxury that the poor do not have. If they need it it is an actual need to be addressed not a want that can be put off.
How to divide by zero on a typical day.
Let's say I have a doctors appointment.
That appointment is downtown and I was able to scrounge enough change for bus fare. Hopefully the pennies won't clog the hopper.
It will take two hours each way in transit. And the visit will probably end up taking about two hours in total.
Now let's say I had to fast before the trip for a blood test. So after not eating all night and traveling and going to the Dr. I have not had food or water for about sixteen hours. Now when I'm done with the doctor what I should be able to do is go somewhere and have at least a small meal. But I can't, because you can't divide by zero. So I have to travel home and fix whatever I need myself.
Although economically frugal I find this situation unnecessarily cruel.
Now let's say I decided to walk to the appointment. But I can't, my shoes are worn out, not only because I walk so much but also because as a poor person I can't afford shoes that are actually durable enough for the level of use the poor need. But I can't divide by zero so I can forgo walking or more likely walk until the blisters soak my sock with blood because no one will sell you shoes for zero.
I was out on more than one occasion and was debilitated by a migraine. I couldn't get any Tylenol to find some relief because that too costs money. I have to return home and use what I already have because I'm unable to make a quick convenient purchase. Simple every day things many people take for granted.
Well I figured out how to solve the zero equation.
By reducing my expenses. My largest expense is housing. If I don't pay housing I can actually have a satisfying month's worth of food and can afford most of my medication. Scarcity of both have created a cycle of depression in me that I haven't been able to significantly shake. By eliminating this expense I'm increasing my ability to cope with living. Because I seriously have little motivation to even cope when I'm playing a game where the rules are all not in my favor but the other players cheat with impunity. So the obvious solution is to eliminate that expense and quit playing a game I will never ever win. I'm surprised I hadn't thought of it sooner.
So I'm packing what I can on my bike trailer and going on a long term camping trip.
Mostly because there are no realistic options.
I see no point in driving myself insane monthly just simply to keep a roof over my head.
It is obvious by now to all but the severely dense and corrupt that there is no road out of poverty. That is just a lie to keep you selling your labor to the lowest bidder. And to keep you on the treadmill of debt and penury that makes the cockchafer look like a vacation. If hard work ended poverty then the only poor would be the scam artists running this casino.
Statement of Fact: Lower the wages, the harder you work. I'd love to see some of those manicured scuzzballs from Wall Street wandering around with a .75 horsepower gasoline engines on their backs blowing particulates everywhere. But no, we don't see that. Instead we see the marginalized, in most cases, running the tools that we use in this culture. I'm certain a Bankster wouldn't even know how to start it.
When instead our labor is treated like it is in endless supply and if we ask too much they just ship the jobs to where pennies on the dollar is the norm.
I'm tired of playing find the four leaf clover of housing affordability. And realistically even subsidized where I'm only paying $200 leaves me struggling to eat every month. So even if I were to find another HUD I would only returning to hunger and privation on a regular basis. I'm not seeing that as a solution.
I'll keep looking for caretaker gigs so my housing is covered but that too is a four leaf clover.
The Casino Economy where the 47% looks in coin return slots in order to keep playing the house.
The 1% wants you to have "skin in the game," because the game is rigged.
I would like this change in my living situation to be an opportunity for me to gather news and information. But I'm currently at a loss to define a clear goal in that regard. I'm open to ideas. I'm also needing help moving my stuff into storage, physically and financially, so Kosmail me if you can lend a hand. I'm in the deplorable position of needing to purchase a storage unit and rent a uhaul but will not have any money until the day I want to leave, the first.