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What prevents the poor from reaching the middle class? | VISION TALKS

American Enterprise Institute · talk · Watch on YouTube

Labor, work & inequalitySocial issues & culture

What it is

Megan McArdle's AEI Vision Talk 'Capital and Poverty' argues that social and financial capital work differently in low-income communities, and that this explains barriers to reaching the middle class.

Why Hacker News recommends it

Cited to explain why poor people's seemingly irrational financial decisions can rationally protect their social safety net.

  • 2 people recommended it
  • 2 different months
  • 0 strong recommendations
  • first 2014, last 2024

What HN commenters said

  1. “some people value social capital above other forms of capital and that can be a rational thing to do”

    Social capital as rational choice for the poor

    humanrebar, 2014-12 · Recommendation · in “We Are Built to Be Kind [video]”

  2. “poor people make seemingly dumb decisions because if they don't help their social network when it comes knocking”

    Poor people's seemingly dumb decisions preserve their social safety net

    e63f67dd-065b, 2024-02 · Recommendation · in “The business of check cashing”

Excerpts from Hacker News comments, linked to the originals. Summaries and labels were written by a language model from those comments.

Topics: social capital, poverty, upward mobility, megan mcardle, economics

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