“By the Reagan era, the 'culture of poverty' had become a cornerstone of conservative ideology: poverty was caused not by low wages or a lack of jobs but by bad attitudes and faulty lifestyles. The poor were dissolute, promiscuous, prone to addiction and crime, unable to 'defer gratification' or possibly even set an alarm clock. The last thing they could be trusted with was money.” JobsLastsCulturePoorAttitudePovertyCrimeLowsAddictionConservativeLifestyleIdeologyErasClockTrustedWagesGratificationAlarmsCornerstonesBad AttitudePromiscuousAlarm Clocks Author:Barbara Ehrenreich
“Newt Gingrich and his fellow conservative Republicans talked a good game but, despite the lip service they offered about poverty and race and other social issues, they didn't really mean it.” MeanGamesSocialRacePovertyIssuesRepublicanFellowsLipsConservativeDespiteSocial IssuesReally MeanNewtsLip Service Author:Arianna Huffington
“Welfare's purpose should be to eliminate, as far as possible, the need for its own existence.” NeedsShouldPurposePresidentExistencePovertyConservativeWelfareSocial Programs Author:Ronald Reagan
“The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his own weight.” FirstsAblePovertyMilitaryWillingDutyCitizensWeightConservativeSocialismWelfareRepublicCitizenshipGood CitizenRepublic DayGood Citizenship Author:Theodore Roosevelt