bridgetc47

I know this is going to be unpopular. So be it.

Balancing your checkbook - especially if you have on line access - is not rocket science and it's not the first step on the road to Wall Street. I promise you you can do it and still be a democrat.

It's good stewardship.

You're also telling me that you're taking an apple daily from a kid who's own food security is probably iffy. It's wonderful that you're letting him do this act of generosity, but what are you doing personally in return? Do you bring the milk or cookies or something - or are you really letting a student give up part of his lunch to feed his teacher? I have a problem with that.

I'm not going to demonize Starbucks - I love Starbucks and the wifi access is probably worth the coffee price - but you have to budget for it, because if the above poster is right (and they probably are) about the overdraft fees - that Starbucks just cost you another $5, $10 or $35 depending on how your bank calculates the fee. That's very expensive coffee even with wifi.

Is there any reason you don't carry $5 in cash? Because you could have saved yourself that overdraft fee if you had just paid in cash. And how much do you love your bank? Do you really want to give them an extra $5, $10, or $35 bucks in pure profit because you can't check your access before you use your debit card?

Poor people get treated lousy in this country - as they have for several thousand years. The best way to stop them from being treated badly in the short term is to help them get out. And yes, the deck is stacked against them. But by teaching them to use what little they have wisely so they're not at the mercy of the banks, and the payday lenders and the utilities - all of whom make money on the desperation of the poor.

Look at the late fees and the bounce fees and the deposits on the utility bill. Those are costs that are keeping your student's family at risk for losing power every month. Sometimes it can't be helped. But sometimes (and trust me I've lived this one) you can sacrifice for a month or two or three and just get enough ahead to pay the d**n thing on time. And by doing so you save more money. Maybe not enough to get name brand cereal, but enough to get by. And enough so the lights stay on.

And that's a lesson your students really need to learn.