I'm often confused by discussions around poverty, addiction, and crime because they seem to focus heavily on society and not much on individual responsibility

[YourWaryPlumBalonz]

For context, I'm autistic, grew up in a low-income household, and my dad was largely absent and neglectful. He rarely showed up, wasn't particularly involved, and wasn't much of a support. Despite that, I never got involved in crime or drugs.
Instead, I used the support that was available. I got help from charities, received government support related to my disability and employment, and eventually found a professional job. It wasn't easy, but there were people and organisations willing to help.
So what I'm struggling to understand is this: if support exists, why are so many problems framed primarily as society's fault rather than the responsibility of the individual?
I'm not saying circumstances don't matter. Clearly they do. But there seem to be plenty of people who experience poverty, disability, family breakdown, neglect, bullying, etc., and don't end up addicted, committing crimes, or repeatedly making self-destructive choices.

It's a booming business and the possible careers in this field are myriad.

im an data analsyt

As someone who has been arrested before I can tell you it’s because you can have the best upbringing and all the privileges in the world and still make stupid fucking decisions because you’re sad and human and humans don’t always behave logically. When you throw in all of the traumas some people feel that lead them to just trying to feel better through alcohol/ drugs, or have better through crime for money or even bad decision making, unknown FASD, learning difficulties, stunted development due to malnutrition or brain trauma due to being beaten as a kid the answer is obvious.

Many humans will make bad and criminal decisions when they are dealt too much hardship in life. It’s natural. So how can we prevent the crime? Reduce the hardship. No point talking about telling people to just act better because when they’re at their lowest they don’t care they’re seeking the only way out they can see.

You can not beat a dog its whole life and expect it not to bite. Some won’t bite because that’s their personality, others will rip your head off.

I’m intrigued to know too but the pay isn’t the point, a PhD would have been a choice to some extent, they didn’t have to take a PhD salary, they would have had a degree and potentially a masters already along with many years of experience I would imagine. They were also likely older parents, likely came from generations of educated professionals, were probably middle class or lower middle (stereotyping now but so is OP) but all of these factors give a child an advantage. OP please read a book or talk to your educated parents.

I don’t believe that for one second having read two of your threads.

i speicalise in financial

Also Op the biggest bit that you’re missing is that you were born with the brains to be able to go to university, pass and be a data analyst. Lots of people are not academic enough and will never be able to get a higher education. It’s not their fault but they are limited in their escape from poverty by their limited ability.

I grew up in poverty and have got out of poverty. I have no idea what charities offer you help to get out of poverty. The help I had was simply teachers teaching and a library card. So you had what sounds like a surprisingly large amount of help.

OP you are one person. And maybe you are not the majority. Alot of the research are around common factors that people in x category face.

Let me use my life as an example. I was raised by a single mum. Then ended up having a kid and raising them as a single parent. I and my child have done well in school, contributed to society, I’ve worked very hard. But had help, I know if I didn’t I could work the way I did. But I will never dismiss the fact that there are lone parents that struggle, and maybe do fall under the negative stats. But also there are so many factors that have helped or hindered me. In the same way someone in poverty might get help and a push or have too much barriers and can barely overcome it.

I'm not disagreeing with that. OP should be comparing themself with other children of temporarily cash strapped academics rather than those of people who may have a couple GCSEs to their name at best, may have long term physical or mental health issues, possible learning difficulties, issues within the wider family and so on.

And OP talks as if that PhD period was a long term thing, which is why I asked. Surely they would have been too young to remember much about it.

Wow ops parent did a PhD and that is why they were poor? FFS. She hasn't an idea what poverty is

I haven't seen your other posts. But is that actually true? That you have been given 100k to buy a house?
Regardless of whether or not you can currently access it, the fact that you have a relative able to make 100k available means that you know fuck all all about living in a back ground of genuine poverty.

Oh and the PhD mother.

You are so right OP, how did you ever drag yourself from the gutter unlike all those feckless ner do wells🙄. You really are an example to us all.

Academics are not poor. You don't have much of a grasp on actual poverty do you?

That's nice. People have different experiences.

Yes. They sound like the average low income working class parents. Get a grip. You are delusional.

If your parents are academics they were not poor. You are so divorced from what poverty actually means that it is embarrassing

Extraordinary!!! I read the opening post and it read very well. Grammar perfect, spelling perfect, yet every answer by OP since has been written by someone who has lost their ability to write coherently in the past hour.
I suspect *ChatGPT give me a good rousing question for mumsnet that makes me look super smart and together"

Does not being white mean you can't string a coherent sentence together. That's not a "additional" barrier.... that's a bollocking wind up.

Hi….sorry, thought I’d replied to the OP there.
No idea how I came to quote you instead, and then not even notice it!

This would explain her confusion.

Yup. We lose so much "between the lines" stuff when AI is used. And I see what you mean here, because the difference here between the OPs opener and later posts is drastic.

I find AI detracts from conversations, and adds little, if anything. Because it can be used to hide so much.

how is being non-white not a barrier, in the uk majority are white esp in powerful positions. and some are racist

Blaming the individual is far too black and white. You reached out for support and found it which is great but not everyone does because not every area has it, particularly following years of austerity. Addiction is also complex and most often tied into trauma and mental illness, it can also be hereditary.

Academics are exceptionally low paid for the level of education we have. We’re as highly educated as is humanly possible yet earn 60k as a senior lecturer and, dependent on university, this can only rise to a max of about 100k as a professor.

I think the point the PP was making is that it's not poverty no matter what way you look at it.