Lisa, your observation is spot-on, and I would like to add another layer that makes Dr. Carson’s statement all the more illogical, and even cruel.
Some of us, through no fault of our own, have illnesses or physical limitations that literally destroy our ability to earn the kind of money it takes (in the U.S.) to be even comfortable, let alone support our families — in my case, as a single mother. And, as you know, our safety net is a far cry from what you have in Canada.
I had a thriving career in advertising when a chronic illness began to erode my ability to do my job. As my condition worsened, my career completely went away, and along with it, things like rent, car payments, health insurance premiums, electricity, even decent groceries. It is difficult, sometimes impossible, to get disability coverage with an invisible illness, especially when you do not ‘look sick.’
It has been a struggle ever since then, still is to this day, and I assure [Dr. Carson] that it is NOT due to an incorrect mindset. It is because my body simply doesn’t allow me to work full-time like I did my whole life before I got sick. I grew up with a very strong work ethic and worked up to three jobs at a time putting myself through what schooling I could afford, and starting my adult life. I still have a strong work ethic, my body simply won’t allow me to implement it.
How reassuring it is to hear from a scientist that Dr. Carson’s assessment, and may I say the whole Republican basis for their agenda, while technically correct to some degree, is harshly inadequate in describing the state of poverty in which many Americans are living — and the worse it gets, the worse it gets. How odd that a gifted and highly educated man would be so clueless.
