The Cruelty is the Point, Redux

     Because, fucking A, this is exactly what Jesus would've wanted.

     We've always been hostile to the poor and justify that prejudice by claiming that poor people choose to live in poverty, which most of us do not. We show our contempt to the poor by slapping them with fees, surcharges, penalties, reconnection fees and so forth as if the added burden will make it easier for us to pay up. Rich people don't have to worry about this shit.

     We successfully criminalized indigence so that now it's a thriving multibillion dollar a year industry. Poor people are the reason why collection agencies and repo men exist, why payday lenders exist, why debtor's prisons exist. If you stumble once, people will do their damnedest to ensure you stay down. That's the point.

     When my fiancee, Barbara, died four weeks ago, and even for months before that, they made me insolvent by taking away her Social Security checks because, of course, a multi million dollar nursing home needed it more than us. They left me unable to pay my rent and now I'm looking at imminent eviction. The rules are simple- If you can't keep up with the other rats in the rat race, you get thrown to the wayside.

     And they did it with such casual sadism. Every day, I cry because I miss her so much. Every day I've lived these past four weeks is like the day I got the horrible news. It's like Groundhog Day, only without the laughs.

     Oh, and yesterday, I got a letter from the food stamp people expressing their sincere condolences on Barbara's passing right before telling me they were taking most of my SNAP benefits. The subtractions. They never end.

     And people wonder why I say I no longer want to live.