General Discussion

jeff47

(26,549 posts)

26. The part you're missing is the hurdles to get to the "easy" solution

Tue Dec 9, 2014, 12:52 PM

Dec 2014

In my particular case, I can get a new copy of my birth certificate by mail.

The county where I was born charges $28 for the new copy. How do I write that check without a bank account? Ok, now gotta get a money order. Which adds additional fees, and lots of places won't issue the money order without ID.

The request has to be notarized. Costs nothing if I walk into my bank, but I have a bank. For someone without a bank or similar institution, getting the request notarized costs more than $28 in most places. And again, requires a valid ID.

How do I get that valid ID? By showing my birth certificate. Which I can't get without a valid ID.

There are an awful lot of traps out there that most of us don't think about, because most of us won't fall into them - I've got a secure place to keep my birth certificate, and I've got an up-to-date driver's license since I have a car. So we believe the solution to a problem is very easy, and some of us post things implying the poor person being stupid or lazy.

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I feel like people (other than on DU) don't get that the grid keeps you off once you're off [View all] Recursion Dec 2014 OP

a kick to go with my rec.. Because only one who has been pushed into the mud of annabanana Dec 2014 #1

"Once you don't have a bank account, it's hard to get one." Dreamer Tatum Dec 2014 #2

Bwah! Recursion Dec 2014 #3

No, I don't, if that's your claim. nt Dreamer Tatum Dec 2014 #4

I edited: I had an adverse closure due to a ($15) overdraft Recursion Dec 2014 #5

I completely believe you ... 1StrongBlackMan Dec 2014 #35

And often that overdraft is a consequence of banking fees hidden away in the small print. hunter Dec 2014 #62

Well that changes matters significantly. Dreamer Tatum Dec 2014 #64

How does that change things significantly? pnwmom Dec 2014 #97

I don't understand why you said something so wrong so confidently CreekDog Dec 2014 #126

Sorry, Dreamer, it's true, it happened to me. I had an adverse closure when someone on my family DesertDiamond Dec 2014 #47

There is nowhere in this country where one can open an account only with $5. Gormy Cuss Dec 2014 #96

And if you're an American living overseas, Art_from_Ark Dec 2014 #167

Any reason you think the OP is a liar? TexasProgresive Dec 2014 #98

Has it been a while for you. peace13 Dec 2014 #7

+1 nt Live and Learn Dec 2014 #142

Yep, it's always the poor person's fault. jeff47 Dec 2014 #8

That was what drove me insane on the Slate comments. Recursion Dec 2014 #13

Yes, people who haven't experienced it treestar Dec 2014 #23

Yep ... 1StrongBlackMan Dec 2014 #46

It's funny. I took to eating at a church soup kitchen every Tuesday and Thursday night. Recursion Dec 2014 #60

Very similar to my own experiences. hunter Dec 2014 #105

+1 ... 1StrongBlackMan Dec 2014 #158

Why I think community service is SO important - it pays closeupready Dec 2014 #155

So true ... 1StrongBlackMan Dec 2014 #159

Another one that really 2naSalit Dec 2014 #57

This is the anti-social self-help "positive-thinking" culture at work. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #75

It is. 2naSalit Dec 2014 #81

"That's why I ... walk away" - yes, exactly. closeupready Dec 2014 #156

The brilliant Barbara Ehrenreich writes about this in her book tblue37 Dec 2014 #132

Oh cool. 2naSalit Dec 2014 #162

The ebook version is under $6. nt tblue37 Dec 2014 #163

thank you for the recommendation- sounds good! bettyellen Dec 2014 #164

Not true in many cases. A HERETIC I AM Dec 2014 #11

I've since found out that MA is particularly ruthless about this Recursion Dec 2014 #73

Try walking into a bank, post Patriot Act with nothing but $5 in your pocket Glassunion Dec 2014 #20

Smug much? - nt KingCharlemagne Dec 2014 #25

Uh if by "much" you mean "all the time," that's an affirmative. closeupready Dec 2014 #157

How rude, tatum. chervilant Dec 2014 #33

That's his M.O. geardaddy Dec 2014 #40

Well, then... chervilant Dec 2014 #45

Apparently you have never worked in a bank Ruby the Liberal Dec 2014 #43

Is that really true? Recursion Dec 2014 #52

Usury is alive and well Ruby the Liberal Dec 2014 #63

This message was self-deleted by its author Recursion Dec 2014 #71

We weren't told about the adverse closure when I replied. Dreamer Tatum Dec 2014 #65

Or, you chose to ignore that fact Ruby the Liberal Dec 2014 #72

Yep. In fairness the manager was very polite in explaining this to me Recursion Dec 2014 #74

I love USAA Ruby the Liberal Dec 2014 #79

I think you are in denial. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #77

What am I denying? That it's unfair and expensive to have a bank account without a lot of money? Dreamer Tatum Dec 2014 #83

You are calling the OP a liar because it threatens your beautiful mind. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #89

I object ... staggerleem Dec 2014 #104

. Guy Whitey Corngood Dec 2014 #137

BWAH! Odin2005 Dec 2014 #147

How does a banking/credit professional not know that banks just don't hand out checking accounts kcr Dec 2014 #122

That might be true where you live, but it's not true everywhere. ColesCountyDem Dec 2014 #91

LOL! Have you tried to open an account with a $5 bill lately? Pacifist Patriot Dec 2014 #102

In 1967, I opened a savings account with 10 cents Art_from_Ark Dec 2014 #168

Not true. I couldn't get a bank account either back in the day. cui bono Dec 2014 #110

I just opened a new bank account -- minimum of $300 deposit. n/t nichomachus Dec 2014 #114

Totally wrong. Banks use verification clearing houses to check past banking history. Lochloosa Dec 2014 #117

Wrong again. Are you in the running for the most wrong-headed thinking closeupready Dec 2014 #154

Excellent thread, we need MORE of this at DU steve2470 Dec 2014 #6

Predators prey on the weak. bemildred Dec 2014 #9

you can get a birth certificate copy with your drivers license snooper2 Dec 2014 #10

I would have had to get to Mississippi, which I couldn't afford Recursion Dec 2014 #12

Was it a long time ago? treestar Dec 2014 #22

Requests by mail still require proof of identity. jeff47 Dec 2014 #28

that's true treestar Dec 2014 #38

But the license had expired, so that was another complication. deurbano Dec 2014 #51

Yeah. In fairness if I had realized the world of shit I was getting into, I would have moved faster Recursion Dec 2014 #53

When I moved back to OK littlebit Dec 2014 #58

It was compounded by losing a permanent mailing address Recursion Dec 2014 #55

Another big problem treestar Dec 2014 #67

Post-PATRIOT, a PO Box requires a valid ID Recursion Dec 2014 #68

Oh my treestar Dec 2014 #95

in addition... handmade34 Dec 2014 #149

If a cop stops you with that much cash, Arger68 Dec 2014 #115

My MS birth cert. is under lock and key in the S D box BobbyBoring Dec 2014 #121

The part you're missing is the hurdles to get to the "easy" solution jeff47 Dec 2014 #26

When I moved to Texas all I had was an expired Missouri license snooper2 Dec 2014 #30

When I moved to NY, I had a valid CO license. They wouldn't give me a new NY one. jeff47 Dec 2014 #34

$79.00 for a copy of my birth certificate!!? Pakhet Dec 2014 #135

Wow!!! heaven05 Dec 2014 #14

Also: at that point I didn't know about the Legion or VFW Recursion Dec 2014 #15

Yep the Legion and VFW have been known heaven05 Dec 2014 #29

Well, you hear "homeless vet" and you have this image; it took me months to realize that was me Recursion Dec 2014 #54

+1 nt steve2470 Dec 2014 #18

Amen.... daleanime Dec 2014 #16

Even on DU, people try to tell you you didn't experience what you experienced malthaussen Dec 2014 #17

+1 nt DawgHouse Dec 2014 #31

It's what we call "denying the realities of the oppressed" is social justice circles. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #80

+1 n/t Gormy Cuss Dec 2014 #101

Honestly it was that experience that got me really into feminism Recursion Dec 2014 #82

k and r. thank you for sharing this with us. amazing how blithely ignorant so many are about niyad Dec 2014 #19

The guy at the impound lot was a real heartless SOB sociopath steve2470 Dec 2014 #21

Amen, hold the car hostage treestar Dec 2014 #24

yep you nailed it nt steve2470 Dec 2014 #32

They do. I guess that's the point. Recursion Dec 2014 #76

IMO most of those kind of folks are sociopaths and psychopaths. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #85

Can I Munificence Dec 2014 #27

Don't you have to be looking for work to collect UI? Going to college would KingCharlemagne Dec 2014 #39

Because I was in school Recursion Dec 2014 #41

Um Munificence Dec 2014 #59

BU had laid off their vet rep position three years before and didn't refill it until two years later Recursion Dec 2014 #61

Unemployment is a state benefit, and the eligibility rules differ. jeff47 Dec 2014 #42

K and R geardaddy Dec 2014 #36

Great post. Personal experience provides a keen understanding that can't be found elsewhere think Dec 2014 #37

interesting how those stories do not get told hfojvt Dec 2014 #44

I know exactly what you mean Marrah_G Dec 2014 #48

God yes. That fear. I still have fear of that fear (if that makes sense). Recursion Dec 2014 #49

I grew up in that world and still live in it. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #92

I've seen young people drive without car insurance because they couldn't afford it, Zorra Dec 2014 #50

Then they start selling drugs to pay the fines, are busted, and become prison slaves. Odin2005 Dec 2014 #93

Well, fellow DUer, chervilant Dec 2014 #56

Sorry to hear that Recursion Dec 2014 #109

+1 nt Live and Learn Dec 2014 #145

Once out of the Matrix it's a bitch to get back in. harun Dec 2014 #66

Absolutely true. Been right there. I've never forgotten it, either. byronius Dec 2014 #69

Exactly. Ironically, I was taking Relativity that semester and we studied the event horizon Recursion Dec 2014 #70

Haven't been there myself (at least yet and hope to never be) Live and Learn Dec 2014 #146

Around 15 years ago my brother had his bank account SheilaT Dec 2014 #78

That's not quite accurate, you can get your SS payment on a debit card Fumesucker Dec 2014 #128

I did not know that. SheilaT Dec 2014 #138

Kick - Thanks for sharing. LeftInTX Dec 2014 #84

Well, I'm lucky to be white (or white enough to pass) Recursion Dec 2014 #86

My brother, who is on Social Security, had a medical emergency when he was at a bus stop panader0 Dec 2014 #87

Jesus that's brutal Recursion Dec 2014 #90

This is what so many don't understand. Unless you have a ton of money, it doesn't take much stevenleser Dec 2014 #88

Poverty is like quicksand. ColesCountyDem Dec 2014 #94

+1 I don't know why it is so hard for people to understand this. Live and Learn Dec 2014 #148

Yours was the first post I clicked on after walking in the door today Fumesucker Dec 2014 #99

Small world Recursion Dec 2014 #103

Reminds me of a Yakov Smirnoff joke Fumesucker Dec 2014 #127

There was a similar one I remember: "under capitalism, man is oppressed by his fellow man" Recursion Dec 2014 #136

And it all started with the Tow Scam ymetca Dec 2014 #100

It would be interesting to know how many lives ThoughtCriminal Dec 2014 #112

+1 Had a family member victimized by this one too. nt Live and Learn Dec 2014 #143

Tow companies and impound lots are vultures. I went to get my car once, and like your story, the Stardust Dec 2014 #166

I have a question, Recursion ... staggerleem Dec 2014 #106

I mentioned that upthread Recursion Dec 2014 #107

Sorry, what do you mean "here in India"? brush Dec 2014 #141

That was years ago. I live in India right now (nt) Recursion Dec 2014 #151

Employers also go a LOT by salary history.... Spitfire of ATJ Dec 2014 #108

I have a habit of not putting salary history down Recursion Dec 2014 #111

Let's hope they don't see this... Spitfire of ATJ Dec 2014 #113

But I'm sure you DO list prior employers ... staggerleem Dec 2014 #161

This is why... MaggieD Dec 2014 #116

What a SUPERB essay! Nails the issue, right there. nt MADem Dec 2014 #118

sadly, I knew two types of comments would show up here DonCoquixote Dec 2014 #119

+1 nt Live and Learn Dec 2014 #144

I would recommend this to anyone thinking those in poverty are there due to a moral failing. pa28 Dec 2014 #120

You have a future in writing. grahamhgreen Dec 2014 #123

Recursion: Raine1967 Dec 2014 #124

impound lots and payday loans hopemountain Dec 2014 #125

Recommend and thanks for babylonsister Dec 2014 #129

KnR to the nth degree! nt tblue37 Dec 2014 #130

K&R ismnotwasm Dec 2014 #131

Juicy Flight Derek V Dec 2014 #133

What the fuck does that mean? Control-Z Dec 2014 #139

The Columbia Tragedy Derek V Dec 2014 #160

It's interesting that there more than a few people questioning the validity of your life story PersonNumber503602 Dec 2014 #134

"I learned about 25 ways to cook rice and beans" - even that's not a great idea anymore progree Dec 2014 #140

thank you Recursion handmade34 Dec 2014 #150

I'm glad to hear you had such great support marym625 Dec 2014 #152

thanks for sharing your story fishwax Dec 2014 #153

Great OP. blackspade Dec 2014 #165