I think you are probably both pretty good guys. You just happen to be on the opposite ends of the entitlement stick. At least that would be the first impression. Probably not accurate. If you, the the Kalpuya Piaute member think you had it bad, you probably did. I have read alot about the tribes. My grandmother was a nurse and lived just outside of Bismarck N.D. She was terrified of the 'drunken savages', her words. She nursed whomever needed it Sioux, and White eyes alike. A few years after they moved to Washington, my mother and then I came into the picture. We were damn poor too, although I didn't know it. My grandfather was a teacher, farmer, carpenter, harvester, mechanic, logger and whatever else it required to put a roof over the family's head and food on the table.
I was born in the year of the 'New Deal.' FDR was in the drivers seat and he was going to take care of the mess our social services wallowed in. The Volstead act also went down the tube much to my Grandmother's disgust. Her name was Carrie and guess who her Idol was. Yah, Carrie Nation the WCTU soldier. I grew up hearing about drunks, drunk Indians. The devil's brew. Booze and boozers. It would have been funny if it wasn't so sad.
In those days my Grandmother would take some loaves of bread to the 'poor farm' near Spangle, for those who needed food. She had nothing but scorn for those other folks on the 'dole' as she called it. She felt those people should have to work for their food. She would feed any Hobo that came to the door if he would chop a little kindlling or hoe a row in the garden.
I had it good. I don't remember going hungry except as punishment for some big offense. I cannot remember any time when someone in my family didn't have a job. Even in the worst of winter in 1940 my uncle would take me out woodcutting with him. He used to cut firewood for lots of the outlying farms around the area. No car, we walked. Anyway so what. We all had different experiences growing up. Some good, some bad. Some outgrew the bitterness, some didn't.
And here we are wondering why there are folks that would sit on their fat derreriers and let others earn their daily bread for them. Others that would say "if they won't work let em starve", and others that would take care of everyone if it was permitted. The big problem is those that would take care of everyone would prefer to do it with your income. You fix it I can't.
ps you guys posted six times when I was messing around with this one. I have some more to say but gotta go feed the livestock.