The question “Why is there so much poverty in the United States?” » has such a wide range of problems. There is no simple cure or single cause for poverty. According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "the 2011 poverty guidelines are $10,890 for a one-member household and $22,350 for a family of four." persons” (para. 13). Furthermore, “family incomes below the threshold mean that each individual in the household is considered to be in a situation of poverty” (para. 13). Poverty is too complex a problem to be the result of a single problem, but we can refine the subject, to show the effects of how the lack of education can diminish the resources of our countries and how this has an effect training on future generations. Without education, people receive lower wages; there is an increase in crime rates and a greater reliance on state and federal aid, which depletes the economy. First, employers have difficulty employing people who do not have a high school diploma or general education (GED) because they lack the motivation and drive to finish what they started. Because individuals lack the necessary qualifications, they find themselves in low-paid jobs or unemployed, relying on public assistance to get by. Often, these low-paying positions consist of part-time work, giving the employee only about 20 to 25 hours per week. This is a considerable salary deduction from a full-time position over 40 hours per week. Now let's imagine the rate of pay of individuals. The employing state determines minimum wage rates and this will rarely be enough to support a household. According to the National Center for Education Statistics IES, "The median income of people aged 18 to 67 who ...... middle of paper ...... are able to earn their own offspring" ( 413). CitéRouse, CE (2007). Qualifying the costs of inadequate education: labor market consequences. In CR Belfiels & HM Levin (Eds.), The price we pay: Economic and social consequences of inadequate education (pp. 99-124). Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press.Federal Register Notice, January 20, 2011 — Full text ] [Federal Register: January 20, 2011 (Volume 76, Number 13)] [Notice] [Pages 3637-3638] From the Federal Register online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr20ja11-76]“Crime linked to school dropout rates”. Fight crime: invest in children. School Library Journal, Web. August 27, 2008. “In Death Row/San Quentin,” 647 condemned prisoners wait to die in the most populated execution chamber in the United States. Pierre Fimrite. SF door. Com, Web. November 20. 2005.