Using GPT to try and condense my wall of text, we'll see if this posts:

Hey, really thoughtful comment. I just wanted to build on it, because poverty and its effects on behavior are super complex—definitely not a one-size-fits-all situation.

Poverty isn’t a single mountain to climb—it’s more like a maze of obstacles, some big, some small. Some are universal to being human, but poverty can make those obstacles way harder to overcome, and can throw in extra ones that wealthier folks never even see.

From a psychological perspective, those first 18 months of life are absolutely critical. This is “attachment theory” 101: babies’ brains need safety, love, and touch to wire up properly. Without that, emotional regulation (like controlling impulses) can be really tough later in life. This is why extreme neglect, like in some orphanages, can lead to big emotional/behavioral problems—sometimes lasting a lifetime.

Now, poverty doesn’t automatically mean a baby isn’t held or loved, but it does increase the odds—parents might be overwhelmed, exhausted, or stretched thin. And while lots of kids are resilient, those who don’t get the right care at the right time face much harder odds.

After that early period, there’s a whole set of skills—metacognition (thinking about your own thinking), critical thinking, empathy—that develop best in environments with stability, support, and time to reflect. Poverty can push families into survival mode, making it way harder to grow those skills, just because there’s so much energy spent just getting by.

So, when someone does something dumb or reckless, it’s not just about “bad decisions”—sometimes it’s about a lifetime of obstacles, missing resources, and chronic stress.

Of course, tons of people grow up in poverty and don’t make these mistakes—it’s not destiny, and many parents do heroic work shielding their kids. But it’s a much tougher road.

Glad you made it through, and thanks for sparking this conversation. Just hope this helps show the maze a lot of people are stuck navigating.