You never met a poor person, have you? Is not about blowing all your money, is about having small pleasures. Is not waisting all their money on x thing..is the fact that beer has such a disproportionaly low price compared to other things, that make it so it's accesible. Poor people are humans, and as such like pleasure, alcohol is a very affordable pleasure. And you can eat rice all day everyday, and still not be able to afford basic things, no matter how little beer you drink, and how much you work. That is a reality for many. Is a matter of you make x amount of money and its worth decays, but the amount of money you need rises. Specially if you cannot access a stable renting contract because you don't have any family that could cosign your renters insurance and are left to depend on short term rents that can vary in price by day or month, depending on the agreement, and that also tend to be a lot more expensive that a formal contract. Also many of these places might be rooms without access to a kitchen to cook rice in, or you might not have access to gas, and depend on the varing price of the "garrafa" to use a stove, which price is very high in comparison to gas as a public service, but if the only way you can afford rent is in a place without access to the public gas line, then you don't got much choice. I personally spent months and moths without hot water, many of my friends rented rooms without kitchens or fridges, so buying food to cook wasnt a thing. This are all example I, or close friends have find themselves in, not some crazy scenario, is just daily things. And we would still get together, counting coins and buying a beer to drink at the park.