pp. 223-224
This little vignette illustrates some of the particular hardships of poverty for individuals, no matter how they end up in poverty.

pp. 224-232
Poverty rates in the U.S. are now around 13%, but what has been the general trend over time?

What is the trend, if there is one, in the last 30 years?

How does poverty in the U.S. compare to that of Western European countries?

How is poverty in the U.S. measured? What are the arbitrary decisions that went into establishing the poverty line?

Does Beeghley seem to think that if we worked harder at it, we could design a better poverty line measure?

pp. 228-232
This is a nice little section that illustrates how studying family budgets tells us that the poor are indeed poor, and that even if they are not poor (statistically-speaking), they are still struggling with many of the same problems even when just above the poverty line.

pp. 232-237
What program did TANF replace in the mid 1990s?

What does Beeghley mean that a family must remain poor to receive TANF benefits, and why does this seem problematic to him?

What's the different between TANF, Supplementary Security Income, and Medicaid (in terms of the problem they are supposed to solve)? What few things do they have in common according to the text?

p. 237
What is the paradox of public assistance to which Beeghley refers?

What is a means test and why does Beeghely seem to dislike it (or at least seems to want us to beware of it)?

p. 238 
Beeghley refers to another text of his and talks about the 'trickle up effect'. What does he mean?

pp. 239-242 
Here Beeghley seems to me to be writing a bit cynically, calling these things the benefits of poverty for society. He is articulating some of the things that some functionalists would approve. But you and I know that he really dislikes these alleged benefits. What are the alleged benefits to society?

pp. 242-245 
What are the individual level characteristics that are most often correlated with being poor?

With regard to work experience, how does he suggest that socialization might contribute to poverty?

How does he say that human capital arguments tend to blame the victim?

pp. 245-248 
Here Beeghley backs away from the individual-level determinants of poverty and instead highlights the features of society in general that tend to raise and lower poverty rates in general. He points out that since the long-term trend has been a decline in poverty, then it must reflect some big changes in society. What are the 3 he highlights? Be able to briefly summarize each of them.

pp. 248-253 
Here he points out that poverty is not eliminated and that other structural processes continue to maintain current poverty rates. What are these 6 influences that tend to maintain poverty in the U.S.?

The issue of institutionalized discrimination is not well-discussed here but he expands on it in Chapter 5.

pp. 253-258 
Here Beeghley illustrates the long term impacts of poverty on individuals, focusing on hunger, homelessness, living around violent crime and gangs.

Next, he discusses how we in the U.S. usually respond to these issues when they are pointed out to us (by us, I mean adult citizens who could do something about it.)

Finally, he suggests 5 additional reasons for the persistence of poverty in the U.S. What are they?

I particularly dwell on the fourth one, regarding middle class individualism. it is the one most notoriously overlooked by most middle class folks I know (people like me), and it often escapes the notice of college students who may perceive that their own success is primarily the result of their own individual efforts.