I know some will disagree, but the old saying "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer" is becoming more real everyday. We have executives cashing in millions while their company files for bankruptcy, and their stockholders loosing their investment. Retirement pensions and IRA's loosing value and dwindling down to a worthless piece of paper. The government is estimating 1 out 10 U.S. citizens are getting food stamps. Not to mention the price of gas, food, clothes, etc. Then we have the President telling us the economy isn't that bad, only temporary. Below is the new release on poverty in Illinois. It shows a 19 percent increase in poverty over the last 9 years. Similar statistics can be found throughout the country. This doesn't look temporary to me. Maybe this is why so many people, young and old, are registering to vote for the first time. If enough of us stand up and work together, we as Americans can put our country back on track and continue to be the greatest country in the world. If we don't, nine years from now might be a whole lot worse.

 "Poverty is on the rise in Illinois.  The Heartland Alliance, in its annual report on poverty being released Wednesday, April 16th 2008 says 250,000 people have become poor here since 1999, a 19 percent increase. Wages, adjusted for inflation, are down, and the cost of basic living is up.

The total impoverished population in Illinois is 1,539,033, based on federal standards: Annual income of $10,400 or less for an individual, $14,000 for a family of two and $21,200 for a family of four.  Fifteen percent of Illinois families have zero or negative net worth, meaning their debt is greater than their assets.  In this year's study, poverty grew in 74 of 102 counties. Twenty-two counties are on the poverty-warning list, 44 on the watch list, based on indicators such as high school graduation rates, unemployment and teen birth rates.  Study author Amy Rynall says in the Illinois economy, many of the new jobs have been in low-wage sectors, yet people with declining wages have rising costs for housing, food, transportation, medical care and taxes. She blames a "regressive" tax structure for contributing to the problem.  The report suggests an increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit as the quickest way to alleviate poverty. Rynall says that will also serve as an economic stimulus, because low-income people will spend that money immediately on basic needs."