Mississippians not waiting for handout

The Hattiesburg American, 4/29/7

Mississippians have often tended to accept data showing the state either 49th or 50th – in categories one doesn’t want to be last in – without putting up much of an argument. The data are there so it must carry some validity. Our state is poor, and has often lagged others when it comes to education while being a leader in such dismal areas as obesity, diabetes and the rate of cancer deaths.

If the Mississippi Economic Policy Center’s recent report on the number of low-income persons in the state does nothing else, it will show that Mississippians of all income levels – especially the working poor – are not sitting idly by waiting for a handout.