Episode 217: The Art Of Living At The Poverty Line

Enlarge this image Seth Wenig/AP Seth Wenig/AP

Note: This podcast was originally posted in October, 2010.

Today, we meet Edith Calzado. She's a single mother and makes $16,000 a year. And she managed to fund a vacation at a Caribbean resort with an interest-free loan from one of the world's largest banks.

Edith gets credit cards with teaser zero-percent interest rates, but transfers her balance before the rate goes up. She signs up for store cards to get discounts, and then pays off her bill on time. She gets food stamps and lives in subsidized housing.

She may be the single most successful and productive beneficiary of government assistance you'll ever meet.



Music: "Good Times" and "Dollar Signs in the Sky". Find us on Twitter / Facebook.