Society isn't a meritocracy. Most people don't get handed things based on what they "deserve". It's fallacious to think so. What people should have, in an ideal world, is a proper beginning, starting with parental support, community support, societal support. What we don't guarantee or provide is equal outcomes.
Look at third world countries where most parents are poor or aspirationally middle class. Poor kids do succeed, but on the backs of their parents [the sate provides very little]. Parents who go hungry and make sacrifices such as deciding which child will go to school and who will instead work, in order that one of them make it out of poverty and helps the rest out. Without parental determination and perseverance, you would not see success in the poorest conditions, yet we do.
But as Americans we think that's beneath us --we don't need to work hard, we're no. 1. Some think wisdom and success will visit upon their child by being pushed thru an educational system. It takes dedication and direction from parents with state assistance [in the form of universal education] as well as the support of society [culture].
If you think unfit parents are rare you should talk to a social worker, police officer, or nurse, they will be able to bury you with heartbreaking stories of what life is like for a very large number of people who are predominantly poor.
Edit: totally misread your comment, yup I agree. I think I just took the extreme of what you originally said (that unfit parents are rare), my bad.
There's no hungry kids starving and being saved by the Federal School Lunch Program, and there's not any lead paint on the walls of the public housing, and schools have plenty of resources as evidenced by the multi-million dollar budgets the districts have. But leave it up to the Leftist to ride in to the rescue spouting off about the poor being disadvantaged.
There are poor people, but most are just sponging off the welfare system. And these people can get jobs and school loans just like I and others have done. And you know what? Welfare and school loans are there to help these people, and effort has a lot to do with their making it!
This is an incredibly patronizing statement, followed by an equally delusional one. Let's unpack them.
The first one hinges on the assumption that poor parents don't understand that "they are the crux of their child's success". With the notable exception of the rare completely unfit parent, every parent already knows this. Parents have known this since the beginning of time.
This is then followed with a dismissal of the how wealth inequality effects education and thus lifetime gains. "If only the poors went to college!"
It's a very common sentiment, but that doesn't mean that it's right. It stems from the mistaken belief that everyone gets what they deserve because society is a pure meritocracy. It's the same sentiment where a multibillion dollar company built on the backs of minimum wage labor tells their employees that if they don't buy gum, they're money problems will be over.[1] Whereas in the real world, "being poor is knowing exactly how much everything costs"[2].
The reason why poor parents aren't sending their kid to preschool, is because they don't have an extra $15,000 laying around in their bank account. The reason why poor kids underperform in school can all be tracked back to wealth. The distraction of hunger[3], lead paint in homes, and even under resourced schools because... the schools are funded by local property taxes , thus ensuring that the poor remain disadvantaged to the rich. (And if you seriously believe it's all just effort, put your kid the poorest public school in your area.)
[1] http://www.nasdaq.com/article/mcdonalds-sample-budget-sheet-... [2] http://whatever.scalzi.com/2005/09/03/being-poor/ [3] http://www.oregonlive.com/news/oregonian/david_sarasohn/inde...