I wonder what they would say if they were posting on HN. Here, people who lack money are usually the 'other' about whom we talk, often in stereotypes. But these are a large number of individuals, each with their own widely varying needs and situations; the only way to learn about someone is to ask. Certainly, to understand me, I would not want anyone to rely on what my neighbors say.

The parent comment presumes knowing about these people, what they need, what they should do, and that it's your business to change them. That's a lot of judgment and on very little information.

I also am not a fan of the idea that people in poverty should spend no money on pleasures, that they must live as aesthetes their whole lives - almost as a sort of penance or to prove their dedication. These are people's lives; I hope they enjoy them and I'm certainly not the one to judge them for it.