[dawn53]

When was this published? If someone's not being paid $10 an hour today, they can't pay a week's rent.

If you're single, you can afford rent on ten bucks an hour, but you have to have a roommate. In our area, you can rent an okay 2 bedroom apt (not great, but okay) for $700 a month. Split it with a roommate and rent plus utilities comes out to about 450 per month. That's just about a quarter of someone's salary if they're making 10 bucks an hour, and that's doable. (taxes on $20,000 a year are practically non-existent.)

[the invisib1e hand]

In our area, you can rent an okay 2 bedroom apt (not great, but okay) for $700 a month.

You could do that in most civilized American cities about 25 years ago.