Reply #4: Okay, so how do all those conferences and papers help the poor?

[MH1]

Can any of that be tied to concrete outcomes, such as legislation proposed, grants provided to front-line helpful organizations (like shelters, food programs, job training...).

I presume that they can be, I am not saying that scholarly discussion of the issues is necessarily useless. I am saying that if it doesn't lead to some concrete action, it could be perceived as useless.