WHAT THE HELL?

THOUGHTS ON POVERTY

Poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished. Poverty = can’t buy things in bulk, so pay a premium for small amounts, can’t pay a fee to join a shopping club, can’t afford transport to cheaper stores. If you had a sharp knife there would be less waste. Refrigerator, ziplock bags, plasticware (if you can afford them) = less waste. Clean water, if you must buy it, is a devastating expense. Day-old bread is great if you can afford the transport. Food banks will give you a few things you need and make you take a dozen things you don’t need = more waste, and you’ll wait in line for hours for it, if you can get there in time. Every container, every bit of plastic or paper – every pencil,- becomes precious. Candles are far too expensive, but worth their weight in gold – if you had the gold. You can grow some of your own food, but only if you have access to dirt, sunlight, water, seed, and you happen to be good at that. If you don’t have access to hot water, then cleaning requires twice the water and twice the soap. You can earn interest on your bank account and get free services, only if you have enough money. You can get low car payments and even lower insurance costs if you have enough money/good credit. But you don’t. Banks offering “free checking” are just mocking you.

Poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished. This person may be smart as a whip, may have a grand education, might have once had a great job, may have been in the armed forces, may have children or parents to care for, may be sleeping on the asphalt behind some bushes. How much can you really expect from them? They may be dirty, hungry, cold, thirsty, lost. You expect them to show up for a job interview? This implies they have enough money to buy a daily newspaper and/or computer with internet access and electricity, that they have enough money for transportation, that they have soap and shampoo, razor, and at least one good suit of clothes. How are they supposed to get all that, when they have to buy single-cup-sized sachets of instant coffee at 30 cents a cup? The imported coffee you buy, grind, and make in your fancy coffee machine costs one tenth that much. But you have to have the fancy machine, a grinder, and buy a pound of beans at a time. You want them to respond to phone inquiries instantly, because for you with a nice phone and unlimited access, such a thing is free. But they’re using the worst, cheapest phone, and may have to go to a phone store and pre-pay a few minutes just to answer a call. How can you hire such a person? Yet they might work harder, be more grateful, and ultimately pay back far more than the effort of hiring them. They’ll certainly be a better employee than the entitled rich kids who are impressing and flattering you.

Poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished. They may be very discouraged, may have given up hoping for anything better, or may be so desperate for any advantage that they’ll do anything. Desperation breeds unplanned crime – they’re so hungry, and you left a bag of delicious groceries sitting there for a minute unattended. Maybe the temptation will be too much. But often the severely downtrodden are just as honest as the rest of us, and will return your dropped wallet to you. What does that say about you? You won’t give them a glance or a chance. There’s an old saying “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” Just a few unexpected hardships could put you digging through the dumpster next to them. The fact that you’re not there doesn’t mean you’re smarter or better-looking, it only means you started out from a position of advantage. You could lose that advantage at any time. Just a few medical bills, loss of your job because the company is re-vamping, maybe some stock losses or a pension or other income someone legislated or frauded away from you, and everything you’re so proud of can be ripped from you, and then you’ll see that poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished.

If you have children, how will you be able to keep them in school? How will you buy paper and other supplies, clothing, meals? How will you afford medical care? If you have a beloved pet, no food bank will give you food for them; they’ll have to live on a share of your limited supply. If they need medical care…….

You’ll find that there are government programs which help the disadvantaged. However, how will you find them, how will you get there, how will you fill out the endless reams of paperwork when you haven’t eaten all day? What address will you give? How will you prove you qualify when you’re dirty from sleeping under a bridge (if you’re lucky enough to find one)? How will they contact you if you’re entitled to help? Where will you sleep until next February when another few hundred housing vouchers become available, which will be taken within a few hours? Can you make it to that office on that day? Poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished.

A Basic Income is the only solution. If everyone can afford to eat and have a modest home, most of these problems disappear. If education is free, the unemployed can usefully retrain, being able to eat meanwhile. Some people worry that if living expenses are paid, no one will work. But how long, really, can someone sit in their not-very-nice home and do nothing? They can’t afford a computer, TV, or game console on this income, may not be able to afford a newspaper. How long do you think most people will stare at the wall? We WANT useful work, we CRAVE purpose, we DEMAND meaning. In Gene Roddenberry’s world, everyone works only at what they love. They rejoice in training for their dream career, without having to worry about holding down that demanding wait-person job when they should be studying. They excel because they have the security that their basic needs will be met. Food and shelter, education, medicine. Do you really think – now think about it – if that was all you had, would you just sit around? Wouldn’t you maybe take a hike, think about what you want to do with your life? Look at a college catalog, try your hand at paper mache, volunteer at an animal shelter? Maybe you’d clean up that empty lot next to your house instead of looking at it all day, and put in some trees. Maybe you’d help your disabled neighbor with their groceries. If you were sure that you were safe, what would you do? If you knew you’d never end up sleeping on the street, your children starving, dependent on begging……how would that change your life? Can you imagine a world where NO ONE had that worry?

Yes please.

Poverty is self-perpetuating through no fault of the impoverished. Let’s end the cycle of income abuse, prejudice, and vicious competition for resources when in truth there’s plenty enough for all. Maybe some industries would die. Maybe single-cup-size instant coffee sachets would disappear; so be it. When every man can look every other man in the eye and not see poverty or failure or viciously-attained success, then we can all just be Mankind, true equals. I predict this will happen; I only hope I live to see it.