ECONOMICS and CAUSES
Of poverty
"If a man cannot be trusted with the government of himself, can he be trusted with the government of others?" [Thomas Jefferson]
QUESTIONS TO KEEP IN MIND:
1.Who do you think is poor?
2. Why do you believe people are poor in the US and globally?
3. What do you think is being done about poverty?
4. How well do you think poverty is being addressed currently in the U.S?
5. What do you personally think should be done about poverty?
1.Who do you think is poor?
2. Why do you believe people are poor in the US and globally?
3. What do you think is being done about poverty?
4. How well do you think poverty is being addressed currently in the U.S?
5. What do you personally think should be done about poverty?
Let me start with this statement, the money you earn is yours and that government in a free society has the right to take only as much as needed to perform those limited functions. The four theories to what cause poverty are interesting. Firstly, the lack of human capital I do not agree with much nor do I think it should be ONE of the four causes of poverty. Knowledge, skill, training and education are all available if people are willing to put forth the effort to achieve it. But, one statement in particular under some “suggested solutions” enticed me more than any other statement I have seen thus far: “Changing the personal characteristics of the poor; removing children from poor households” – Although a hefty statement and one that seems a bit dramatic, it almost seems as if it was need to be attempted to remove any possible or future prospective to fall under poverty.
I completely agree. If they attempted to remove the children from these poor households and place them in better environments, i think it's highly likely that we'll be getting different things out of them. The desire to be in gangs or sell drugs would cease and they wouldn't feel inclined to steal or do whatever. I think it's plans like these that are just constantly being put off because in society, at least American society, there has to be a social class of "poor" people; we can't just have a society where people are rich or middle-class.
ReplyDeleteI think you raise a good point about removing children from a family living in poverty to try and create a better and balanced life for the child, but what about parental rights. Parents must be given an equal opportunity to raise the children themselves. I think your suggestion is valid, but in the best interest of the children we must keep families together, sometimes breaking them apart create more problems. Some of the programs the Government currently has in place will help move the family out of poverty by placing them into affordable houses in better neighborhoods. This keeps the family together and addresses the living environment at the same time. Maybe if our Government Bureaucrats focused on improving the system we currently have, this would in turn improve the conditions of people living in poverty.
ReplyDeleteOverall you made some great points!
Keith, there is nothing I agree with more than the effort of keeping families together, BUT sometimes some parents are just not fit to raise and take care of children the way they need to be taken care of so that they are set up for a successfull and fullfilled life with guidence.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you are saying with regards to what I earn is mine with the exception of what is needed to perform limited functions, such as national security and things of that nature. However I do have a problem with your final statement. For example, if have another child and someone, by some measure, determines that I shouldn't have this second child, they are free to take my child away from me? My question is who decides how much money to take and when it is OK for someone to take my child? I am of the belief that the family is the most important entity that we have in this world. I would also like to point out that a system does exist for removing children from "unfit" homes & parents.
ReplyDeleteThe foster care system is anything BUT a success especially considering these statistics:
Earned a high school diploma 54%
Obtained a Bachelor's degree or higher 2%
Became a parent 84%
Were unemployed 51%
Had no health insurance 30%
Had been homeless 25%
Were receiving public assistance 30%
These statistics are the outcomes of foster children transitioning from foster care into adulthood. Of the over 500,000 children in foster care in 2005 only 60% were adopted...that leaves over 200,000 children in foster care. You can see by these statistics that foster care is not a viable solution....now if you add to the number of children in the system, I think this is a bad idea.
I whole heatedly believe that sometimes children are born into circumstances that are far from ideal......this is obviously a huge problem that has existed for thousands of years and if the solution were simple this problem would no longer exist.
I believe that education is the answer. Young people need to understand that their actions have circumstance especially as it concerns pro-creation. I think that mentoring programs in our school systems can also help disenfranchised youth understand that they eventually they will leave the confines of school and enter society and it is in their best interest to make sure that they are able to provide for and look after themselves.....because the reality is that no one else will. I don't know the answers to these questions but I do enjoy the exercise of pondering enormous issues that are swept under the rug more often than not. Thanks for provocative and thought provoking post.