The thing that most gets me is that with all this discussion about poverty and what not, we still have it. I do wonder, often, why people raise so much money to help others in third world countries when the United States is starving in their backyards. I do often wonder recently too, how the President can hold a banquet worth 500,000 dollars on Thanksgiving, and we're still wondering how to help the population overcome the poverty line. I do not get it. I'm going to, as so many times in my writing, stand on this soap box for a second. I do not have a lot of information to back any of the claims I am about to make, so please be gentle if you disagree. I just feel like we are so blinded by our comfort as Americans. To be part of the top 1% in the world, wow, its truly an honor. We have the oportunity to chase dreams and make green, we're the elite. But then we complain, all of the time about the people who are starving in Africa. (I only use Africa because everyone says that phrase.) The point is, here are people starving in Saginaw, my hometown. There are people starving in Lansing, and yes even in Mt. Pleasant. Are we so naive to think that we will change the world when we're not whole? We as the United States of America should band together so that we can change the world here first. I would have been super impressed if the President spent 500,000 dollars on a meal to feed the homeless for one day. That one meal could have lasted them for weeks.
I'm sorry to rant, I just hear so much in the Sociological realm about poverty, and starving people and how there is such a separation between the poor and rich, and I do not see anyone with the most power to change things, doing anything to close that gap. What good is all of the statistics and information that Massey gives us if we aren't doing anything about it. That's it, off the soap box. Again, i'll never understand why I cannot do these things on time.
I agree with benton on the ideas of our country turning its back on its own citizens while celebrities and politicians are awarded for their fundraising in other countries. Yes I know those countries are not yet developed and the people there have much worse conditions but I've seen terrible things happen on our own soil because of the lack of wealth. People are dying everyday because they cant afford health insurance and are refused treatment. I have volunteered at a few soup kitchens in our state and seen more and more people come for help over the past few years. In the article the author raises the issue of there being a greater divide between classes, creating greater tension between classes. He predicts more violence from the poor and urban and retreatism from the affluenent as the look they other way while the people that are not like them suffer. I see it everytime I go to a bigger city. A homeless person will be begging for someone to even look in there direction and maybe be compassionate enough to spare a few cents while the affluent people keep busy walking fast ahead without even recongnizing the homeless person exists. He also predicts that the classes will be seperated by geography as the tensions rise. This is already happening now as urban youth are raised in inner city ghettos without any way out and the affluent youth of east coast are living at there family estates and going to private school. These two youth might never interact socially because of there class. The author offers no solution for the outcomes which is disappointing but in reality no one really knows exactly how to combat our unfortunate situation. For now well stick by what we always do, the oppressed will get sick of it and protest and the elites will look they other way until they are forced to change. I hope the day they are forced to change happens in my lifetime, but im not counting on it.
ReplyDeleteMassey goes in tons of detail here on the basics of poverty, not only in the United States, but in other countries around the world (both in developed and developing countries). Massey goes into detail on explaining how affluent people interact with other affluent people (the same pattern goes for poor people), how the social worlds of the rich and poor have diverged and will continue to do so (and how this pattern will create differences in thoughts and actions) and also describes where poor people are located/concentrated in comparison to the affluent (among other facts/trends among the poor and those in poverty).
ReplyDeleteAnother important part of this article was Massey’s take on addressing the issues surrounding this inequality. He said that in order to address issues of inequality, growing class segregation, racial prejudice and the geographic concentration of poverty, it will inevitably require sacrifice, especially by the affluent people. However, those who are affluent will always be able to somehow counter the strides people may take toward lessening inequality; they are able to raise “the walls of social, economic, and geographic segregation” in an effort to protect themselves (because who wants to lessen inequality when its benefits you in so many ways?) Massey ends his article by painting a horrifying possible outcome if America continues on such a path; class tension rises, political economy becomes unstable, urban areas will experience high crime and violence rates, the poor will be alienated even more from politics, etc. Basically, he describes the end of days if we don’t shape up.
I agree with what Brenton states about how the United States seems more occupied with fixing poverty problems in other countries despite the need for it in our own country. But that really does seem like the “American” way; we are all about fixing problems in other countries before we stop turning the other cheek and fix our own problems. We like flexing our muscles as a nation… and to us, there is NOTHING wrong with that (or so we think).
By Steve Biskner
ReplyDeleteI agree with Brenton on how the United States just wastes money on the people who do not need it. The banquet that costs $500,000 doesn’t surprise me at all. Also I feel that Massey just states the obvious about poverty in the United States. The top 1% in the U.S. just does not care about the other 99% of the population because they feel that they made it because they persevered and worked towards their goals, and not because they have an advantage over the average Joe.
Poverty exists everywhere in some form. So what is our government and society doing about this? We are helping out third world countries to help our global image instead of helping our own. I can’t remember where I heard this but I heard something about the amount of money we spend on helping the poor whether it be food stamps or cash assistance is just a drop in the bucket compared to the war fund in Iraq. If America truly cared about its people it would cut the money spent on third world country aid and put it back into helping people who are in poverty. The government also needs to adjust the poverty line and make it so that just because people make a little more than the poverty line does not mean that they should not receive government aid.
breaking down the federal budget
ReplyDeletehttp://www.warresisters.org/pages/piechart.htm
or
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=1258
While Massey does seem to talk about things widely accepted as common knowlege it seems that he gets a tad dramatic in discussing the snowball of socio/economic segregation in America. His oppinion that the segregation of the classes in Americal will lead to social unrest and the ultimate revolt of the lower classes, almost describing the french revolution. He underestimates the capacity of the other outlets in American society avaiable to those in dissent, such as unions,political parties, and the internet. While these wont fix the immense problem of class segregation they would placate the masses enough to prevent the utter colapse of the U.S. as described by Massey. Steps need to be taken to distribute the wealth more evenly establishing a living wage and the soon to be universal health care will help. While monitoring how the government spends their money would help, an investigation into where they chose to get their money from may be well worth it, after all why would the government give fewer taxes to Bill Gates than me, a working college student.
ReplyDeleteMassey talks in the article about the basics poverty in the United States and in other countries as well. He goes on to talk about how in developing countries people are in worse conditions than the United States. I believe that anyone in poverty is in a pretty bad situation. These people on our soil suffer from financial problems just like people in developing countries. This separates the wealthy from the poor and creates the problem of inequality around the world. Massey stated that inequality stems from growing class segregation, racial prejudice, and geographic concentration of poverty. We as Americans allow this to happen which is the reason why this inequality still happens everywhere around the world.
ReplyDeleteMassey ended the article by saying if this keeps on the way it is now then it will only get worse. He says that class tension would rise, political economy would become unstable, urban areas will experience higher crime rates, and the poor will get demolished by politics. If this were to happen, I believe our country would fall apart. There would be an upheaval from the bottom to the top. We see this in today’s society but not to extreme measures that Massey is talking about. Us as young American adults need to realize that this is taking place and try to change it or these things will happen.
I thought that Massey would a little bit dramatic in some of the consequences that would happen if we don’t shape up. I believe we need to change and not keep extending the gap of inequality between social classes. For now, this will keep on happening but hopefully one day this will change.