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Poverty - What Can we do About it?
Georgia StewartThe first rule of academia is to begin by asking these questions: Who, what, where, when and why? This is the approach I’ll take about poverty and summarise it with one question, which I consider to be the most important one anyone can ever ask.
The who of my question are those suffering in the world, the hungry and oppressed ones. Though there are many forms of suffering, when it’s caused by bad government and greed it can and ought to be avoided.
What is the reason for people living in poverty when the earth provides enough food, water and shelter for everyone? Put simply it’s because many people desire more than others, or just too much. It begins by countries attempting to conquer other countries in order to possess their land. Those with businesses and money want larger businesses and more money. The individual desires a more technically equipped car, a larger house or more expensive clothes or perfume. Basically greed causes poverty because to own too much is to take it from another.
Where is poverty and suffering? Though I live in a first world country I see it all around me, in the homeless people begging in the streets and sleeping in doorways. It encompasses the whole world because no country is without its poor and marginalised ones.
When is this occurring? I assume that there have always been poor and underprivileged peoples but it’s ironic that in this age of vast wealth and technology poverty is an epidemic, often hidden to us only by the manner in which we over-indulge in entertaining ourselves and thus closing our eyes to it.
Why are we allowing it to continue? We all possess a voice and there are various means in which to say no to it. If we do nothing we are condoning people’s suffering and starvation. This leads me to my ultimate question, that I presume cannot be overridden by any other in importance:
Tags: Poverty , Hungry , Oppressed , Suffering , Government
