Poverty we always have with us. Do we have to?

 As best I know it about mass shootings in the United States, they are not related to poverty. So, why is poverty a topic for issues? There are other kinds of violence that don't involve mass killing (over 4). Instead, they involve thefts. rape, abuse, and destruction of property.  Many would believe those things relate to poverty. I am not so sure. Many poor people commit no burglary, shoplifting, or other kinds of theft. In fact, some rich people have been caught shoplifting. Still, we are told it's poverty that justifies what the poor do. 

The belief in reparations for descendants of slavery or of Jim Crow offenses, is based on thinking they deserve it, though people today experienced none of that. Some are believed to have been pushed back in the ladder of success.

I had believed affirmative action was intended to help people rise up from poverty through college degrees and a boost in terms of jobs. We don't hear anything about that right now. I think it's still there but don't actually know. If you are interested in its various forms in countries around the world, do some research. Affirmative action, as a way to deal with poverty and racial unfairness, is called different things in different countries.

 (these work horn hands are an image from Deposit Photos. I bought a package a while back)

When my husband and I first were old enough to vote, President Johnson began talk of a War on Poverty. If there was much of an attempt to get rid of poverty, it likely got lost in the cost of the Vietnam war. Whatever the case, it seems we have more poverty than ever-- especially given our current large homeless population in cities around the country. 

Back to violence and poverty. For a while, there was a pressure to not do anything about the gangs that rushed into stores and grabbed all they could get. Some of that is still going on. Sometimes the thieves are picked up in a fancy car, like a Rolls Royce. Does that sound like poverty? 

The violence has extended to breaking windows, blocking cars on freeways, hitting strangers  and burning buildings in some big cities. The booty is often sold for cash rather than using it. Drugs?

What was done about such destruction? Almost nothing. If they got arrested, they were immediately released. Was that thinking a kind of reparations? If it was, it wasn't helping the ones committing the crimes or their victims.

The police often stood by, due to orders from higher ups. So, it was okay to destroy businesses, sometimes small ones but also there were major stores. Some people want to defund the police (until their homes get burglarized). Without active police, what keeps mobs in order? Who do you call for help?

Were the thieves encouraged to take what they could get out of some kind of missed concept of reparations? There seemed to be an attitude that if people were poor, it was fine for them to steal. Except, it wasn't fair to the victim or the perpetrator. 

So next comes a question regarding poverty. Is it the fault of the poor for being poor? I don't think so, at least not all the time. It can be though with those who turn to drugs, which makes them unable to function in society and hold down jobs. Some don't want to work; but if so, how do they then get money for food or shelter? Begging, hoping for charity, or stealing? 

We live in a society where people work for what they want; so how do we deal with the ones who don't? How do we deal with tents pitched in parks or other people's property? Once in a while, the police go through and destroy these makeshift communities, but it doesn't last long before they are back.

The US has shelters for some of the poor, but they don't cover all.  A lot of homeless have resisted rules and shelters have to have rules. Charities also offer beds at night or meals; but in the end, it's stopgap. It's not fixing anything.  

One of my answers is to provide training for new jobs if they lost the one they had, which can happen with companies upgrading their automation. If though, the poor person has no interest in working for everything they want, do we let them starve? I don't think that would work well for a compassionate culture. If the poor person is using drugs that are not legal, maybe time in jail where they get the training they didn't want. Will that work? 

Another possible idea for the homeless people as well as new immigrants, see if they can, with some help, start a business. You know, at one time, most families in the US had a parent, sometimes both, working at their own business, like say carpentry. We don't know how many skills the homeless might have if they could get a start. There is pride in creating a product. We've traveled a long way down a road where only corporations provide jobs. It didn't used to be that way and maybe doesn't need to now. Find out what people's skills are and then help them exploit them.

At any rate, dealing with homelessness and poverty is one of the issues we do care about when we vote. Are good suggestions offered? Right now I haven't heard solid answers other than handing out money. It doesn't take long for that money to be spent and the person is back on the street. One possible answer seems to be offering training for not only jobs but for taking care of property and possessions. 

Our culture has also traveled a long way toward television, computers, games, and phones to entertain ourselves. There is more to that in life. Let's remind ourselves.