Posts
The Cause of Poverty, Poverty is simply having more problems than solutions. Poverty is caused by a person's being overwhelmed by problems he or she can't solve. Not all causes of poverty are financial problems. They can be problems like drug addiction, marrying the wrong person, living in a crime-ridden neighborhood, not having job skills, not having transportation to get to work, or not being able to afford health care.
Some of today's financial problems, such as excessive debt and low wages, are caused by circumstances beyond an individual's ability to solve, problems that have more to do with our government and a smoke-and-mirrors economy.
For example, one of the causes of low wages is high-paying manufacturing jobs moving overseas. Today there are plenty of jobs, but they are in the service sector, not manufacturing. When I was a kid, General Motors was the nation's largest employer. Today Wal-Mart is the nation's biggest employer. We all know that Wal-Mart isn't known for its high-paying jobs - or its generous pensions.
Fifty years ago, it was possible for a person without much education to do well financially. Even if you had only a high school degree, a young person could get a relatively high-paying job manufacturing cars or steel. Today, it's manufacturing burgers.
Fift years ago, the manufacturing companies provided health care and retirement benefits. Today, millions of workers are earning less, while at the same time needing more money to cover their own medical expenses and save enough for retirement. Every day these financial problems are not solved, they grow bigger. And they stem from a larger national problem that is beyond the power of the individual to change or solve. They stem from poor economic policies and cronyism.
No comments:
Post a Comment