Rawstory posted an article that spells out how the war on poverty is far from over.
It used 4 charts that show pretty clearly where things stand. This is of particular note since the government is proclaiming that this "war" is largely over.
This chart shows that the poverty rate has remained the same since 1980. When taken as a percentage of the population, that is true. What is omitted is the fact that the population of the United States grew and there are now 15 million more people living in poverty than before.
Another belief if the poor simply do not work. This comes from the mindset that they are lazy and want to do nothing all day.
Among the working-age poor in the U.S. (ages 18 to 64), approximately 35 percent are not eligible to work, meaning they are disabled, a student or retired. Among the poor who are eligible to work, fully 63 percent do so.
It is a sad fact that poverty tends to breed more poverty. Individuals who grew up in poor households tend to end up that way themselves.
This cycle is not only experienced with families but geography. Those who tend to be in impoverished areas rarely escape that.
Poverty exists in all areas of the country, but the population living in high-poverty neighborhoods has increased over time. Following the Great Recession, some 14 million people lived in extremely poor neighborhoods, more than twice as many as had done so in 2000. Some areas saw some dramatic growth in their poor populations living in high-poverty areas.
https://www.rawstory.com/2018/07/war-poverty-us-isnt-4-charts/
Poverty is a complex, interwoven issue. It is difficult to conclude how things are really going on a macro level since one set of statistics tell one story yet another can tell a completely different one. Researchers have to sift through mountains of data to really get a feel for what is going on. This can often differ from what the national message is.
It is crucial that we look at all pertinent information about a topic like this. There are tens of millions of lives at stake and being wrong will have serious consequences.
To get your weekly distribution of manna, go to https://www.mannabase.com to sign up.
For more information about the Manna Project, go to https://www.peoplescurrency.org/
I totally agree that you need to broaden up the statistics in order to see the full picture. Sure percentages may be dropping, but if the absolute number of people in poverty increases, imho we are not doing a good job, moreover, we are doing awful.
Capitalism makes the rich even richer and more people get driven in poverty, or atleast the standard they are used to, doesnt get better of the years, its a standstill. And this is just the middleclass struggle. The real poor people are hiding, too ashamed for their situation, and the wealthy ones are looking the other way, trying to find ways to tax evade more.
Mannas post is just mentioning the USA, but we can extrapolate this to the whole world, every country is having the same issues.
If you are amoung the lucky ones in the world who are born in wealth, praise yourself lucky and look after other people abit more instead of looking away, because poverty will not go away without any effort from all sides.
Capitalism is conquering poverty all over the world.
Capitalism has nearly destroyed starvation in the last 50 years. Step outside the USA and consider the improvement in the lives of extremely poor people. 50 years ago 50% of the world was on the brink of starvation. Now it is under 9% Where is this happening? The United States? No! Extreme poverty has been stamped out in the US long ago. The poorest countries are gaining relative prosperity quickly. Another dollar a day may seem like nothing to someone living in the US, but to the extreme poor, it means pushing starvation out of the immediate picture.
There will always be a poverty line in the US. It is a line arbitrarily drawn by the government for bookkeeping and redistribution purposes.
Great article. The graphs are outstanding
Congratulations @mannacurrency! You have completed the following achievement on Steemit and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :
Click on the badge to view your Board of Honor.
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPTo support your work, I also upvoted your post!
Do not miss the last post from @steemitboard:
SteemitBoard World Cup Contest - The results, the winners and the prizes
Great article with graphs. In a nation with this much wealth there should be far less poverty. Getting this information out is essential