Philosophy Why is there Poverty?

Here's a question to get you all thinking

You can just walk down a street downtown and you'll see people on the streets who are hungry, begging for money while people are just walking by them, some giving loose change. We can leave our own society for a minute and look at third world countries, such a huge majority who have little next to none of their needs met. But, does the world really have to be like this?

Why is there poverty and how can we get rid of it?

 

-Corrupt governments (for example, Ethiopia, which spends big bucks on its military while very little on its peoples food problems)
-Incompetence @ work can result in poverty
-String of bad luck (house burned down; inherited debt; etc)

 

There can be any number of reasons that can lead to poverty, debt, drug abuse (which may fall under debt as well) and then there are people who just leave home for other reasons like alchol abuse and abuse, so they just decide to live it rough on the streets, without finishing their education and with no qualifcations. So there are a lot of reasons why there are poverty.
As for getting rid of it then i guess the only way is to give the poor help with training for things like working in a factory, things that will get them off the streets and keep themselves occupied so that they don't turn to crime or something.
I guess as for the third world the only real way to help them is to wipe out world debt. Cause they don't really have any money to get themselves going.

 

"There are too many people in theis world, and not enough resources."

Well, I wouldn't exactly say that. We have just enough resources, but an inequal distribution of these resources. And certain resources that don't exactly make sense, rather than to make certain people rich, such as oil. There are many other fuel sources, so why haven't we used them yet?

"As for getting rid of it then i guess the only way is to give the poor help with training for things like working in a factory, things that will get them off the streets and keep themselves occupied so that they don't turn to crime or something."

But, this is also assuming that it's their fault to begin with. That the system is perfect and the people who have trouble dealing with it should be forced (err, helped) to deal with it. I think that if a certain system can not support members of it's population then it should be changed itself. I suppose a radical change within capitalism would have to be made.

There must be a reason for people becoming poor, and it isn't always incompetence, or bad luck. Even if that is the case, these people still don't deserve to be out on the streets. They should still be given equal and humanistic treatment. The same goes for the "deserving poor" too, of course:, the disabled, single parent families, orphans, etc.

But why would we want to change capitalism? Why do we ignore those in need? It could be possible that those in power don't want us to change our ways because they are making so much money off of us. But, still I don't know how valid this is either because if the poor were helped out then they too can be contributing members of society and make these people even more rich.

I know I'm not really answering anything.. just asking questions and giving ideas since I'm not too sure myself..

 

Ease of use; current widespread acceptance.

But thats assuming your radical change would work perfectly.

I did list corrupt government.

Sometimes there isn't enough funding to give shelter. I didn't list the lack of funding because that's not removing the poverty problem.

Because for the most part it's a good system that works well and encourages scientific development. It's another way for mankind to evolve since our tool using ability removes the difficulty in survival for most.

Because people are either
a) Uncomfortable with the reality of it
b) Unable to provide assistance

 

In order to figure out why poverty exists, think of it as part of a system. In every system, there are objects and these objects are interconnected via a definite origin, each object is then composed of a finitive side. But every object is infinitive as well with an ending that is indefinite until it becomes another origin for another object. So then every object composes a infinitive side, in which its conjoinments are all possibilites to be followed and a finitive side, in which its conjoinments are possibilities that have followed. If poverty is an object within this system it encompasses both an infinitive side and finitive side, its existence is both infinitive and finitive at the same time. So then poverty cannot be erased because it will still lurk as an infinitive possibilty, even if it were erased finitely.

 

When you look at poverty, I guess you also have to look at 'why is there money to begin with?' Money is...vouchers. You want a service. You do a service for somebody else in order to get that service, but you can't get the service you want from them, so you have to go elsewhere.

Maybe there is poverty because there's not enough work for people to do, or they don't have the competence to do the jobs that need doing. If people worked, they would get paid...but it isn't easy to get a job.

There are some people who are unable to work because they're injured or otherwise debilitated. Sometimes those people provided for others, and so those people become poor.

There is poverty because there's no real way to get rid of it once it starts. Mostly, it comes down to greed, in my opinion.

 

theres 2 reasons
1.alcohol
2.drugs(pot,coke,etc...)

 

I utilize two of the three you list, Vicious. Drugs are not one of them save for a limited amount of medicinal drugs (no, not marijuana). Why am I not poor?

 

Addictions to the first two things could lead to poverty(unless the person has inherited quite a bit of wealth). I'm not too sure about pr0n though, maybe you could explain that a bit.

I have trouble agreeing with Marx and Marcuse here, but they bring up some interesting theories which I'd like to point out. They would say that capitalism is the main factor in causing poverty. Capitalism allows a minority group to control the economy, political system, means of production, and this minority group does whatever best suits their own interests(which is mainly profit). As time goes on the rich become richer and the poor become poorer. But, Marx believes that this working class(proletariat) which is the majority of the system will one day rise up to create a new system to run things. Herbert Marcuse (see One-Dimensional Man) believes that the working class will not go against this sytem because they are contained by it, by believing that they are free, although this freedom is only a freedom to buy. The poor, and richer classes alike believe that "this is the way things are" negating the possibility of a better system as well as ignoring the fact that their needs are not being met.

I would not quite go to the extent of creating a socialist economic system, I'm not quite sure if we are able to do that. We allow our thanatos to control our daily lives a bit too much it seems. But, there is the understanding that the way things are now there will always be the rich and the poor in society. The main thing is to reduce the gap between these two. This could be done, not only by focusing on just the individual(the person who is addicted, or is poor). But, by working with the systems of government and the environment that people live in.


Aside: oh, corrupt governments are a factor in third world poverty but so is globalization, ne?

 

I forgot about that. I have seen for myself that people who rack up large debts with people often leave them for their families to pay. This can proabablt harder for families that have little money as it is and then somebody goes to the pub and builds up a debt of unpaid tabs. Then the person dies and the pub owner comes to the widow looking for payment of the tab. So since she's now one working family member down she has to work for herself to sustain a living and also pay off debts that she has inherited from her husband.
I'd have to say that it's these type of addictive drugs that will cause the downfall of a family as one person can't seem to control their spending on this habbit of theirs, and forget that they have a family to care for. And will more then likly increase the debts that they owe, which in turn will have to be paid some how, more then likely from their childrens school/college money. So they're cutting their childrens education short, and then the children themselves will look up to these people cause they are their parents and think that it's ok, and will probably end up stating the whole cycle again when the they grow up.
So i guess a combination of family trouble and inheritance are also factors that can lead to poverty.

 

Theres poverty because rich people are selfish, they care only about themselves and their money. Alot of people have more money then they need for living. Why do they collect money? Why dont they donate money to charity? Also, theres alot of media attention to rich people and selebrities, but theres not enough attention to 3rd world countries. The problem is that people are selfish by nature and are interested in how to get rich, but not in how to help needy people. Also, as someone here mentioned, corruption plays a huge role in it. I really think that this world is coming to an end soon....

 

Way to generalize. Riches do not inherently generate greed and selfishness; it'd be like me claiming all poor people are too stupid to get a good job. Completely false.

 

there are people who are poor for the same reason there are philosophers.....because not everyone has the skill to make money.

 

You know, they say there was never a rich philosopher.

There was, but he thought I was a Swiss bank. - Dogbert

Anyway, to put it cynically, there is poverty because people are greedy, selfish b******s who think of nothing but themselves, and care nothing for anything but their own little world. People don't eliminate poverty because they don't care. They'd rather forget about it. "Out of sight, out of mind," they say. People think that, as long as it doesn't affect them, it doesn't matter what happens.

As for getting rid of it, I don't think it will be possible until the above changes. Until people are capable of thinking of others, of compassion, they will not make a significant change in the level of poverty in the world.

 

May I know who are these people? Because as I can read, you're saying it about everyone, even people discusing here. If we are like that, I don't see any reason for poor people for being different. So, if we are equal(selfish, unable to think on others, etc.) to them, why are they poor then and not us?

Poverty is not goverment type related, there's poverty in capitalism, monarchy, absolutism, and all others. Even under communism poverty was/is a huge problem (What about soviet goverment? I wouldn't consider it succesful)

And poverty numbers are changing. Although there are more poor people than a few decades ago, the percent total around the world has retreated.

 

Why is there proverty

There is proverty becasue no one wants to take action. This thread as an example were all talking about ways to help improve proverty and why there is proverty, but none of us are taking a stand.

People will sit a discuss problems, but say they don't have the time to take part in any action to really help. Or is it they really don't care enough to help? The governt doesn't care to much, shouldn't they be using the tax money for helping these types of people not blowing up other countries and thus making more homeless people. People tend to over look the fact that this is one ofthe worlds biggist problems. Why do people suffer every day, it is like there casked out of socity. the people starve and live in the most vile places just because they have nothing. Like many have said proverty can happen from having huge debt or from being born into it.

In many places people don't see proverty as a big proble. Ilive in a small town in Missouri and we do not tend to see very many homeless people or people who are just about homeless, that was untill I whent to the Nations capital Washington D.C. there were so many there it was past sad. Our tour giude more or less tolled us to look the other way. Like the people were no there.

This is how mast people act including our goverment. If the goverment really cares about the people then way isn't the poor and most needy on the top of there list instead of the rich and powerfull? I am not saying the goverment completly ignores the fact that so many people or below the average american income. The gover has set up a few programs for the "select" few people, but there isn't nearly enough promgrams for the problem.

Proverty is due to the fact that people couldn't care less as long as it isn't affecting there cookie cutter life. People will ignore and refuse to listen about the problems facing people because they don't think it will affect them in any way what so ever.

How many times have you thrown out a plate full of foo, or didn't like your new high dollar game you got as a gift? That plate of food could have feed a starving person , that game could have brought new cloths. It is pretty sad that people don't care enough to look at the world around them and relize how lucky they are so many people in the world who can't even call a place home.

We are the real caus of proverty and we can change it

 

Oh, I'm so sorry. I'll get right on changing the government of North Korea.