Poverty
Go into the World and Do Well... But Most Importantly, Do Good
What would you do?
Imagine waking up and having nothing to eat. The hunger pains are so strong that you have no energy to go to school or work. You save every cent to provide food for your child. However, no matter how hard you try, you just can't seem to make enough money to get ahead. Taxes are high... Wages are low... There are not enough jobs... The economy is weak.
The truth is any of us could end up in this situation as the economy grows weaker each day and jobs become more scarce.
POVERTY IS BECOMING A WIDESPREAD FEAR —IT MEANS MORE THAN NOT HAVING THE NECESSITIES, IT MEANS YOU CAN'T AFFORD THEM EITHER!
What it creates...
- An environment not suitable to live in -i.e. dirty homes infested with diseases
- Higher burglary crime rate
- Fewer kids receive an education
- Low number of well-paying jobs
Addressing the Problem
Our Solution
We propose a solution that will change poverty forever – creating jobs that will pay minimum wage as well as raise the current minimum wage. This solution will provide an opportunity to allow unemployed individuals gain a job – which will end unemployment – as well as earn more money, which will help get rid of poverty in America. Unemployment leads to a rise in poverty effecting the economy in America as a whole. Creating jobs and raising minimum wage will lower unemployment and poverty in America, thus having a positive effect on the U.S. economy.
Unemployment is one of the most significant problems in our country today and has been for many years, particularly in recent years. According to statista.com, unemployment has fluctuated a lot between the years 2004 and 2014. A rising problem, unemployment continues to affect many Americans. According to an article on cbsnews.com, “80 percent of U.S. adults faced near-poverty and unemployment in 2013” while Peter Ferrara says, “100 million Americans are not working.” Unless we tackle this problem head-on, these numbers will continue to rise. With this solution, we can prevent that from happening. This solution will lower unemployment and eventually make this problem very scarce throughout the country.
Poverty is another significant problem in America. Along with unemployment, poverty affects the majority of the country. According to Mark Gongloff, “45 million Americans are still stuck below the poverty line.” In order to tackle this problem, we need to tackle unemployment first. According to Rebbeca Vallas and Melissa Boteach, the number one solution to lower poverty is to create jobs while the second one is to raise the minimum wage. Once this solution is put in place, unemployment will decline due to the new amount of jobs available and poverty will begin to decline as a result of higher earnings from the raised minimum wage.
Poverty and unemployment are directly correlated – if unemployment declines, poverty will also begin to decline and if unemployment rises, poverty will begin to rise as well. Once we lower unemployment, poverty will soon begin to follow and eventually become almost nonexistent. Without fixing unemployment, poverty will continue to be a nationwide issue.
It is important to note that while poverty and unemployment will eventually become scarce throughout America, it will not happen overnight. This solution will take a while to work and will only be helpful if it is given the proper amount of time to develop effectively. This will be a long process, but an effective one once the solution is ready to fully work. Eventually, unemployment and poverty will only affect a small percentage of the country. Obviously, it is impossible to completely get rid of poverty and unemployment. According to Melissa Boteach, President Obama suggested a few ways to stop poverty in his State of the Union speech almost two years ago yet it is still a major issue in America. While we cannot end these issues completely, we can do our best to try and get rid of poverty and unemployment as much as possible.
Take a Minute and Think About It...
As you read this, if you have FOOD in your fridge, CLOTHES on your back, a ROOF over your head, and a place to SLEEP, you are richer than 75% of the world. If you have MONEY in the bank, your wallet, and some spare change, you are among the top 8% of the world's wealthy. If you woke up this morning with MORE HEALTH THAN ILLNESS, you are more BLESSED than the million people who will not survive this week. If you have NEVER EXPERIENCED the DANGER OF BATTLE, the AGONY OF IMPRISONMENT, or TORTURE, or the HORRIBLE PANGS OF STARVATION, you are LUCKIER than 500 million people alive and suffering. IF YOU CAN READ this message you are MORE FORTUNATE than 3 billion people in the world who cannot read at all.(http://kerrycooks.wordpress.com/2012/02/03/if-you-have/)
Life can take unexpected turns, but it is what you do about it that counts. Yes, doing well is important, but so is doing good. That in itself makes your life richer. It only takes one person to make a change. The simplest act of kindness makes all the difference and touching the hearts of those in need. So start now!
” We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.” -Mother Teresa
According to CBS news, based on the current trend of poverty “about 85 percent of all working-age adults in the U.S. will experience bouts of economic insecurity by 2030… and for more than 76 percent enduring periods of joblessness will unfold.”
"Every dollar released from taxation that is spared or invested will help create a new job and a new salary." -JFK
The poverty line determines your eligibility of certain programs and benefits offered to you.
What the future looks like...
According to Newsmax writer Melissa Clyne, it is estimated that about 50 million Americans live below the poverty line and 47 million of them received food stamps. The government reports that the economy under President Obama has been improving, but this positive trend depends on which of the actual numbers are being reported.
Rush Limbaugh states, the reason the unemployment rate is falling is because of “an increasing percentage of 92.6 million people are not even looking for jobs anymore.” In reality the level of improvement is overstated. In addition to the labor participation rate, the job additions were marked as low-or minimum wage jobs, while the higher paying, salaried jobs that could sustain and support a family are not being created.
This is Your Time to Act...
Well you can start by doing the following:
Make your voice heard! Write your local representative to help make them aware of the problem
Use your power of voting! Voting is one of the most important responsibilities we have as American citizens and is the best way to make your voice heard.
Make a difference! You can’t help if you don’t try and simply ignoring the problem doesn't make it go away.