What About the Money?

Poverty is the state of not being able to generate income to purchase the basics for life. For three billion people on our lovely blue planet, simple basics like water and bread are rare commodities. Can we even try to imagine what it is like to live on $1 per day? It is time for us to review this harsh reality. The world has more than enough money and food resources to alleviate hunger and extreme poverty in an instant.

The seven richest people in the world have more money in their possession than the GDP of 40 of the poorer COUNTRIES in the world. Think about this for a while. Seven people have more money than the combined income of about 560 million people combined. Can we not see that there is something wrong with this picture?

We shout democracy, equality for all, but we do not really have equality of base human rights, do we? We really live in a capitalist society. We have to agree that in some way we are all capitalists. We want the expensive rug, the better lounge suite and we want to have the bigger car. The capitalist trend starts from those with  small salaries and extends up to the few who own billion dollar houses. There is nothing wrong wanting the better life, it is what it is, but does that make it right? Does this mentality have to be to the detriment of half the population of the world?

If we could build a trigger, that could change the mindset of the world for five years, we could solve the poverty problem. It would take everyone in the world to take part in this effort. We will have to part with some of our money and comforts to implement systems in poverty-stricken countries to help them become self sufficient.

We must disband the governments in all those countries, and use that extra income to expand their infrastructure. We could put the UN to some good use, let them oversee the farming projects and the building of dams.  It is a simple concept, give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. It is of no use to bring in tons of food that feeds the hungry for a day. Tomorrow they will be hungry again. We cannot solve the problem by handing out large sums of money to these countries.

Our focus should turn from day to day aid to long term self sufficiency. The monetary investment into self sufficiency projects will be huge at first, but once the system works the poverty grip will disappear. The idea is not to get these countries economically viable at first. The aim is to get such countries to feed themselves first. Yes we will force these people into a 16th century scenario, but what is better to have electricity and die of hunger, or have your family's stomachs full.

Although there are many suggestions and plans on how to overcome the poverty problem, it will remain a dream. The sad thing is that the human race will not join to save the rest of the world. Only the rare few will pull of their shirts to give to someone that does not have one. Maybe this world will reach that stage in the future, but for now, people will die of hunger. Where is the money? It is in all our pockets, feeding our wants and needs.