Think about it: over 37 million people of all ages in our country are suffering from the ravages of poverty. These are men, women, and children off all ethnic backgrounds. They are healthy or unhealthy, mentally unstable or perfectly stable, families or individuals, unable to work or have been “downsized” and can’t find work. In short, poverty can strike anyone at any time–and it has. We can’t fix our economy overnight, but those of us who are fortunate enough not to be part of the 37 million can help through our donations not just of money but of time. Everyone has a little time to give. If serving at a soup kitchen takes more than you have, how about spending a few extra minutes while you grocery shop to shop for food items for those kitchens, or bake extra cookies for a shelter while you’re baking for your family. If you don’t have time to help a local charity pack sack lunches for the homeless, you probably do have a minute to smile and say “Hi” to the homeless man outside the store, thus letting him know that he’s recognized as a human being rather than an objectionable object. After your daughter’s softball game, when you go with the team to pizza, you have a second to invite along as your family’s guest the girl who can’t afford to go. In other words, poverty can be fought on the human level–one human being to another. And you fight the battle in little ways. As I always say, Small things really DO count!
Tag Archive for poverty
While You Shop, Do This
Use your immense power as a consumer. Ask where items you’re buying are made. Why? Activists to Retailers: Shoppers Need to Know Who’s Making the Clothes explains. Here’s a short excerpt:
“Consumers have more power than they think. If a store manager has their shoppers asking questions about where their clothes are being sourced, we think they are more likely to listen….In an industry where garment companies pocket huge profits whilst workers are being exploited…we want brands to listen to those who produce and buy their clothes.
“Asking a question as simple as ‘Who is making my clothes?’ takes into consideration how workers are being treated, where materials are coming from, and whether or not your clothing has been made sustainably. On average, garment workers in Bangladesh, Cambodia, and India receive 70 cents an hour for their 12-hour work days and live in poverty. Publishing supplier lists is one way to help consumers start shopping responsibly and improve conditions for garment workers.”
READ MORE AT http://www.takepart.com/article/2016/12/02/fashion-suppliers
A Small way to Fight Poverty
Think about it: the last poverty statistics (2017) show that 39.7 million people of all ages in our country are suffering from the ravages of poverty. These are men, women, and children off all ethnic backgrounds. They are healthy or unhealthy, mentally unstable or perfectly stable, families or individuals, unable to work or have been “downsized” and can’t find work. In short, poverty can strike anyone at any time–and it has. We can’t fix our economy overnight, but those of us who are fortunate enough not to be part of the 39.7 million can help through our donations not just of money but of time.
Everyone has a little time to give. If serving at a soup kitchen takes more than you have, how about spending a few extra minutes while you grocery shop to shop for food items for a local soup kitchen or food pantry? Bake extra cookies for the kitchen or a shelter while you’re baking for your family? You probably have some time to help an organization serving the homeless by packing sack lunches for distribution to them or sorting clothing at an organization’s clothes closet for people in need. If not, there’s no question that you have a minute to smile and say “Hi” to the homeless man outside the store, thus letting him know that he’s recognized as a human being rather than an objectionable object. After your daughter’s softball game, when you go with the team to pizza, you have a second to invite along as your family’s guest the girl who can’t afford to go.
In other words, poverty can be fought on the human level–one human being to another. And you fight the battle in little ways. As I always say, Small things really DO count!
It’s a Boy! The Future of Children
As we greet the new royal child, let’s think about how we can protect ALL the children of the world. This little Royal will never face hunger, homelessness, exploitation, or death by diseases that are virtually unknown in most of the world. They won’t have to work long hours in the field before even their tenth birthday to help support their families. For a certainty, they will have the opportunity for a first-rate education and be able to pass on their good fortune to their own children.
Not all babies are born into that world. Many, many face abject poverty, malnutrition, and illiteracy. Those who do survive to have families of their own will pass those conditions on to their children as their only possible legacy.
Those of us who are in a position to do something about the futures of these children must actually do something. If we have the means, we can donate funds to organizations, here and abroad, that fight poverty, feed the hungry, and educate all the children. We can volunteer as baby-rockers in at-risk hospital nurseries; aides for teachers of limited-English-speaking classes; tutors for underachieving students or those locked away at Juvenile Hall. We can visit a museum, art gallery, zoo, tech museum, or the like, taking with us a child of parents struggling to find jobs or working several jobs to meet the bills. We can invite a latch-key child to help make a double batch of cookies or casserole, and send it home with the young cook to show off to the family. We can do…a million little things that will make a difference in a young life, things that will make a lasting impression, build his or her self-esteem, teach a concept or a skill, and, therefore, provide a step toward a better life than the child might have had.
After all, isn’t each child a royal child?
KEA: A Great Idea!
Kaskazi Environmental Alliance (KEA) has an exciting, innovative idea: teach E. Africans about the importance of their environment and how that environment affects everyone on Earth; get them excited about and active in preserving their eco-system; and provide jobs that will help them pull themselves out of poverty.
KEA will offer marine science programs to the people who will be stewards of the Earth in the future–the youth. They will also build a world-class aquarium and marine research and conservation center. Additionally, they plan to turn a dangerous eyesore of a dump into a recycling center Through all of this, they will employ local people, giving them life-saving jobs and hope for a better future.
I think this U.S.-based not-for-profit has the right idea. And the group creating and running it has the vision, energy, and dedication to make it work.
KEA is only a few years old. However, as it goes along, , I believe it will act just like its namesake, the African Kaskazi winds, calming the storms of poverty, environmental degradation, and inadequate education.
I’ll be watching them…and reporting on them here from time to time. Meanwhile, learn more about KEA by going to their website, www.KEAinc.org.
A New Prince Among millions of Royal Children
As we greet the new royal child, let’s think about how we can protect ALL the children of the world. This little prince will never face hunger, homelessness, exploitation, or death by diseases that are virtually unknown in most of the world. He won’t have to work long hours in the field before even hisr tenth birthday to help support his family. For a certainty, he will have the opportunity for a first-rate education and be able to pass on his good fortune to his own children.
Not all babies are born into that world. Many, many face abject poverty, malnutrition, and illiteracy. Those who do survive to have families of their own will pass those conditions on to their children as their only possible legacy.
Those of us who are in a position to do something about the futures of these children must actually do something. If we have the means, we can donate funds to organizations, here and abroad, that fight poverty, feed the hungry, and educate all the children. We can volunteer as baby-rockers in at-risk hospital nurseries; aides for teachers of limited-English-speaking classes; tutors for underachieving students or those locked away at Juvenile Hall. We can visit a museum, art gallery, zoo, tech museum, or the like, taking with us a child of parents struggling to find jobs or working several jobs to meet the bills. We can invite a latch-key child to help make a double batch of cookies or casserole, and send half of it home with the young cook to show off to the family. We can do…a million little things that will make a difference in a young life, things that will make a lasting impression, build his or her self-esteem, teach a concept or a skill, and, therefore, provide a step toward a better life than the child might have had.
After all, isn’t each child a royal child?
Simple Wisdom from a Simple Woman
I think Saint/Mother Teresa was one of the wisest women ever to live. In today’s Thursday Thought, she looks into our homes.
Why a White Elephant?
After Christmas, it’s thought of as great fun to have a “White Elephant Party,” where you exchange gifts you received but have no earthly use for–except to take up space and gather dust. In case you’ve wondered, here’s the origin of the term “White Elephant” – something useless that nobody wants and is a burden to own.
Actually, in Thailand, white elephants were once thought of as sacred. At the same time, the Siamese king would foist one onto someone who fell out of his favor in order to punish him. That is, someone who made the king mad would find himself burdened with a white elephant, which was very expensive to care for and maintain, often driving the new owner into poverty. The “gift,” then looked like generosity on the king’s part but was really a sneaky way to get even.
Cheating Employers Cost Us All Money
Sure, I know that some people are underpaid, but what does that have to do with me? Lots, according to an Economic Policy Report survey titled “Raising America’s Pay.” The study found that low-wage workers are cheated out of $1,500,000,000 (a LOT of zeroes!) per year due to labor violations. That’s 1/4 of a full-time worker’s weekly earnings. The amount stolen from workers adds up to more than the total for items stolen during auto thefts, robberies, and burglaries in the U.S.
This theft impacts all of us., in terms of taxes and other factors that affect the economies of state and local governments. Additionally, if employers get away with underpaying some people, it affects other workers by causing wages to decrease. Also, if these people were paid what they’re owed, the poverty level would drop by about 6%.
Read more details at “Employers Steal Billions from Workers’ Paychecks Each Year.”
In Poverty? It’s Your Own Fault
I’m mad, horrified, disgusted, and a lot more. As you regular readers know, my Thursday Thoughts quotes are normally positive in themselves or from well-known people who give suggestions on how to improve our world. Today, though, I just need to vent.
The U.S. (I won’t call him “our”) Housing and Urban Development Secretary, Ben Carson, said this in an interview earlier this week:
“I think poverty to a large extent is also a state of mind. You take somebody that has the right mindset, you can take everything from them and put them on the street, and I guarantee in a little while they’ll be right back up there. And you take somebody with the wrong mindset, you could give them everything in the world, they’ll work their way right back down to the bottom.” He went on to say that poverty is the result of lack of determination and proper parenting.
Mr. Secretary, tell that to the mother on the streets because she had nothing left after her divorce and, as a stay-at-home mom, no job skills or experience. Or to the veteran with PTSD and only minimal access to VA services. Or the mentally or physically disabled person with no insurance and able–maybe–to get only a table-cleaning job at a fast-food place at non-livable wages.
As I said, I’m mad, horrified, disgusted, and a lot more.