I WANT TO BE POOR AGAIN

I am ready to be poor again.  I don’t want to be dirt poor, mind you. Just moderately poor.  But what is moderately poor? Poor is poor, right?

When I was a kid, we knew what poor was.  We didn’t talk about it in mature terms, we didn’t define it verbally, but we all knew who they were in school. We knew by how they dressed and seeing them in the free lunch line. There was no question whose family had money and whose family had nothing.

As a young adult, I was “poor.”  Or so I thought.  I had a roof over my head, utilities most of the time, and gas with my rolled coins. When I was poor, I didn’t have a home phone for a period of time. We were excited when we got on a party line. We didn’t have cell phones yet – only the rich had “car phones.” Cable TV was a luxury, but the three channels were all we knew, and were okay.  We went to Goodwill for our clothes. Not underwear, though. I would buy underwear new, because, well…ick. However, I tried not to be seen there. You didn’t want people to know you shopped at Goodwill or the Salvation Army twenty years ago. Now, no one cares. “Poor” people shop there openly, while talking on their cell phones.  I used to consider this poor.  I don’t anymore – I consider it manageable, maybe even comfortable.

If you are poor enough, you can get food stamps. Then, you don’t have to eat beans and rice everyday. You can actually eat steak, buy soft drinks, and have dessert. We weren’t quite poor enough at that time to get food stamps, so it was beans, Hamburger Helper (if burger was on sale), and bologna sandwiches. Today, we would get food assistance at the same relative income. Not only would we get food stamps, we would also get utility assistance, housing assistance, day care assistance, tax breaks, you name it. The lines have not only blurred, they have smeared all over the page.

What is the actual definition of “poor?” Merriam-Webster defines it as a : lacking material possessions b : of, relating to, or characterized by poverty. So, then, what is “poverty?” Again, we look to Merriam-Webster, which defines it as: the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions. So, my interpretation of these definitions as listed is: if you can’t afford cable TV, you are impoverished.

If you don’t have anything at all, you are poor.  After looking up these terms and comparing it to our current social model, I have come to the realization that our government has lost sight between the terms poverty and poor, and they haphazardly treat each term equally.

For a visual definition of poverty vs. poor, I look to people in India or Africa, who truly have nothing. These people who live on the streets are there primarily because of health, gender, war, racism, or devastating crisis. They are truly victims, and truly poor. Of course, there are drugs and alcohol in every country, but these are not the primary reasons for their homeless problem. On the contrary, our homeless, for the most part, have drug, alcohol, or mental issues, and often choose, either actively or passively, to live on the streets.  These two populations are not the same, the definition of poor gets even murkier.

So, I would like to throw in another definition: destitute. Defined by Merriam-Webster as lacking possessions and resources; especially: suffering extreme poverty. I will also include another definition, which I prefer since it better fits my understanding of destitute: lacking the necessities of life. Lacking all money, resources, and possessions necessary for subsistence. (Encarta Dictionary)

Now we have three terms to further elucidate: impoverished, poor, and destitute. Why the tedium? Why define it to this level when it’s all very similar? It needs to be better defined because they are not similar, and should not be treated as such. Poor, as defined decades ago, was no food, no shelter, no car, no phone, and no medical care. Living on the streets.  Eating out of the trash.  Going to the free clinic. Smoking other people’s cigarette butts.  Not anymore. There are gradations now to the condition of “poor”- poor has evolved.  You are considered poor if you have no food. You are also considered poor if you can’t afford a cell phone. How can this be equated? What has happened in the evolution of our society that we think it’s a great idea to give free cell phones to the poor instead of investing that money in… oh I don’t know… jobs training maybe? Better access to health care for the poor? Why do we treat the impoverished the same as we treat the destitute? There is such a cushion now that no incentive exists anymore to pull themselves up by boot straps. Why would the poor want to improve?

Here are my definitions of the three terms in past society:

Poverty – does not have a running car

Poor – does not have enough food

Destitute – living on the streets

And these three terms in our current society:

Poverty – can only afford basic cable.

Poor – watches a TV with rabbit ears

Destitute – does not have a TV

So, back to my original statement. I am ready to be poor again. No – I want to be impoverished again. I don’t mind bologna sandwiches, and I don’t drink soft drinks anymore. TV has gotten so bad that I would rather it be turned off anyway.  And I don’t answer my cell phone most of the time when it rings – I like my privacy and my anonymity. I don’t mind buying clothes at Goodwill or Salvation Army – the quality is better, the prices are great, and the money stays in this country. I wouldn’t be spending so much money on foreign oil if I quit driving to work every single day.

Our politicians like to get on TV and trumpet “the poor, the poor, the poor…,” and the votes stack up. Call me mean-hearted, but I don’t care about the poor, or the impoverished, as it is defined by government.  I care about the destitute. But, even though these definitions are incorrectly used interchangeably, and tax money is spent on them equally across the board, I am, and will continue to be, a charitable person. If someone needs food, I will be the first to give it to them. But, if they call me on their cell phone to ask for it, don’t count on me showing up.