BY SHARON MARTIN
An economist in a recent Market Watch interview said that during hard economic times, politics gets meaner. Two recent articles, one by David French and another by Brandon Dutcher, illustrate this point.
French, in an essay called “Our Depraved Poor,” suggested there was only one way to lift folks out of poverty: “…people who work hard, finish their education, get married, and stay married are rarely — very rarely — poor.”
Right next to his statement was a paid advertisement for a Christian singles site.
Financial distress is frequently cited as a factor in divorce. Which comes first, divorce or hard times?
Several studies suggest that states with the highest rates of college graduates have the lowest divorce rates. We know college graduates earn more. The answer to poverty and divorce, then, seems to be education.
Brandon Dutcher quoted liberally from French’s opinion in his Sept. 1 article in the Drumright Gusher, saying that “our social problems are increasingly connected to the depravity of the poor.”
Dutcher has made it clear in previous articles that he does not support public schools, but there is plenty of evidence that supports education as the No. 1 weapon against poverty.
In an attempt to connect smoking and poverty, Dutcher borrowed numbers from a Tulsa World article – “$304,000 in food stamp purchases at tobacco retailers.”
Grocery stores are tobacco retailers. Grocery stores are where most food stamps are used. Food stamps cannot be used to buy cigarettes.
It’s too bad that some food stamp recipients smoke. Smokers at all economic levels cost us, both in increased medical costs and higher insurance premiums. But it isn’t fair to blame the poor for their habits and give the wealthy a pass.
French argues that food stamps and Medicare don’t put a dent in poverty, adding that “hundreds of billions of dollars of transfer payments have not budged the poverty rate.” What transfer payments – bailouts for bankers, subsidies for corn growers, or those ballyhooed tax breaks for corporate jet owners?
There are people who believe the poor deserve what they get. Some of them even profess to be Christians. Jesus was poor. So were his apostles. Wealth doesn’t make one holy.
It’s time to stop the poor bashing. It took two wars, generations of unequal opportunity, and decades of corporate welfare to create the gulf between rich and poor in this country.
It will take empathy, effort, education, and time to fix what’s been broken. Being mean won’t get the job done.
– Sharon Martin lives in Oilton, OK and is a regular contributor to The Oklahoma Observer
ILLUSTRATION: Bill Day/Cagle Cartoons
Bravo Ms Martin! The “Better Than Though” crowd will always twist the truth to bolster their superior self image. I guess that’s because that’s the only way it can be done.
Until we expose the Ultimate Truth, America is a Corporation and the governed are a free labor resource.. business will be as usual ( Manifest Destiny/Feudal System/Dark Ages)..In the eyes of the Financial Powers that Be; Human Rights are the crumbs that fall from the Master’s Table ( The Extremely Wealthy).
We (Corporate CEOs, Bankers, Land Brokers & Policy Makers ) hold these Rules of Law (Illegal Wars, Financial Debacle & Global Investments to be self-evident, that all Aristocracy Governments are created equal, they are endowed by their creator (Avarice ) with certain unalienable Financial Rights, that procure Financial Life, Financial Liberty and their Financial Manifest Destiny. To secure these Rights the governed (Indigenous Peoples) and their gold, silver, diamonds & land will always be a mandated and enslaved Free Labor Resource.
Poverty is An Institutionalized Industry. Protect the Institution at any cost. Poverty is a much needed commodity to ensure War & Violence against nations. Poverty is ” The Cash Cow ” of The Rich & SuperRich. Poverty creates high salary jobs for administrations and those seeking to End All Poverty. The War against Poverty guarantees the victor the spoils plus a cheap labor force as an added bonus:
Poverty: A mandated colony and territorial labor resource; wherein slavery, as the inner-city community and governmental fundraiser is The Age-Old Feudal System under the auspices of Globilization; The Political Kings..Barons..Knights which form The Alexander The Great Corporate Rule that uses Adolf Hitler mentality to bring Democratic enslavement to The World…
BLAMING POVERTY ON THE POOR
Give us your deprived, your malleable muddled masses
hoping for a gentler taskmaster
Welcome to the multi-trillion dollar industry, Poverty
A.K.A, cheapest labor force
Poverty works, never ever unemployed
A much needed commodity to justify
White-collar crime classes
Teaching dastardly deeds—to procure monetary needs-
fostering avarice greed
Give us your deprived, your malleable muddled masses
hoping for a gentler taskmaster
Welcome to the multi-trillion dollar industry, Poverty
A.K.A., cheapest labor force
Poverty creates jobs for those financing the societal
Institution of ya godda pay more taxes
Blaming Poverty on the poor
Look! what Enron did to those less fortunate
Blaming Poverty on the poor
Did not corporations want a billion dollar welfare check
Blaming Poverty on the poor
Blaming Poverty on the poor
Give us your deprived, your malleable muddled masses
hoping for a gentler taskmaster
Welcome to the multi-trillion dollar industry, Poverty
A.K.A., cheapest labor force
No penance just punishment augmenting the pillar of economic pillaging
Poor people put in the pillory from the political pulpit
Poverty is prime property
Poverty pimps portrayed as political preachers purely punitive but polite
The pluralization of Poverty provides prestige of the patricians
Poverty, the promissory note from the bureaucratic infidel
The Truth will tell—the truth will tell
Poverty the patriotic prisoner on trial for TREASON
COPYRIGHT 2000 JOSEPHINE DIXON BANKS
THE NEW INNER CITY SLAVE-PLANTATION
The now-a-day slave or labor force
The ruling-class determines the course
The political master’s pastor contorts
Politics and policy aborts
The new inner city slave-plantation
Human and civil rights violation with extreme taxation
Work like a blind jackass
Support and finance the ruling class
Being bi-partisan-just a mask
Cultured career criminals civilizing crass
The new inner city slave-plantation
Human and civil rights violation with extreme taxation
The political engineers of The Greater Good own
The inner city war-zone
The psychotropic drug sets the tone
Slavery as the new world order is the throne
The new inner city slave-plantation
Human and civil rights violation with extreme taxation
Multi-tasking a labor saving device
Freedom of movement has no right
Monopolized government enslaved all might
The inner city slave- plantation private and prime
Real estate blight
The new inner city slave-plantation
Human and civil rights violation with extreme taxation
The thirteenth amendment of the constitution
On the inner city slave-plantation no social, no economical,
No educational, no political absolution
On the inner city slave-plantation, indentured servants,
Chattel slaves, still considered Black Gold
By the God Fearing slave codes used to control
The new inner city slave-plantation
Human and civil rights violation with extreme taxation
On the new inner city slave-plantation
The American Flag cannot wave
Even Democracy is revered as a Black Slave
Copyright 2005
JOSEPHINE DIXON-BANKS
Tobacco retailers… these are probably convenience/liquor stores or gas station convenience stores. Sometimes the the only stores in some areas. food avail there would be on the high end…burrito heated in the store’s microwave. Food stamps buy these things and chips, etc. Cookies, candy, pretzels, ice cream bars, and probably milk.
the thing is the jerk was accusing people of “you have money to buy cigarettes? and YOU are on FOOD STAMPS?” The same sort of cartoon I saw with caption… about the woman ahead of her in checkout line “the woman with food stamps using her cell phone.” In this society, there is NO way out of poverty if one does not have a smartphone and email address. And a car. And insurance.
David French, actually, far from the cruelty implied by the statement above, has actually done all the liberal “in the trenches” hours fighting poverty…working directly, mentoring, soup kitchens, helping with bills individually. He found that working through his church, helping to stabilize families…that sort of thing was the foundation out of poverty that STUCK. Food stamps, etc. in themselves did not do this.
If you click on his other articles, you will see the things he suggests people DO to really HELP. Help on a personal level, certainly help with food banks etc.
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/frenchrevolution/2011/08/22/our-depraved-poor/