American Poverty

One in seven Americans lives in “poverty.” You’ve heard the sentence. Everybody has heard the sentence. Start talking about spending reform of any kind and you will hear the sentence. It is such a common talking point from the left and media elite that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Is this true? Who are the people in poverty and is the definition used by our government the same as Merriam-Webster’s-“the state of one who lacks a usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions.”?

For many, the term poverty brings forth images of malnourished people living in dirty squalor or of homeless people eating in soup kitchens. Poverty suggests an inability to provide a family with basic nutrition, clothing and shelter. It suggests ragged citizens, in long lines, at health fairs searching desperately for needed care. Poverty basically denotes miserable living conditions and desperate people. Who wouldn’t want to reach out and help them? You certainly would. I certainly would. When the media tells you 14% of Americans live in poverty, is this how they are living?

According to the US Department of Energy, as of 2005, the average person living in poverty (note “average” and not every case as liberals will point out) has fourteen common items in their households:

*Air conditioning, a clothes washer, clothes dryer, ceiling fans, cordless phones, two color televisions, cable or satellite TV, a DVD player, refrigerator, and oven and stove, a microwave, and a coffee maker.

In addition to these items, poor families with children also usually had a computer, an Xbox or Play Station, and a cell phone. Remember these are items found in the typical poor household. These are the median lower 14% of our society. These are the folks we are led to believe have next to nothing. So, maybe the poor have stuff but still live in dilapidated squalor? Not according to the U.S. government’s own housing assessment.

     “Poor Americans are well housed and rarely overcrowded.[20] In fact, the houses and apartments of America’s poor are quite spacious by international standards. The typical poor American has considerably more living space than does the average European.”

     “Forty-three percent of all poor households own their own homes. The average home owned by persons classified as poor by the Census Bureau is a three-bedroom house with one-and-a-half baths, a garage, and a porch or patio.”[22]

Our own government says “The typical poor American has considerably more living space than does the average European.” Not the poorest European but the AVERAGE one. Thank you to capitalism for lifting up so many out of the depths of despair.

The living standards reported here are far different then the dire ones portrayed by liberal activists and our mainstream media. This is so unfortunate for the truly poor and desperate among us. Their own plight diminished by the false representations presented by our media and political elites. There are people living in some awful conditions in this country. Nobody disputes that. These people need our help. They need our generosity. We should give of our time, talents, and energy to help those truly impoverished to find a way out of their terrible living conditions. If we stand by and do nothing, as individuals, to help the truly poor our wealth condemns us to empty lives of just sitting back and playing with our toys. The poor will always be among us. Let’s stop asking government to intervene and go out ourselves into the world and SERVE them. Only then, will the truly poor get the help that can change their very existence.