Re: The Politics of the Poverty Line Revisited, Pt. I
Submitted by Roevie on Mon, 01/23/2012 - 15:43
To answer your question, I don't think a new report will have a meaningful impact on solving the issue of poverty in the United States. In recent debates, presidential hopefuls have focused on issues like immigration, the war in Iraq, and of course the economy. Politics is the name of the game and 9.7 million people,0.02% of the American population, lacking agency, are highly unlikely to get the candidates closer to the Whitehouse.
But, what does this mean for the poor?
I guess the answer to that lies in what your beliefs in the current model of modern day capitalism are. The trickle down effect supports the theory that fixing the economy will ultimately fix poverty. If a conservative takes the Whitehouse this year, then we are likely to see abortion of many programs that support underprivilged Americans, in efforts to cut unnecessary government spending. To that, I believe poverty will indeed remain an issue.But even if the policial incumbent President Obama is relected, does that mean a different story? Not necessarily. Revamping the overall economy will remain top priority for who ever occupies the oval office and Congress.
So, the report won't make a difference, numbers are numbers. However,what I believe will change poverty in the U.S is politicians who decide to put poverty on the agenda, who are interested in engaging and drafting policies that address the poor. Report or no report, its a change of mindset.
To answer your question, I don't think a new report will have a meaningful impact on solving the issue of poverty in the United States. In recent debates, presidential hopefuls have focused on issues like immigration, the war in Iraq, and of course the economy. Politics is the name of the game and 9.7 million people,0.02% of the American population, lacking agency, are highly unlikely to get the candidates closer to the Whitehouse.
But, what does this mean for the poor?
I guess the answer to that lies in what your beliefs in the current model of modern day capitalism are. The trickle down effect supports the theory that fixing the economy will ultimately fix poverty. If a conservative takes the Whitehouse this year, then we are likely to see abortion of many programs that support underprivilged Americans, in efforts to cut unnecessary government spending. To that, I believe poverty will indeed remain an issue.But even if the policial incumbent President Obama is relected, does that mean a different story? Not necessarily. Revamping the overall economy will remain top priority for who ever occupies the oval office and Congress.
So, the report won't make a difference, numbers are numbers. However,what I believe will change poverty in the U.S is politicians who decide to put poverty on the agenda, who are interested in engaging and drafting policies that address the poor. Report or no report, its a change of mindset.