Fear of Poverty

The western world contends with the ever present thoughts of poverty. Ask anyone and most will tell you they could be doing better.

"The poverty of our century is unlike that of any other. It is not, as poverty was before, the result of natural scarcity, but of a set of priorities imposed upon the rest of the world by the rich. Consequently, the modern poor are not pitied...but written off as trash. The twentieth-century consumer economy has produced the first culture for which a beggar is a reminder of nothing. " ~John Berger

What is the logic of accumulation? Our earth can barely stand another shipment of cheaply made disposable goods made from a far away land. The simplicity of one may be the poverty of another. Definitions of poverty vary from culture to culture, however the statistics of the current western society is not of living in poverty but of overconsumption. Most have far beyond the basic necessities.

"Aspirational consumption" as a coined western term comes from letting the culture of the rich define your needs. The media marketing machine drives a message that is difficult to ignore. They would want you to consume more if you are emotionally running on empty, because it will make you feel better. Debt and possessing too many things go together in a fear of poverty mindset. Bigger houses and cars, and mammoth appetites for what you can not afford contribute to your over-spent wallet.

Outside of Affluence
Most of the World - Real Fear of Poverty

Despite some important progress, about 30% of young children in low and middle-income countries are underweight. The largest problems are in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. There are states in India, for example, in which almost half of all young children are underweight.

Nearly 50% of all young children in the developing world do not receive enough iron in their diets, endangering their mental and physical development.

At the same time, obesity is an intensifying problem in the United States and other industrialized nations—37% of U.S. men and 42% of U.S. women are obese. But levels are also rising in some developing nations: 21% of women are obese in Morocco, as are 34% of women in Mexico. ~Population Reference Bureau's 2007 World Population Data Sheet

With so much of the affluence coming at the expense of exploiting those who are truly living in poverty, isn't it about time to take a deeper look? The fear of poverty can be erased by focusing on sharing a little of what you have. This can truly make the world a much better place.

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