WHY DO WE HATE THE POOR?
Since 1990, 270 million people have died worldwide, as a result of poverty related causes. Most of these were women and children. Poverty claims 18 million lives each year, 50,000 each and every day, and poverty is responsible for one-third of all deaths. More than 800 million people suffer from hunger every day. There are 100 million street children worldwide. Approximately 218 million children aged 5 to 17 are engaged in non-domestic child labor work worldwide.
In 2001, 21 percent of the world lived in extreme poverty,The World Bank defines extreme poverty as living on less than US$1 per day, and moderate poverty as less than $2 a day, estimating that in 2001, 1.1 billion people had consumption levels below $1 a day and 2.7 billion lived on less than $2 a day.

In the United States, the discussion of poverty is often a taboo topic in politics, the media, and in social circles. People who are poor, by economic definition, often deny their penury while those of economic privledge sometimes take umbrage over the sheer existence of poverty. The public outcry for welfare reform in the 1990s was an example of political assault on the poor as voters were led to believe that recipients were riding the gravy train at the government's expense. Although welfare reform may have been necessary and desirable, the fact that it was a campaign issue gives credence to the argument that the poor suffer exploitation and oppression at the behest of their own government. However, there appears to be a general concensus in the U.S. that individuals are responsible for the state of their own affairs - devout believers in the maxim that "America is the land of opportunity".

But Government effectiveness has a major impact on the delivery of socioeconomic outcomes for poor populations. Poor democracies don't spend any more on their health and education sectors as a percentage of GDP than do poor autocracies, nor do they get higher levels of foreign assistance. They don't run up higher levels of budget deficits. THEY SIMPLY MANAG4E THE RESOURCES THAT THEY HAVE MORE EFFECTIVELY.

During the past 30 years, the U.S. government has prosecuted three wars, fueled record gasoline and energy prices, cowered at the collapse of the home mortgage and banking industry, ran away from rampant illegal immigration, overlooked the sale of substantial real estate and property holdings to foreign interests, promoted the relocation of factories and outsourcing of jobs, passed substantial tax breaks for corporations and wealthy individuals, bragged about the strong economy until the nation slipped into recession, spent half a trillion dollars on a failed drug war, institutionalized the world's largest prison population, accumulated a $9 trillion debt, all, while borrowing trillions of dollars from foreign investors. These actions all had an adverse impact on the poor, causing poverty rates to rise signifigantly.

As if that weren't enough, congress acted on almost none of the pressing issues tearing at the fabric of American prosperity. Instead congress moved legislation at a snails pace with little regard for major issues or growing problems. Congress spearheaded their own projects, while sneaking favored earmarks into spending bills, often without bothering to read the legislation before voting on it. Bills favoring defense, banking, oil, and pharmaceuticals sailed through congress while social initiatives were repeatedly stonewalled or killed in committee before reaching the floor. Congress catered to campaign contributors, corporations and lobbyists while ignoring constituent calls for action on major issues. They passed a massive drug benefit bill for Social Security recipients, which benefitted pharmaceutical companies far more than recipients.

A government's failure to provide essential infrastructure worsens poverty, but the goverment failed to maintain the U.S. infrastructure, opting instead to rebuild the Iraqi infrastructure. Congress failed to pass a comprehensive immigration bill that was so convoluted and unrealistic that it generated a public outcry. National goals and priorities were undefined and neither congress nor the administration offered a plan to target resources or development toward the needs of the nation in order to resolve America's problems. Congress was bogged down by politics and scandal. Legislation was mired in procedure, tradition and protocol and legislation consistently failed to move forward. After the 2006 election, congress finally managed to pass a minimum wage bill for the first time in more than 10 years.

Constitutionally, the government is bound to provide equal protection for all. For the U.S. government to pass legislation which favors one segment of the population over another, one class over another, one sex over another, or one race over another, is a violation of constitutional authority. Once the U.S. government engineered policies that enriched the privleged and powerful while unfavorably impacting the poor, the founding principles of providing equal justice, promoting the general welfare and insuring domestic tranquility, were abriged. Consequently, the government created a critical need to provide recompense and opportunity to those adversely affected. The government's actions created extreme hardship upon those of limited and moderate economic means, thus creating a dramatic shift in economic balance. Failure to restore an economic balance will imperil the nation and exacerbate condidions that are cruel and inhumane to the many victims of poverty.

In the United States, the wealthiest country in the world, 37.3 million people (12.5%) are living in poverty, including more than 9 million blacks, more than 9 million Hispanics, 18.3 million children under the age of 18, and 3.6 million seniors over the age of 65. In addition, 45.7% of all U.S residents have no health insurance. The United States has about 750,000 homeless people, a growing number resulting from the housing crisis and escalating home foreclosure rates. Both the number of unemployed persons (8.8 million) and the unemployment rate (5.7 percent) rose in July, 2008. Over the past 12 months, the number of unemployed persons has increased by 1.6 million, and the unemployment rate has risen by 1.0 percentage point.

Poverty is not a matter of economics, it is a matter of need. Poverty is the deprivation of common necessities that determine the quality of life, including food, clothing, shelter, health care and safe drinking water, and may also include the deprivation of opportunities to learn, to obtain better employment to escape poverty, and/or to enjoy the respect of fellow citizens.

President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programs gave rise to a host of employment and training iniatives which provided new opportunities for poverty stricken areas. Some of these still remain in one form or another and while critics dispute their effectiveness, many disadvantaged and indigent people were able to take advantage of the opportunities offered. One of the major problems with programs of this type is that they are often non-directional in nature and often did not offer real economic opportunity. Suffice it to say they were not targeted at any tangible public works projects or developmental iniatives like the development of renewal energy projects.

The U.S. Constitution's basic principles provide for one nation, one people, and one rule of law. The founding fathers intended to create a nation of people who came together to plan for the future, to resolve their differences, to solve their problems, and to achieve prosperity. They knew that this could be accomplished only if all parties could join forces to address the same issues.

The time has now come for America to address the issues of poverty. It is time to change the focus away from the ignorance and shame associated this issue. It is time to build a level of social resposibility into government, business, law, economics, education and society that delineates the policies and iniatives which will advance the cause of reducing poverty throughout the world.

Social responsibility should not be mandated, but it should be rewarded. Personal and private iniatives which serve to diminish poverty and alleviate suffering may be recognized through tax or cash incentives. Businesses vying for government contracts or economic incentives may receive preferential treatment for including provisions that serve to diminish poverty. Government projects designed to develop new technologies and industry may include provisions to target development, training, and facilities at reducing poverty. Corporations and employers which offer socially responsible policies and humanitarian practices should receive preference over those that do not.

The government may offer special incentives and projects to persons, charities, businesses, or others who develop innovative projects designed to reduce poverty. In effect, America should be in the business of eradicating poverty and economic oppression. The consequences of poverty are a threat to the economic sovereignty of all and it should be attacked with the same aggressiveness and zeal as a deadly disease. In the proper context, poverty may be seen as an opportunity for greater economic opportunity for all.

Poverty is more insididious than addiction, allowing few to escape it's clutches without intervention. Poverty in distressed neighborhoods means there are many victims of hunger, disease, divorce, mental illness, crime, gangs, violence, abuse, intimidation and illiteracy. It creates a cycle of want and despair that is so oppressive that there is little opportunity for recovery without direct assistance in the form of sustenance, rehabilitation, employment, training, education or relocation. It also creates a cycle of need which perpetuates itself throughout time.

Reducing poverty offers many benefits for a free society. It will expand economic growth, reduce entitlement payments, reduce crime, lower health care costs, lower divorce rates, reduce the number of abortions, improve mental health, and improve social conditions.

As defined by the Office of Management and Budget, the average poverty threshold for a family of four in 2007 was $21,203. Historically this threshold was calculated from a formula based upon the price of a market basket of food, adjusted for inflation. It is an arbitrary formula and fails to consider spending variables like housing, energy, gasoline, and health care, costs which have all increased dramatically in recent years. Consequently, the threshold for poverty in the U.S. is probably set far too low. A low income worker earning such low wages may also have to pay federal, state, sales, and property taxes, employer deductions for insurance, pensions, uniforms, dues, child support, transportation costs, meals, and child care. The tax burden for an individual income this low is too great because they are unable to acquire the basic necessities of life.

According to BLS statistics, the total average annual expenditures per consumer unit (~household) was $48,398 in 2006. Average housing costs were $16,366, transportation - $8,508, food - $6,111, insurance and pensions - $5,270, health care -$2,766, apparel and services -$1,874, entertainment and other - $7,505. A wage earner at the poverty level experiences great hardship meeting basic needs.

In 2007, the median annual household income was $50,233.00 according to the Census Bureau. Black households had the lowest median income in 2007 at $33,916, Women - $35,102, Hispanic households - $38,679, and Asian households - $66,103.

The gap between the haves and the have-nots has grown too wide in recent years. Wealth is not an impediment to reducing poverty, but unqualified greed as seen in some corporations today is irresponsible and detrimental to the survival of democracy. One industry cannot be allowed to control the future of a nation from it's boardrooms nor should it be allowed to throw a nation into economic turmoil. Progress may be achieved after impediments to economic advancement are removed or retooled. The solution to this problem requires an understanding of it's true depth and dimension and the U.S. Government cannot absolve itself of the responsibility to mend broken fences any more than a parent can deny responsibility to care for a child. To create poverty for many for the enrichment of few is a egregious violation of human rights.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons budget has increased by two thousand percent as a result of mandatory minimum sentencing for drug users, from $220 million in 1986 to over $4.3 billion in 2001. Over $5 billion was spent for prison construction alone in the last 10 years, yet the prison system still exceeds capacity by 32%. In 2005 States spent $42.89 billion on Corrections, but only $24.69 billion on public assistance. It costs an average of $25,000/year to house each inmate.

As an advocate of human rights I find these statistics shocking and alarming. They illustrate several national trends which are indicative of human rights violations. The rapid rise in prison population reflects a pattern historically found in the persecution of population sub-groups by despotic governments.

Convictions for drug offenses contributed substantially to this rapid growth in the prison population. Since prohibition, alcohol and drugs have been favorite targets of legislators and criminal justice alike, with the preponderance of related convictions hitting minorities and the poor the hardest. Drug penalties were stiffened in the 1930's to suppress Mexican banditos and again in the 1970's to suppress anti-war elements, but mandatory sentencing guidelines have caused prison populations to balloon. Without questioning the government's rationale for iniating such a dramatic surge in confinements, two truths are self-evident. One, the war on drugs is a total failure and two, millions of lives have been disrupted or destroyed as a result of this drug policy.

The consequences of prison confinement are substantial and far reaching. Prisons are rife with violence, overcrowding, poor medical and mental health care, and many other adverse conditions. One out of five inmates will be sexually assaulted in prison and 7% will be a victim of rape in one of America's 5,000 prisons and jails. For the former inmate, he or she will face a lifetime of rejection and isolation. They will experience extreme difficulty in finding employment, locating housing, purchasing an automobile or securing a loan. Nearly a fourth of those convicted for a non-violent crime will be convicted a second time for a violent crime. Within three years of their release, 67% of former prisoners will be arrested again and 52% will return to prison.

For millions of children, it means they will spend years without the guidance, companionship, love, and support of a parent. They will experience loneliness, hardship and embarrassment throughout their childhood. They will also be more likely to follow the same path in life, finding themself confined to prison one day.

America's corrections system costs taxpayers $60 billion a year and the war on drugs has already cost half a trillion dollars. Another alarming trend is the growing number of privately operated prison facilities. With most prisons filled above capacity, providing extremely poor and dangerous living accomodations, and an abyssmal rehabilitation rate, the probability of human rights abuses is enormous.

The contracting of private corrections facilities for profit is a dangerous and ill-conceived approach to criminal justice. Such an arrangement which provides higher compensation for higher confinement rates and longer sentences for prisoners is a recipe for abuse and corruption within the prison system. It is also is an opportunity to inflict further abuse and suffering upon inmates, compounding conditions which are already an infringement upon human rights.

The disproportionate number of poor and minority males confined to penal facilities represents a definte class and racial bias. That bias exists in the community, it exists in congress and statehouses, it exists in enforcement and confinement and it exists in courtroomss and prisons. It exists because of prejudice, it exists because of ignorance, it exists because of greed and it exists because of politics. It exists because of lack of opportunity, it exists because of lack of education, it exists because of mental illness, and it exists is because of poverty.

In a country so rich in freedom, culture, resources, opportunity, and compassion, it is inconceivable that the United States would allow itself to become the world leader in prison confinements. It is a national disgrace and a national tragedy. The adverse effects from this condition will linger for generations and will cost the nation trillions of dollars. One cannot help but wonder what the outcome would have been if the U.S. had invested half a trillion dollars in social reform and rehabilitation programs. As the leader of the free world, it is another stain upon that cherished document that we call the U.S. Constitution.

The cable news networks claim they provide news, information, and commentary, yet it is often filtered through political channels that may limit access or sponsors that could pull ads. They run political advertisements and then offer commentery on the same ads they were paid to run. They feature stories on products, people, and sponsors who they are paid to promote or who are are affilliated with the parent company. Stories and information are often inaccurate and slanted to reflect a particular point of view. The same news stories are run ad infinitum as if to insure that as many viewers as possible see it. These stories are often tabloid in nature and are designed to offer sensationalism rather than information. The same stories are often carried by all the networks at the same time. These stories are often dissected more than a frog in Biology class while major issues, problems, and stories are neglected. News coverage often includes a lengthy and detailed focus on local stories and car chases which have little relevance to national issues. The cable news network's "lipstick media" gave us an America where Britney Spear's panties are more relevant than genocide in the Sudan. There is little focus on international issues.

In reality, the cable news networks are nothing more than entertainment networks whose only goal is to increase ratings. This is clearly evident in the frequent and lengthy blocks of commercials shown. Commentators can often be seen sniping at each other and gloating over ratings. Commentary is frequently extremely biased, deceptive, and untrue. At the Democratic Convention they focused on their own commentators instaed of the speakers who could change the course of America. They are more interested in giving their anchors "star power" than on covering the news. News items are often pulled off of youtube and offered for commentary to their pundits. They often characterize themselves as "fair and unbalanced" or "the best news team", promotional monikers which are patently untrue.

In effect, CNN, FOX NEWS, and MSNBC are not news networks, but something else entirely. They are being deceptive by promoting themselves to the public in this manner. Therefore, my objective is to petition the FCC in an effort to have the cable news networks designation as "news networks" removed. Cable news networks are more accurately defined as "entertainment" or "information" or "opinion and commentary", but not news. News networks must be factual, commercial free, unfiltered, and investigative in order to be unbiased, informative and useful. Our efforts will be focused on developing resources and funding for public news and information networks which are not accountable to politicians or corporate sponsors. Only networks which offer no commercials or editorial commentary should be allowed to carry the "total news" designation. This change in focus will allow us to develop news programming and informational networks that are factual, relevant, comprehensive and informative. America's future depends upon knowledge and truth, two values sorely missing from cable news. We cannot continue to be a nation of the uninformed without risking our freedom and independence.