Do the poor need charity?

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It is commonly believed that the poor are victims of their circumstances. "What would you be like today", ask the altruists, "if you had been born to their lives?" One asked me once: "Imagine you were broke and homeless, could you lift yourself up by your bootstraps without accepting charity?"

There are many things wrong with this question. Firstly, it drops the context of how one gets to that starting point. Secondly, it ignores that all the help doesn't seem to result in any bootstrapping.

Nevertheless, leaving that aside just for this thread (please), what would you do? If you were to find yourself broke and homeless could you get your life together without help from friends, family or others?

I think it is a useful exercise to undertake, because it might help you understand exactly what is possible and where the deterrents to success really lie.

When I consider the question, I work backward rather than forward. I do not start from "suppose I was broke". Instead, I start from "what is the step just preceding where I am now". For me, the answer is extremely simple. I consider how I got my current job and figure out what it would take to get back into this job. It would not take much -- all I need to do is look respectable for an interview. In my job, that does not even mean a suit --- $100 would get me all the clothes I need. Other than that, I simply have to survive until I get the right break. I think I could do a couple of low-paying jobs, while sharing a tiny apartment with a few other people and manage to get by.

Ofcourse, this assumes I have the skills and education that I do. What if I didn't? What if the example were to be made tougher and I had to wind back that clock too? Hmmm. That requires a little more thought.

How would you proceed? How tough a start do you think you could handle? I'd love to hear some ideas.

[softwareNerd]

I heard this question put to a self-made businessman once. If he was ever down and out and in a strange town where nobody recognized him, he'd go back to where he started: home delivery.

Stores like Sears don't use employees for deliveries. He would go around and convince store managers to use him for deliveries. He would use a rented truck. Not much capital required. A few hundred dollars as "security" if one did not have a credit card.

[foofalah]

It's funny, because I've been preparing to pitch a TV show based on that exact premise. Please don't do it before I do. I've been working hard.

[softwareNerd]

It's funny, because I've been preparing to pitch a TV show based on that exact premise.  Please don't do it before I do.  I've been working hard.

In one of the "Apprentice" clones, the contestants were "street people" for one episode. Not sure what task they had to achieve.

[Michael Hopcroft]

I'm not that well-off now as far as economic circumstances goes, so I couldn't really give a good answer to the question of how I would "bootstrap" myself up from nothing.

One thing I can say is that there a lot of things on the streets that will derail any attempt faster than anything. It would be imperaitive to avoid alcohol, crack cocaine, methamphetamines, or anything else that could cause impaired judgment. The result of not doing so would be an extremely rapid downward spiral.

If I had no money, no resoucres, no skills and no education, if I were of the right age, and if I did not have any signficant physical or mental impairments, I would frist try to enlist in the military. Although the service is dangerous by its very nature, they do feed and clothe their troops, give them some sort of rude\imntary training, etc. One my the great regerts of my life is that a physical impariment cut off my military service a few weeks into basic training -- I feel I would be a much better and more secure person today if I had been able to complete at least one term of service.

Even without a home base, it should be possible to do some sort of work (again, this assumes that there is no major impariment preventing this). I don't know if this ever happens anymore, but in the old days many small businesses would employ people who, despite being 'down and out", had potential and abilioty, and would feed and house them in addition to paying a minimal wage. Although the worker would essentially be sleeping in a little room in the back of the store, at least he would have a roof over his head.

The important thing, I think, is to hold onto your wits and judgment at all costs. A person who acts without concern for the consequences is not going to help himself.

[Hal]

Some poor people probably do 'need' charity to get anywhere (think of those who are disabled or highly unintelligent for instance), whereas some dont. Likewise a lot of poor people probably are just victims of their circumstances, whereas a lot arent.t Your mistake is thinking there is some homogenous entity called 'the poor', all of which share similar circumstances and abilities.

Also, you cant really imagine yourself in 'their' position, because 'their position' is not just composed of external circumstances but also their upbringing, ability, and internalized beliefs, actions and knowledge. If you were to find yourself homeless tomorrow then your situation would not be comparable to a child who had been abandonded on the streets at 12 - the context would be entirely different even though you are superficially experiencing the same external circumstances. Someone who has had a good education and finds themselves "down on their luck" will most likely be able to handle it better than someone who was brought up in a 'bad' family which resulted in them internalizing negative attitudes and outlooks. There are reasons why the children of successful parents tend to better than those that come from dropouts and losers.

(and to avoid misinterpretation, the fact someone 'needs' charity or is a 'victim of their circumstances' obviously does not produce in others an obligation to help them).

Edited March 4, 2005 by Hal

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You're probably right Hal: attitude has a big role to play.