Why Are The Poor The Richest People In The World?
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A man goes into a store and buys another man a plastic wrapped sandwich and a bottle of water. The man sitting on the sidewalk reaches up and takes the gift from the man standing and gives him a nod and says " thank you." The man standing winks and starts down the street pushing a cart full of his belongings. Both of these men are homeless.
Statistically people making less than $10,000 a year give 4.3 % of their income to charity. People making $100,000 a year or more only give 2.1% of their income to charity.
Statistically women give more to charity than men do. Older people tend to give more than their younger counterparts who make an equal income. The S.C.C.B.S. (Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey) show that poor American families are twice as likely as their middle class to be Seven-Day Adventists, Pentecostals, or Jehovah's Witnesses. People that attend church often give more than people who don't. Maybe faith and religion take a part in charity. As the old saying goes, you get what you receive. The poor attend church more often than people who are wealthy. It seems people who make less give more.
Legal and illegal Immigrants were the leading givers to charity in a survey done in 2007. They sent multibillions back to their loved ones across the world.
There are about 30 million households in America that do not give to charity. After 4000 households were interviewed, the common excuses were that they were never asked to give or that they feared that the money or items would be used inefficiently. But the most common excuse was that these households couldn't afford it. The households that were interviewed all made over $100,000 per year.
An individual who lacks a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence is the definition of a person who is homeless.
23% of American homeless are United States Veterans. 47% of those Veterans are from the Veitnam era. 89% of them received Honorable Discharges. 67% served three or more years. There are anywhere between 529,000 to 840,000 veterans who are homeless at some time during the year.
About 80% of humanity lives on less than $10.00 a day.
Almost a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their name.
There are 2.2 billion children in the world. 1 billion live in poverty.
25,000 children die every day due to poverty.
There seems to be a disconnect between people who are wealthy to people who aren't. Poor people can understand how and why charity is an important aspect of human life. They give because they can understand what is like to go without.
In 2007 there were 3.6 million elderly people, over the age of 65 who were homeless
To be fair people making one million or more, about 7% of the United States population, account for about half of all charitable donations but the poor donate more of their income than people who are wealthy.
Please give to your local charities and give to your vets. They need you.
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Comments
rachitha-thank you very much. glad you enjoyed it.
An eyeopener that's a fact, in my opinion there is no excuse for not helping others.
hawkesdream-thank you for reading and thanks for the nice comment. I agree with you completely.
Great hub!! , thankyou for sharing ,its amazing isnt it, that the world produces enough food to feed everyone . Politics .huh
eaglekiwi-thank you for the nice comments. glad you liked it. yeah-politics!
If we can't give something....we can do something. Wonderful hub....thanks! :)
tom cornette-i agree with your comment. thanks for reading.
Very thought provoking Christine, thanks a lot for a wonderful hub :)
An invitation to social awareness at its best, thanks for this very thought-provoking hub.
What a fantastic hub!!! Money consumes people unfortunately and they cannot break free of it. Once they have a real taste they have to have more. Giving it up is often the most difficult thing many can do. Something being difficult is no excuse for not doing it.
Isn't it amazing that those who are not consumed by money do live happier lives as they can see life for what it is....beautiful.
Thank you for this post!
Thanks for writing this!
An excellent piece. I enjoyed reading it as it is well written. I might add that the citizens of the United States give 4 times more to charity than those of any other nation. And I find it interesting, too, that research shows Conservatives give 4 times more to charity than Liberals—which seems weird because the public perceives the Liberals are their friends. The best I can figure is the Conservatives give to those causes they believe in, and Liberals want to give the Conservative's money to causes they don't believe in. I guess.
Makes me so mad when the world produces enough food to feed everybody!! Damn politics again. When I wrote a similiar hub I was astounded to learn that some of the wealthiest countries have alot of activity in poorer countries ,and it isnt just to feed them. Hmm.
Great hub thankyou
You're right, I always feel that some big burden is released when I give for charity or donations. Very touching hub I like it.
kiran8-melody-dr. james-manlypoetryman-jameseaglekiwi-febriedethan- thank you all for your comments. thank you all for your support and kind words. I really appreciate it:)
Great work with this hub. Keep the awareness alive!
that was a very touching article... a topic that needed to be heard... thankyou...
Faith Hope and Charity, values to live by. Pray for those in the homeless situation that their daily lives become less of a burden. Especially the children and the elderly.
Peggy W-thank you for reading and all your support.
Ask AeriJ-I agree with you. I think as a country we can do so much more for people who are less fortunate.
thinking out loud- Thank you for those words-wonderful words to live by.
Great hub. Thanks. I believe that 30 years ago people gave more than today. The reason, I think, is that government assumed that role and put down Christianity. What do you think?
This is very thought-provoking and very well written. I have always thought that these statistics were true, but you put it out there for us to think about and it's great.
My husband and I give all year round, in many different ways. The excuses I hear from people who don't give is they can't afford it or they fear their money would be used fraudulently; and they are poor excuses indeed. If people would just think beyond themselves for a minute, they could do their part to change the world.
Great Hub!
CT
ct- thank you for reading and thanks for the comment. I agree with you. I think that that is what it is all about. Thinking beyond ourselves. If we teach our children this early, they can become people who think beyond themselves and in turn become a giver instead of a constant taker.
I think most people within the Western modern world assume the rest of the world is similar to our own, In that they have free and easy access to education, health and jobs. Yet this is far from being the case and thus 1 billion people are unable to read or wright.
Often what we give or do not is measured by how much money we give. Yet you do not have to give money ( for all those that feel they can not afford to, or fear the money is mis used) You can often give more to people simply by giving some of your time. A friendly face a warm hello, an ear to listen and a shoulder to lean upon. It goes a long way to improving somebody's day, to improving somebody's life. So when you next say sorry I can't afford it, ask how you can still help to make a difference for the better in another persons life.
Watch Tower- thank you for reading. Great advice for people to follow. "No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted"- Aesop
Great Article. So true. Sad.
Thanks for stopping by my Scriptbuddy hub and I thought I'd do the same for you. I'm glad I did, you have a very good hub here. I live by the mantra's "You have to give in order to get!" and "To achieve things you have never done, you must be willing to do things you have never done before." I see the good nature in people when I give, not expecting anything in return. I feel so much richer for it.
defi9er thank you for stopping by.
livewithrichard- thank you reading and I'm glad to hear that you are a giving person by nature. it's the best thing to be.
Great hub, chistine!
A contemplation for us.
Thanks for sharing..
Christine, this is one of the most relevant hubs out there! Thanks for joining my club. You were my first fan. I hope it was because my material brought inspiration. I'm still trying to read through all sorts of stuff, and time is limited, so the whole fan club thing is still something I'm trying to be as honest and careful about. If I have fans, I feel a greater sense of responsibility for what I write and also for what I inadvertently endorse. I hope I don't mislead said fans into misunderstanding what I am about and Who I live for.
I am always trying to get an idea of what a person's world view is. When I think I have a decent idea of who is for what, then I will start joining their fan clubs. For now, let this personal response serve by way of encouragement, because I like this hub of yours, and I know that you worked diligently and hard to complete it. The topic is close to my heart. Keep inspiring.
Incidentally, do you twitter?
God bless you, for He IS close to the poor, most especially to the poor in spirit.
Christine, I have posted a link to this on my Twitter account.
Good on ya!
hsofyan- thank you for reading. Glad you liked it. I hope it was inspirational.
christianesk-thank you for your comment and your support. And no I don't twitter but thank you for posting the link. I just want people to truly understand their responsibility in this world.
Interesting stats. Interesting comments. Giving seems so limiting however, and for some it has become a did-my-part bit. At sea its more about sharing and at times equalizing as you can.
Capt-I'm glad you liked it and I agree with your comment.
lovely hub.....
brenda-thank you for the compliment
I just wrote a similar hub, however I am more moved by yours, because you shed more light on the aspect of giving. In time I hope to inspire the way you do, so keep up the good work. I am just getting around to reading the hubs of my fan club members, so I intend to read all of your hubs, as time goes on.
I know when I used to collect for Christian Aid Week we always collected more from the working class streets of the neighbourhood than we ever did from the more middle class Avenues and Drives. The working class streets had a much better attitude towards the collectors as well.
giving is the key of life...
christine ,nice article and very well presented .I wish this article could be read by millions ,so that it may touch their heart and build a soft corner in their heart and prompt them to charity.
i have my own teaching institution and I do charity by give free education to needy children and also give free Chiropractic treatment to those in pain .
Great hub Christine. I'm off to read all your other hubs now.
I live in the UK. I see a TV programme on BBC just this week. Papua New Guinea tribes are selling their forests for roughly $10 a tree. By the time they reach our shores these tree's are worth $1000's. Why do they sell these trees. Because they can not afford $10 to help their children survive Malaria. This world sometimes makes me want to vomit! This is an excellent hub Christine.
It makes a nice change to read something that isn't painting the disadvantaged as dangerous, criminally-minded monsters who want to steal your daughter/house/country away.
Brilliant hub ! I agree wholeheartedly with your conclusions !
rachitha says:
7 months ago
Christine loved your article. Rarely come across articles that talk about such themes. Keep up the good work