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> People with no money problems don't need anyone. > Poor people know who to trust because they've had to trust them before. I feel like this is what's been c
by musingsole 6y ago
> People with no money problems don't need anyone.
> Poor people know who to trust because they've had to trust them before.
I feel like this is what's been contributing to collapsing communities in the US more than political tensions or whatever other specter one could point to. The lack of real, repeated need of others. A relative abundance on wealth leads to using money-based services to fix issues instead of relationships (which have cumbersome overheads). That leads to the creation of more services and until we've generally forgotten how to have a community, only services and consumers.
- bregma 6y agoA big part of the problem is definitely systemic. If the movers and shakers are motivated by building a legacy of good works then they need to be seen to be building such a legacy. Bricks and mortar can be seen. Funding foundations can be seen ("brought to you by the Ford Foundation"). Someone no longer living on the dole can not be seen. Rich people have no motivation to get people out of poverty because there is no credit in it. The middle class sees everything in terms of money spent. If someone is lifted out of poverty, no more money can be spent on them. The middle class has no motivation to get people out of poverty. The poor have no motivation to get out of poverty because they're already wealthy. This is what is termed a 'structural' problem. If someone were really interested in making change, they would try to alter the fundamental structure that shapes the system. I have some interesting anecdotes about such efforts but they're outside the scope if this discussion.