blog 9
Barack Obama,
The first point that needs to be made is that it problems the work poor are having are problems that are not their fault. It is not laziness, nor lack of motivation that prevents the climbing of the social economic ladder. The problem is that the working poor aren't capable of reaching the second rung, because the first is simply too low. Areas with high populations of poor people do not have the same opportunities that a higher class neighborhood has. Working for minimum wage (as our in class exercise showed) isn't livable on it's own, and even with government aid, the amount of money made would not allow for a move to a different neighborhood. The simple truth is, the working poor are stuck where they are because the opportunities to get out are not obtainable.
That being said, there are ways to help this situation. Two options that directly relate to the neighborhoods are as follows: move the jobs to the neighborhoods, and move the people to the jobs. The former, as mentioned in “What We Can Do for the Working Poor� is not very practical, as it would be too many people to move while the latter is obtainable through tax breaks for companies that move into these neighborhoods. Once these better jobs exist in a reasonable location, the rungs become reachable, and people will naturally start climbing the social-economic ladder. This would also brings in private business into these areas. A better relationship between these businesses and the local schools can (as experiments have clearly determined) drastically help education in the area. As is well know, climbing that ladder relies heavily on education. This is a further empowerment to climb.
This is a place to start. Memos regarding more affordable health care should be expected tomorrow.
Brian Berzins