3rd of 7 Tips From Gandhi on How To Free Yourself
American antiques figure Henry David Thoreau created a plan to Mathama Gandhi a century later on how to free the peoples of India from British rule in his essay On Civil Disobedience. In this Thoreau discusses his time in jail in protest of a new tax to support a war against Mexico during which American soldiers occupied Mexico City.
To Thoreau this was not what his idealized Athens on a hill should be doing to the neighbors, who surely had their rights to their own gardens. And in stating his protest openly and be able to survive jail yet continue to speak his mind was such an inspiration to Gandhi. America had a voice in the world and this voice for freedom and justice for all independent and free was a firm base to occupy.
The lawyer in Gandhi would be aware that across several seas another American, Franklin Roosevelt was prodding his new chum Wnston Churchill on fighting this good war so that all might be free was a worrysome aspect of friendship with the Americans. To Churchill, it seemed near impossible to convince these fine Americans of how things were in that regard.
Americans including that chap Thoreau seemed to have no appreciation of all the good that comes down from benevolent English rule over the lesser classes. He tried to little avail to assure the Americans that the British Empire was surely was all in the good order of things in the world as Churchill had lived his life.
To wear it even when fashion changed quickly after the war was to become a badge of honor. To make and wear your own became its reverse status symbol and a badge of honor: you were quietly standing up to the British. So whether he was on his way with his flock to the salt mines or jail, Gandhi wore his same salt encrusted robes to all. And even when beaten and bleeding he would gather himself and his followers into peaceful prayer groups and stay with their traditions and inner respect,which the British rarely had time to allow.
Britain, like ancient India of the Raj, ruled by the color of your skin: lighter on top, darkest at the bottom. Only an untouchable to carry your latrine, as would his son after him, and his father before. The seasons would change quickly and the modern world would intrude. The fashions of the French and the bikini and a loosening of moral strict behaviors were to wash over the shores of India without a ripple.
The ways to set yourself free was to understand this, and to incorporate a respect for grace and harmony as it flowed from your society to you need not change at the whim of fashion. And always when or where there are more primary needs then the issue at hand must be dealt with clearly and with no discrimination other than to discern the truth and speak it.
Gandhi would show that to apply ourselves to our task would mirror in our garb by the resonence and permanence of what was trying to be achieved. And how you evade the elusive butterfly of fashion will be determined by each item you wear. And how best to appear to be with the great fashion tide flow of life and not in resistance to that.
But in at a deeper closer and more personal way you can show who you are in such subtle ways as you know or dare. The small pin from a loved one or a momento of something no longer in fashion but still expressing something intangible inside you. Wear it. Time for the lady in purple in you to have her say. For, as Napoleon said of China, this is a sleeping giant, let her sleep. For when she awakens, her roar shall surely shake the earth.
Time, gentleman, please, to hear the dragons roar, feel the earth move. They love our fashions. They wear our fashions. They make our fashions. They send, we buy. Time to stand up to the tyranny of the mall. Respect for human dignity and reverence for the dream of the American antiques hero says go for it. Wear it and be proud.
If it is that out of fashion, it may even have been made in America. And you must feel comfort from that. By Derek Dashwood
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Effective Strategies For Developing Your Will Power For Success In Life
Effective Strategies For Developing Your Will Power For Success In Life
There are a number of effective strategies for developing your will power for success in life. Many fail to realize it, but in order to achieve the success that you want to in life; a couple of things must be in place.
The first thing, of course, is the motivation to carry you through on your journey to success. The second element is the ability to develop and sustain will power. Here, I will expound on the very important element of developing a will power that will allow you the strength, and courage to press hard
- even in the most challenging of all situations
- until you have accomplished your goals in life.
Do you want to be successful? You must first have a strong will. At a very young age, each of us are taught that, in order to be successful, we must do well in our educational careers. The concept and ideal that education and success go hand in hand is a nice one, there is no underestimating that.
The fact is, however, that success has been achieved by a large number of individuals who had little to no education. There are a number of reasons why they were uneducated
- maybe they had to stay home to help their family bring in money, or maybe they were educated at home by parents that had little to no education
- there are many reasons for this.
However, the rationalization that education is a core essential for success is an incorrect rationalization. It is will power that drives a man to success. Education may make it easier - that's a given - the individual with "will" ALWAYS finds a "way"!If you want to succeed in life, you must have will power. I mean, that is the fact - plain and simple. Now that you know this, it is time to take action. So, where to start? Let's start with your goals. What is it that you want to achieve in life?
Where window.google_render_ad(); do you want to see yourself in one year? Why is it that you want to achieve what you do? Many people make the choice to set goals based on what they think their family, their friends, and their coworkers want them to do. They want to look "good".
Let me tell you right now, you will never "look good" by following the lead of another when it comes to YOUR life - that's right, YOUR LIFE - not theirs. What you have to do is politely excuse that person that is trying to lead you and take front and center. Once you take front and center, you are taking the first step towards properly developing your will power. Now, as you stand front and center, you know what is behind you.
You just came from the back, right? So, leave everything behind you - including negative thoughts, negative self talk, and, well, just anything negative. We are not looking back here, we have to move forward if we want to achieve success. If you have to, turn around and wave goodbye to everything behind you
- past perceptions, a low self image, a decrease in confidence, and whatever stands behind you - so that you can press on. Will power means taking what you know to be truth, creating an action plan to turn it into something productive and getting your feet moving! Now, that you are all excited and ready to go
- it is time to move out!!! Will power may try to test you on the journey down the road to success, but do not give in.
If you trip over a limb and fall, pick yourself up, think about the positive learning experience and move on. You will likely stumble
- if you can't catch yourself, pride yourself in falling gracefully, then pick up and move out. You may come face to face with some troubling mountains and hills
- that's ok.
All you do is push those obstructions out of your way! Stop at absolutely nothing in order to achieve your goals. When you are able to do this, it is then that you have truly achieved success!
By Kevin Sinclair
There are a number of effective strategies for developing your will power for success in life. Many fail to realize it, but in order to achieve the success that you want to in life; a couple of things must be in place.
The first thing, of course, is the motivation to carry you through on your journey to success. The second element is the ability to develop and sustain will power. Here, I will expound on the very important element of developing a will power that will allow you the strength, and courage to press hard
- even in the most challenging of all situations
- until you have accomplished your goals in life.
Do you want to be successful? You must first have a strong will. At a very young age, each of us are taught that, in order to be successful, we must do well in our educational careers. The concept and ideal that education and success go hand in hand is a nice one, there is no underestimating that.
The fact is, however, that success has been achieved by a large number of individuals who had little to no education. There are a number of reasons why they were uneducated
- maybe they had to stay home to help their family bring in money, or maybe they were educated at home by parents that had little to no education
- there are many reasons for this.
However, the rationalization that education is a core essential for success is an incorrect rationalization. It is will power that drives a man to success. Education may make it easier - that's a given - the individual with "will" ALWAYS finds a "way"!If you want to succeed in life, you must have will power. I mean, that is the fact - plain and simple. Now that you know this, it is time to take action. So, where to start? Let's start with your goals. What is it that you want to achieve in life?
Where window.google_render_ad(); do you want to see yourself in one year? Why is it that you want to achieve what you do? Many people make the choice to set goals based on what they think their family, their friends, and their coworkers want them to do. They want to look "good".
Let me tell you right now, you will never "look good" by following the lead of another when it comes to YOUR life - that's right, YOUR LIFE - not theirs. What you have to do is politely excuse that person that is trying to lead you and take front and center. Once you take front and center, you are taking the first step towards properly developing your will power. Now, as you stand front and center, you know what is behind you.
You just came from the back, right? So, leave everything behind you - including negative thoughts, negative self talk, and, well, just anything negative. We are not looking back here, we have to move forward if we want to achieve success. If you have to, turn around and wave goodbye to everything behind you
- past perceptions, a low self image, a decrease in confidence, and whatever stands behind you - so that you can press on. Will power means taking what you know to be truth, creating an action plan to turn it into something productive and getting your feet moving! Now, that you are all excited and ready to go
- it is time to move out!!! Will power may try to test you on the journey down the road to success, but do not give in.
If you trip over a limb and fall, pick yourself up, think about the positive learning experience and move on. You will likely stumble
- if you can't catch yourself, pride yourself in falling gracefully, then pick up and move out. You may come face to face with some troubling mountains and hills
- that's ok.
All you do is push those obstructions out of your way! Stop at absolutely nothing in order to achieve your goals. When you are able to do this, it is then that you have truly achieved success!
By Kevin Sinclair
Small Businesses Doing Little to Save Themselves From "Fuel Poverty"
Small Businesses Doing Little to Save Themselves From "Fuel Poverty"
An independent survey commissioned by Electricity4Business, an electricity supplier targeting small and medium-sized enterprises, has found that despite fuel prices doubling in the past year, businesses are doing little to cut their energy bills.
With energy prices on the rise month on month for the past 22 months and wholesale costs now double what they were last year, households and businesses are paying more than ever for gas and electricity. As a result, a growing number of people are living in what the media and government have termed "fuel poverty", a new buzzword to describe those spending more than 10% of their income on fuel bills.
But while the focus has largely been on pensioners and families, small and mid-sized businesses are also feeling the pinch.To find out how hard businesses are being hit and what they are doing to cut their fuel bills, Electricity4Business recently commissioned an independent, nationwide survey of SMEs' energy usage.
The findings are worrying: many small businesses are actually in a worse state than consumers. Almost one in five small companies polled now suffer from fuel poverty with energy bills making up their second biggest cost.
"Traditionally, fuel bills have not always been at the top of the agenda for SMEs and owners with little time on their hands have been happy to assume that prices are comparable across the board," says Graham Paul, Sales and Marketing Director of Electricity4Business, an independent supplier of cheap electricity competing with the UK's six major energy suppliers. "Increasingly, however, small businesses are being forced to reassess their attitude to fuel costs.
A sandwich bar with several window.google_render_ad(); refrigerators used to paying an annual £1,800 for electricity will have to sell a lot more sandwiches to meet this year's electricity bill of £3,600."So while increased fuel costs are eating into profits, what are businesses doing to cut their bills?
The answer, according to the survey, is very little. Some 18% polled say they simply "pay the bills" and almost a third do not understand the breakdown of their electricity bill.More worryingly still, the survey showed that over half of businesses owners have never read the small print of their electricity contracts.
According to Paul, this makes them vulnerable to exploitation, giving the "big six" energy suppliers free rein to hike prices and lock customers into expensive long-term contracts.
Jonathan Elliott of B2B comparison website MakeItCheaper.com agrees: "By understanding their contracts and benefiting from the support available from alternative suppliers and industry bodies, businesses can reduce the financial impact of high energy bills.
"As one of these alternative suppliers, Electricity4Business positions itself as the champion of the small business - not only by offering fair and transparent pricing, but also by providing advice to customers on energy efficiency. "Sadly, our survey shows, we still have a long way to go to convince businesses that there is a cheaper way.
But with wholesale prices soaring, the case for switching to a supplier like E4B is stronger than ever," he adds.A summary of the survey can be downloaded in pdf format from www.electricity4business.co.uk.
The document concludes by outlining five ways in which businesses can cut their fuel bills, from shopping around and reading the small print of contracts to switching suppliers and improving energy efficiency in the workplace.
By Emma Churchill
An independent survey commissioned by Electricity4Business, an electricity supplier targeting small and medium-sized enterprises, has found that despite fuel prices doubling in the past year, businesses are doing little to cut their energy bills.
With energy prices on the rise month on month for the past 22 months and wholesale costs now double what they were last year, households and businesses are paying more than ever for gas and electricity. As a result, a growing number of people are living in what the media and government have termed "fuel poverty", a new buzzword to describe those spending more than 10% of their income on fuel bills.
But while the focus has largely been on pensioners and families, small and mid-sized businesses are also feeling the pinch.To find out how hard businesses are being hit and what they are doing to cut their fuel bills, Electricity4Business recently commissioned an independent, nationwide survey of SMEs' energy usage.
The findings are worrying: many small businesses are actually in a worse state than consumers. Almost one in five small companies polled now suffer from fuel poverty with energy bills making up their second biggest cost.
"Traditionally, fuel bills have not always been at the top of the agenda for SMEs and owners with little time on their hands have been happy to assume that prices are comparable across the board," says Graham Paul, Sales and Marketing Director of Electricity4Business, an independent supplier of cheap electricity competing with the UK's six major energy suppliers. "Increasingly, however, small businesses are being forced to reassess their attitude to fuel costs.
A sandwich bar with several window.google_render_ad(); refrigerators used to paying an annual £1,800 for electricity will have to sell a lot more sandwiches to meet this year's electricity bill of £3,600."So while increased fuel costs are eating into profits, what are businesses doing to cut their bills?
The answer, according to the survey, is very little. Some 18% polled say they simply "pay the bills" and almost a third do not understand the breakdown of their electricity bill.More worryingly still, the survey showed that over half of businesses owners have never read the small print of their electricity contracts.
According to Paul, this makes them vulnerable to exploitation, giving the "big six" energy suppliers free rein to hike prices and lock customers into expensive long-term contracts.
Jonathan Elliott of B2B comparison website MakeItCheaper.com agrees: "By understanding their contracts and benefiting from the support available from alternative suppliers and industry bodies, businesses can reduce the financial impact of high energy bills.
"As one of these alternative suppliers, Electricity4Business positions itself as the champion of the small business - not only by offering fair and transparent pricing, but also by providing advice to customers on energy efficiency. "Sadly, our survey shows, we still have a long way to go to convince businesses that there is a cheaper way.
But with wholesale prices soaring, the case for switching to a supplier like E4B is stronger than ever," he adds.A summary of the survey can be downloaded in pdf format from www.electricity4business.co.uk.
The document concludes by outlining five ways in which businesses can cut their fuel bills, from shopping around and reading the small print of contracts to switching suppliers and improving energy efficiency in the workplace.
By Emma Churchill
Friday, September 12, 2008
Just Working Hard is Not the Way to Get Rich!
I learned an important lesson very early in life: Working hard will not make you rich. Now, I'm not suggesting that sitting around on your sofa all day is going to make you a millionaire; but I am suggesting that just working hard is not the way to get rich, and in some ways, it is even counterproductive to attracting wealth.
Here's a good example: the small Georgia town where I was born is full of some of the hardest working men and women I've ever known. But are they rich? Nope. In fact most of them are living from paycheck to paycheck, just struggling to get by. Many of these people get up before sunrise and work double shifts, six days a week. But no matter how hard they work, they never seem to get ahead.
Most are just trying to stay one step ahead of the bill collectors. So what gives? Could it be that becoming wealthy requires something other than hard work? And if so, what does it take?Here's the deal: most people are poor NOT because they don't work hard; they are poor because they lack imagination.
Now I know that might sound harsh; but it's the plain truth. Generally, people don't live in poverty because they are lazy: they live in poverty because they have not adequately developed their imaginations. Creative and imaginative thinking are absolutely essential if you plan on living a rich, fulfilling life.
But without these things, you can work as hard as you want, and you will probably still wind up just barely getting by.I am aware that many well-intentioned people will tell you that the way to get rich is to work harder, longer and faster than other people; but frankly, this is BS.
Hard work is all well and good, but obviously something more is required in order to become rich. And that "something" is imagination, plain and simple.You have to exercise and develop your creativity, and learn to "see" opportunities and options, even when they are not obvious to others. But how do you develop this skill? Simple; you practice.Contrary to popular opinion, imagination can be learned.
And in the same way that you can improve your memory by practicing, you can also improve your creativity by using it regularly. You can exercise and strengthen your imagination, just like you would exercise and strengthen your muscles. Like any other skill, you get better with practice.Art, music and other creative pursuits are perfect in this regard.
They require creative thinking and imagination. Even crossword puzzles and sudoku are beneficial; they help us look for creative solutions and think "outside the box."It's interesting that many people work-out three or four times a week (or more) to keep their body in good shape, but very few of us actually "work out" our creativity and imagination.
Maybe that's why there are a lot more poor people in the world than rich people? It's something to think about...If the way to get rich was just working hard, I can assure you there would be a lot more wealthy people in the world than there are now.
It is only through developing our imagination that we can attract success and wealth, and live a life of abundance. By Jon Mercer
Here's a good example: the small Georgia town where I was born is full of some of the hardest working men and women I've ever known. But are they rich? Nope. In fact most of them are living from paycheck to paycheck, just struggling to get by. Many of these people get up before sunrise and work double shifts, six days a week. But no matter how hard they work, they never seem to get ahead.
Most are just trying to stay one step ahead of the bill collectors. So what gives? Could it be that becoming wealthy requires something other than hard work? And if so, what does it take?Here's the deal: most people are poor NOT because they don't work hard; they are poor because they lack imagination.
Now I know that might sound harsh; but it's the plain truth. Generally, people don't live in poverty because they are lazy: they live in poverty because they have not adequately developed their imaginations. Creative and imaginative thinking are absolutely essential if you plan on living a rich, fulfilling life.
But without these things, you can work as hard as you want, and you will probably still wind up just barely getting by.I am aware that many well-intentioned people will tell you that the way to get rich is to work harder, longer and faster than other people; but frankly, this is BS.
Hard work is all well and good, but obviously something more is required in order to become rich. And that "something" is imagination, plain and simple.You have to exercise and develop your creativity, and learn to "see" opportunities and options, even when they are not obvious to others. But how do you develop this skill? Simple; you practice.Contrary to popular opinion, imagination can be learned.
And in the same way that you can improve your memory by practicing, you can also improve your creativity by using it regularly. You can exercise and strengthen your imagination, just like you would exercise and strengthen your muscles. Like any other skill, you get better with practice.Art, music and other creative pursuits are perfect in this regard.
They require creative thinking and imagination. Even crossword puzzles and sudoku are beneficial; they help us look for creative solutions and think "outside the box."It's interesting that many people work-out three or four times a week (or more) to keep their body in good shape, but very few of us actually "work out" our creativity and imagination.
Maybe that's why there are a lot more poor people in the world than rich people? It's something to think about...If the way to get rich was just working hard, I can assure you there would be a lot more wealthy people in the world than there are now.
It is only through developing our imagination that we can attract success and wealth, and live a life of abundance. By Jon Mercer
Mind And Money: From Poor To Rich
Poverty consciousness, the mindset of the poor, is more than just having no money and bad finances. It's a set of behaviors and attitudes that are buried deep in the mind that influence a person's entire financial situation. Have you ever heard the expression, "I have no cash, but I'm not poor."
This is exactly what they are talking about.People find themselves in a situation where they have no money or less money than they need. This state creates bad feelings and emotions, which create negative thoughts."I'll always be broke." "I'll never get a job." "Why do they have more money than me?"
This is the financial sickness that is responsible for the majority of the poverty in America. Having personally been in this situation feeling that there is no way out, I can sympathize with those who suffer from this disease.I have been through business school and ran my own business, and I found that cure is to let go and learn how to make money by reading books and the internet.
The easiest place to see the difference between those with knowledge and those without is to look at the difference between the rich and the poor.Professionally I have worked with many homeless people over the years while doing workforce development, helping people get jobs. I have also been fortunate enough to have close friends who are rich.Trust me, rich people aren't born special, they don't have better luck than poor people. In many cases rich and poor people have the same backgrounds.
The only difference is that rich people have financial literacy and poor people don't.If you do research about making money you'll very quickly run into the belief emotional factor. The teachings say "if you have your dream and believe in your dream with all your heart, you'll become rich." I can say from experience that there is no one who desires money more than homeless people, and they are still homeless.
So now that we know that the "desire and get rich" model doesn't work, the question is: What can I do to make money? The key is education about financial literacy. Learn how
to read balance sheets and income statements; learn about markets, supply, and demand; learn about investments and how to manage people.
However the key to really put the rubber to the road and begin your personal journey toward riches and financial freedom is learning about leverage and how you can use it. Probably the most accessible form of leverage in the world today for the purpose of making money is the internet.
It's everywhere, it's cheap, and you can make tons of money all through the computer screen. The one area that I would focus on is marketing on the web. Learning the skill of marketing on the web can provide anyone, in any situation the tools to make money, a lot of money.From search engines, to building a website, to link campaigns, etc, learning how to market on the web takes the average Joe (or Jane) and gives them the power of a large corporate marketing department.
Unfortunately when I looked through the shelves of the local Boston bookstores, I found very little on this subject.But the internet has enough information for anyone to get started. The key is, understanding the concept of leverage. Leverage is the ability to do more and more with less and less.
This principle can be applied anywhere, from garden work, to real estate, to cooking, but it's essential in business.Leverage is what rich people know that poor people don't. Leverage lets me do 10,000 hours of work while you only can do one hour. For example if I wish to talk to 100,000 people, for whatever reason: I need a job, I'm selling a product, I have an opportunity, I need some help, you get the point, it would take a massive budget and staff to get that done offline.With the internet, I can accomplish the same results with the click of a button (maybe a few buttons and some typing) through an electronic magazine (ezine).
No I'm not selling ezines, but my point is that for anyone who is committed to making money the right way, leveraging the internet is the only way that makes sense.The difference between the rich and the poor is simply a matter of knowledge. Learn financial literacy, learn about leverage, and learn to leverage the internet. Break your poor mindset and it's only a matter of time before your riches will find you. By Ibsahu Ma'akamaha
This is exactly what they are talking about.People find themselves in a situation where they have no money or less money than they need. This state creates bad feelings and emotions, which create negative thoughts."I'll always be broke." "I'll never get a job." "Why do they have more money than me?"
This is the financial sickness that is responsible for the majority of the poverty in America. Having personally been in this situation feeling that there is no way out, I can sympathize with those who suffer from this disease.I have been through business school and ran my own business, and I found that cure is to let go and learn how to make money by reading books and the internet.
The easiest place to see the difference between those with knowledge and those without is to look at the difference between the rich and the poor.Professionally I have worked with many homeless people over the years while doing workforce development, helping people get jobs. I have also been fortunate enough to have close friends who are rich.Trust me, rich people aren't born special, they don't have better luck than poor people. In many cases rich and poor people have the same backgrounds.
The only difference is that rich people have financial literacy and poor people don't.If you do research about making money you'll very quickly run into the belief emotional factor. The teachings say "if you have your dream and believe in your dream with all your heart, you'll become rich." I can say from experience that there is no one who desires money more than homeless people, and they are still homeless.
So now that we know that the "desire and get rich" model doesn't work, the question is: What can I do to make money? The key is education about financial literacy. Learn how
to read balance sheets and income statements; learn about markets, supply, and demand; learn about investments and how to manage people.
However the key to really put the rubber to the road and begin your personal journey toward riches and financial freedom is learning about leverage and how you can use it. Probably the most accessible form of leverage in the world today for the purpose of making money is the internet.
It's everywhere, it's cheap, and you can make tons of money all through the computer screen. The one area that I would focus on is marketing on the web. Learning the skill of marketing on the web can provide anyone, in any situation the tools to make money, a lot of money.From search engines, to building a website, to link campaigns, etc, learning how to market on the web takes the average Joe (or Jane) and gives them the power of a large corporate marketing department.
Unfortunately when I looked through the shelves of the local Boston bookstores, I found very little on this subject.But the internet has enough information for anyone to get started. The key is, understanding the concept of leverage. Leverage is the ability to do more and more with less and less.
This principle can be applied anywhere, from garden work, to real estate, to cooking, but it's essential in business.Leverage is what rich people know that poor people don't. Leverage lets me do 10,000 hours of work while you only can do one hour. For example if I wish to talk to 100,000 people, for whatever reason: I need a job, I'm selling a product, I have an opportunity, I need some help, you get the point, it would take a massive budget and staff to get that done offline.With the internet, I can accomplish the same results with the click of a button (maybe a few buttons and some typing) through an electronic magazine (ezine).
No I'm not selling ezines, but my point is that for anyone who is committed to making money the right way, leveraging the internet is the only way that makes sense.The difference between the rich and the poor is simply a matter of knowledge. Learn financial literacy, learn about leverage, and learn to leverage the internet. Break your poor mindset and it's only a matter of time before your riches will find you. By Ibsahu Ma'akamaha
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Help for the Poor
Help for the PoorNotably, it has been said: "No greater burden can be borne by an individual than to know no one cares or understands." Yet, despite lack of compassion on the part of the majority, there is still good news for the poor—both for the present and for the future.
Unhappily, many have little interest in helping the poor. According to The World Book Encyclopedia, some believe that "people in society compete for survival and . . . superior individuals become powerful and wealthy." Those who believe this theory, called social Darwinism, may view the poor as just lazy people or spendthrifts. Yet, rural laborers, migrant workers, and others, despite being poorly paid, often work very hard to feed their families.
In many lands poverty is quite common. Hence, the poor—the majority—are not made to feel that they are a failure. Nevertheless, in such lands there are people living in great luxury in the midst of the poverty. Comfortable, sumptuous homes exist alongside crowded, unhealthy shanties. Well-paid men drive their expensive cars along streets crowded with the indigent and unemployed. In such lands the poor are painfully aware of their plight. Really, "the poor suffer not only from poor nutrition, bad housing, and inadequate medical care, but also from constant anxiety about their condition," says The World Book Encyclopedia. "Unable to get and hold good jobs, they lose all sense of dignity and self-respect." How, then, do some of the very poor cope with their situation? What has the good news about Jesus got to do with coping?
First, remember that poverty may be made worse by unwise habits. Consider some examples. Valdecir admits that while his wife and small children had little to eat, he wasted money maintaining an immoral life-style. He says: "Although employed, I never had any money but always had various lottery tickets in my pocket." Milton, because of heavy drinking and smoking, lost a business with 23 employees. He says: "I spent nights on the street, unable to go home, and my family suffered a great deal because of me."
João too wasted his salary on vices. "I spent nights away from home. All I earned was not enough for my vices and affairs. The situation became unbearable, and my wife wanted a separation." In addition to his financial and marital problems, there were yet others. He says: "I caused problems with relatives and neighbors, and I especially had problems at work. As a result, I was constantly out of work." Júlio was a drug addict. However, he explains: "Since my salary was never enough to sustain my drug habit, I began working as a narcotics dealer so as not to have to buy drugs."
Raised in a poor family of eight children, José wanted to have something for himself. Figuring he had nothing to lose, together with other youths he began robbing people. In despair, another youth became a member of a gang named Headbangers. He explains: "Since most of us were very poor, we found a certain satisfaction in breaking things and attacking people."
Yet, today these men and their families no longer suffer deep privation or feelings of bitterness and resentment. No longer are they helpless or hopeless. Why not? Because they studied the good news that Jesus preached. They applied the Bible's counsel and associated with like-minded individuals in congregations of Jehovah's Witnesses. And they learned some very important things about wealth and poverty.
Copyright © 2007 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved.
THE POOR Get Poorer
POVERTY—What Can Be Done About It?
THE POOR Get Poorer
"No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable."
In this series:
The Poor Get Poorer
Poverty—Finding the Permanent Solution
Related topics:
What Hope for the Poor?
Can We Create a Better World?
What Hope Is There for the Poor?
ECONOMIST Adam Smith made that statement back in the 18th century. Many are convinced that the truth of what he said is even more obvious today. The contrast between the haves and the have-nots has become even starker. In the Philippines, one third of the population live on less than $1 (U.S.) per day, an amount that is often earned in minutes in wealthier nations. The United Nations Human Development Report 2002 says that "the richest 5% of the world's people have incomes 114 times those of the poorest 5%."
While some live in relative comfort, millions live as squatters, setting up shacks wherever they can. Others are not that fortunate; they live on the street, with perhaps only a piece of cardboard or plastic between them and the ground. Many of them eke out a living in whatever way they can—scavenging in garbage dumps, hauling heavy loads, or collecting recyclables in pushcarts.
Not only are inequalities between rich and poor found in developing nations but, as the World Bank states, "'pockets of poverty' are common in all countries." From Bangladesh to the United States, no matter how well-off some may be, there are those who struggle to have enough to eat or to have a roof over their head. The New York Times quoted a 2001 U.S. Census Bureau report indicating that the gap between rich and poor in the United States has continued to grow. It said: "The most affluent fifth of the population received half of all household income last year . . . The poorest fifth received 3.5 percent." The situation is the same or worse in scores of other countries. A World Bank report showed that about 57 percent of the world's population live on less than $2 per day.
To make matters worse, in 2002, millions were disturbed by reports of executives who became wealthy under questionable circumstances. Even if nothing outrightly illegal was done, many have felt that these company officials, as stated in Fortune magazine, "were getting immensely, extraordinarily, obscenely wealthy." Putting it in the context of what is happening in the world, some wonder how such extreme windfalls, estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars for some individuals, can be justified when so many live in poverty.
Poverty Here to Stay?
This is not to say that no one is trying to do something about the plight of the poor. Well-meaning government officials and help organizations have certainly put forth proposals for change. Nevertheless, the facts remain discouraging. The Human Development Report 2002 says that "many countries are poorer than 10, 20 and in some cases 30 years ago," in spite of many noble efforts to make improvement.
Does this leave the poor without hope? We invite you to read the next article to consider some practical wisdom that can help right now as well as solutions that you might not have thought of.
Appeared in The Watchtower August 1, 2003
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Copyright © 2008 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved.
THE POOR Get Poorer
"No society can surely be flourishing and happy, of which the far greater part of the members are poor and miserable."
In this series:
The Poor Get Poorer
Poverty—Finding the Permanent Solution
Related topics:
What Hope for the Poor?
Can We Create a Better World?
What Hope Is There for the Poor?
ECONOMIST Adam Smith made that statement back in the 18th century. Many are convinced that the truth of what he said is even more obvious today. The contrast between the haves and the have-nots has become even starker. In the Philippines, one third of the population live on less than $1 (U.S.) per day, an amount that is often earned in minutes in wealthier nations. The United Nations Human Development Report 2002 says that "the richest 5% of the world's people have incomes 114 times those of the poorest 5%."
While some live in relative comfort, millions live as squatters, setting up shacks wherever they can. Others are not that fortunate; they live on the street, with perhaps only a piece of cardboard or plastic between them and the ground. Many of them eke out a living in whatever way they can—scavenging in garbage dumps, hauling heavy loads, or collecting recyclables in pushcarts.
Not only are inequalities between rich and poor found in developing nations but, as the World Bank states, "'pockets of poverty' are common in all countries." From Bangladesh to the United States, no matter how well-off some may be, there are those who struggle to have enough to eat or to have a roof over their head. The New York Times quoted a 2001 U.S. Census Bureau report indicating that the gap between rich and poor in the United States has continued to grow. It said: "The most affluent fifth of the population received half of all household income last year . . . The poorest fifth received 3.5 percent." The situation is the same or worse in scores of other countries. A World Bank report showed that about 57 percent of the world's population live on less than $2 per day.
To make matters worse, in 2002, millions were disturbed by reports of executives who became wealthy under questionable circumstances. Even if nothing outrightly illegal was done, many have felt that these company officials, as stated in Fortune magazine, "were getting immensely, extraordinarily, obscenely wealthy." Putting it in the context of what is happening in the world, some wonder how such extreme windfalls, estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars for some individuals, can be justified when so many live in poverty.
Poverty Here to Stay?
This is not to say that no one is trying to do something about the plight of the poor. Well-meaning government officials and help organizations have certainly put forth proposals for change. Nevertheless, the facts remain discouraging. The Human Development Report 2002 says that "many countries are poorer than 10, 20 and in some cases 30 years ago," in spite of many noble efforts to make improvement.
Does this leave the poor without hope? We invite you to read the next article to consider some practical wisdom that can help right now as well as solutions that you might not have thought of.
Appeared in The Watchtower August 1, 2003
Home Beliefs Future Medical Topics Contact Us Publications Languages Search Index
Copyright © 2008 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved.
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