Reply #181: Oops, Got SideTracked [View All]

[WVRICK13]

There is not one day that I don't act as an advocate for the poor. I advocate for better job chances, workforce training, livable wages with insurance, a warm home, food on the table. I support food banks, workforce development efforts, nutrition training, provide free condoms and the list goes on. What I have not figured out how to do is help the clients overcome the apathy our system has forced on them. I have days I go home and feel so guilty for having had a better life than those I serve that I take time to sit and cry. My sadness makes me advocate even more for programs to solve the problem and stop with the damned band aids. As we all know, serving the poor is not a high paying job, yet there are times when our system does not have an answer to a particular plight and I pull out my check book and give to clients even if it means I will be late on bills.

I reread my first post and it did sound judgmental, my apologies. I am a Democrat because there is not a viable Socialist party. I would gladly pay more in taxes if every citizen could have health care, better education, job opportunities and a safety net, but I will never support a system that rapes people of their pride and ambition. Some days I feel that is part of the plan, to give society somebody to kick. What can we do to make people feel strong enough to demand their rights? How can we make everyone understand the concept of "Casual Cruelty." We are casually cruel when we shop at Walmart, McDonald's or any place that has a system to underpay the rank and file, set hours just low enough to deny them benefits and otherwise abuse those too weak to protest. It is their labor and abuse that allows the rest of us to have cheaper goods and fast food. In essence, these abused workers subsidize the lives of those of us who are in a relatively better position.