Writing to inform – Poverty
Poverty is the greatest problem facing the world today and through the annals of history. The fact that wealth is distributed so unevenly, many would say unfairly is a problem that has occurred for millennia. Whether it be the social stratification of ancient Egypt or that of today’s world, poverty has always existed and some say, always will.
Ever since there has been poverty, there have been those that have tried to help the poor. There may have been money given, or food offered, there has always been a struggle to combat poverty. However this has always seemed futile, the black hole of poverty in our world has never been closed, and it has never ended. Though, in these modern times, due to our social structure and awareness, there are fewer people suffering from absolute poverty than any other time in history. Every time we enter the town centre, we are surrounded by hordes of collectors, every penny we give leads to the reduction of poverty. Every time we flick on the TV, there are countless adverts telling us to donate. Every time we look in a magazine or newspaper, there are articles telling us of the world’s ills. Never has there been such a mass awareness, leading to donations, from people all around the world, to people all around the world.
You still may be wondering why I have chosen poverty as the world’s greatest problem. It is because it is the Russian doll of the world’s problems. The fact that poverty leads to crime, disease, famine, lack of education and pollution truly makes it the roots of the world’s problems. Everything stems from poverty.
The distillation of water is also a major problem. The fact that distillation is an expensive process, requiring many resources to use, leads to a poor quality of water in those countries that can’t simply afford it. The water may carry diseases such as cholera and diarrhea, which leads to the death of many people. This will most likely be infants and the elderly, as they are more susceptible to illnesses.
There may also be a lack of food due to the poor quality of the soil as fertilisers may be too expensive. This in turn leads to crime; mothers and fathers may steal to feed their children. People will do anything to survive, even if it is against their basic morals. The fact that this leads to crime truly proves the “Russian doll” theory. Poverty has lead to a lack of food, which in turn has led to crime.
The fact that poverty is an endless spiral leads it to its longevity in our world. A lack of education leads to poorly paid jobs. As prices rise due to a population increase, the poor are made even poorer. The fact that the human population increases due to the poor having many children to sustain their agricultural work, leads only to an increase in prices. Corporations know of supply and demand. There is always a greater demand if the population increases, and all they must do is increase their prices. Poverty has led to all these things, and these things lead to poverty.
It is as if it is a bacterium. Constantly splitting, growing in number. However the modern era of donation maybe the virus that purges poverty from our world. Maybe one day, we will live in a world where wealth is distributed evenly. Where the larger corporations play “fair,” and the word “poor” never has to be used ever apart from in a history lesson. Maybe we can lead to that sort of world; maybe we can be the virus that destroys poverty. We maybe the generation which made poverty history.
