Matthew Desmond: The Privileged are Complicit in America’s Poverty Crisis | Amanpour and Company
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- Опубліковано 19 тра 2024
- The United States -- the richest country in the world -- has a higher rate of poverty than any other advanced democracy. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Matthew Desmond examines the dire situation in his new book, and he joins Michel Martin to explain why the problem persists. Their conversation is part of Chasing the Dream, our going initiative about poverty, jobs, and economic opportunity in America.
Originally aired on March 30, 2023
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“The comfort of the rich depends upon an abundant supply of the poor” ― Voltaire
AKA, Ponzi scheme.
So true. Slavery built the US and it's alive and well to mKe the rich rich.
As a 50 year old adult female living alone, with Multiple Sclerosis and no health care, and busting my ass to barely make ends meet, I approve this message
My sympathies for your struggle.
@@LMLewis maybe you could send her some money to help her…sympathy doesn’t cut it when you can’t afford what you need..😮
@@lindegirl3334 a) Because she didn’t ask for help and b) Because I struggle too-obviously-Why do you think I sympathize? Your comment sounds like a scam.
God bless you.
Well, unless you are obnoxiously difficult to get along with, perhaps you should get a room mate..
Brett Farve got welfare with a phone call. The citizens of Mississippi, some working for Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, MacDonalds still can't do enough to get assistance with their limited income! Sometimes these state governments are sitting on the money as well as if to say you don't deserve it...EVIL
Pure evil
That’s pretty frickin low
Some times? Most times states misappropriate federal funds that they receive. Remnants of racism.
I agree. It's revolting.
true. didn't get much coverage in the media though.
I’m a Canadian who lived in Los Angeles for 6 years. When I was pregnant, I had to apply for Medicare because we could not afford private insurance. Applying, going to the offices, showing a pee test/proof of pregnancy and being interviewed about needing basic health care was an incredibly and unnecessarily humiliating experience. I have so much empathy for folks in America who have to navigate the soul crushing bureaucracy in order to get services and benefits when they need them. I’m safely back in Canada where as long as I do my taxes, benefits are automatic and health care is free. I’d never move back to the US.
Good, glad you are happy..... Next time I guess you will think twice about coming to America, getting knocked up, and have American taxpayers foot your bills.....
Greedy insurance companies profit comes waaaaaaaaaaaay before your health.
@@bryanhill1406 Well, I suppose they are looking after their investors interests I suppose..... You realize that the insurance industry is regulated by the government don't you....? Perhaps you should give your state insurance commissioner a buzz and chew his or her ass out... And if that don't work, get ahold of your state legislatures... Or your governor, or whoever it is you think is running the shit show......
because cuz they're trying to privatize that . Dont vote conservative
Thank you! It’s as if we don’t even realize it here within our own bubble how offensive, unnecessary, humiliating etc all of this lack of healthcare actually is. Truly insulting
Why is it that if you have $500 in your checking account, banks take a $25 monthly "maintenance fee," but if you have $500,000, you pay no fee when you clearly can afford it. How is this even fair? Why do the poor continue to pay for being poor?
The banks see it from the perspective of not being able to make any meaningful profit from your bread crumbs so charge their service fees for basically holding your money. They have to make something off you. One needs tens of thousands of dollars in their accounts to even see a couple of dollars in interest payments these days.
@@thirdlastchance6674 My checking account, at Origin Bank, pays 6% interest.
@@larryjones9773 🙄🤔 For realz?! Your *checking* account???
@@lynx70123 Yes, but they have the right to change it at any time. I'm sure they don't like paying it, so I wouldn't be surprised if they don't drop it lower soon.
Look around and find a free or interest- bearing checking account. The bank loans out what you deposit and pays your interest out of what they collect, so if you don't deposit much, you don't make interest. The FDIC only insures up to 250,000.00, so someone with 500,000.00 would want to split it between banks.
i have experienced homelessness as a young person, I firmly believe that the US allows this type of human degradation on purpose...it's super sad.
Staley Explores ABSOLUTELY the U.S. allows this. It is INTENTIONAL.
" the cruelty is the point"
Same. Yes. If they didn't have poverty to threaten the middle class with, then the lower middle class would never allow them to exploit everyone.
Babylon will fall along with her sinful culture; Hollywood, music,rap,hip-hop, lgbtq woke agenda. She made other nations drunk (NATO) and now she they have gone mad.
The time for the Lord's Vengenace has COME!
Watch the interview John Stewart does with Obama economist who explains about loosening the economy and how causing unemployment does that.
Being poor and living in poverty is also extremely Time consuming for people. Instead of using their energy to find a way to better their living circumstances and having the time to focus on making inroads to improvements, their time is spent just trying to survive day to day. Sometimes items needed for survival, cannot be simply replaced. Being resourceful and "making do" takes an incredible amount of time.
This is very true; it's called the poverty trap.
You lose sight of the long term because you have to become so preoccupied (obsessed?) with the short term just to survive on a day-to-day basis. I know that because I've been there.
If there is anything that crushes the human spirit and causes one to lose hope for the future and to lose faith in the system, it's having to constantly worry about money because of grinding poverty.
The problem is that gov't will loosen the economy so that means that the gov't will cause unemployment so that keeps wages down and makes it so that the worker has no power to negotiate.
@@cheriremily9360 The government? That would be the people YOU elect. Maybe YOU should find better candidates and then vote for them if YOU want better government. Economics is highly complex; you can't just point your finger and say, "It's their fault!"
Low wages, high rents, exorbitant costs of education, lack of universal healthcare, the (again) exorbitant fees, Wall Street taking over housing, etc!!! Shall I go on???
What I'm wondering is, when all of us poor are dead, what are the rest of the people going to do? No-one to sell their crap to, they will be the new poor, and so on... until rich doesn't mean anything, and they don't know how to survive. Seems like a short sighted game. Joke's on them. They'll be here to suffer, and I won't.
Stop making sense. Wall Street thieves find that very annoying.
I met a gentleman way back in 1983 and he told me that if you want to be prosperous don't have children, get married but NO children.
Fast forward to today and having children is nothing but a financial losing battle.
I see parents in stores buying school supplies, paper, pencils, markers, laptops etc....
If the children want to play sports there are costs for that, why do we pay property taxes isn't that supposed to cover student costs to participate?
Also with inflation companies, utilities are just piling on rate increases every 6 - 8 months just taking advantage of people.
Open your email and one get's bombarded by ads buy this, buy this, it never ends as some people fall for Madison Avenue advertising.
@@garyallen8626 it is correct. But at the same time, having children is your right given you have a willing partner and physiological ability. Don't let the rich tell you whether you can or should have children. I have kids and i didn't let others control me or tell me how to live. But it is hard without support. If possible stay friendly with your siblings, help one another. Care for each other. It's impossible to do it alone for most people. Moving away from family (if they are good people) doesn't make life easier. At the end of the day I look at the small things I enjoy and the love that I experience every day. Your kids don't need new computers or phones or designer clothes.
@@garyallen8626 Holy crap! I'm glad I never felt inclined to pursue "prosperity" as some people define that word. I'll take my child and grandchildren, and my earthy life, and you can have your money.
I'm 41 been working my ass off with a good attitude my whole life and I can't afford a one bedroom apartment.
Prices have tripled since the pandemic started in 2020
True. So whatcha going to do about it. I could use the advice. Home for 4 yrs presently. Thanks
All by design so you will either drop dead or be working for your entire life while corporate media gaslights and humiliates you for not "grinding harder!"
I agree. It's ridiculous. We all should be OUTRAGED and in the faces of our cowardly officials.
@@OneAdam12Adam vote out the cowardly. But you will have to pay them with big bribes to beat out our corporate governance puppets. Good luck.
Cheap 30-40 year old RV
Never is there a lack of money 💰 for the military 🪖 and wars. Both major political parties support this.
However, the minute there's even the slightest mention of making life better for poorest amongst us, all hell breaks out.
😶
- It will be a great day when our schools have all the money they need, and our air force has to have a bake-sale to buy a bomber. (Robert Fulghum)
It will be a great day when America falls and the expense of exporting Its false democracy is no longer part of the equation.
@@youtuber5305have you ever done the math on the amount of money schools get? Hundreds of $1,000's of dollars per class room per year....$8,000 -$20,000 per child per year....30 kids per classroom....DO THE MATH.
Schools get plenty of money. Its squandered by the Socialists involved...the Woke Agenda...the unions....the STUPID amount of non teaching administrators.
Get a new arguement.
We require peace to prosper
@@eleanorgroton5475 Actually Eleanor, it seems like alot of activists have F'd our country up during a long time of relative peace...the Academia have brainwashed the younger folks into hating each other and in alot of cases hating themselves in order to push their agenda...in a time of peace and lack of a singular National point of interest.
I love this guy. His heart is true for others, not himself. It's so nice to see altruism, not narcissism.
Hardly - not sure why you would think he is any different than most talking heads. It doesn’t sound like he understands why the issue is systemic.
@@jjames2162 it’s quite literally in his book.
@@stephanie4662 what is quite literally in his book?
Except he is a narcissist. He seems himself as being morally good while advocating stealing from people who earned money. He is an economically illiterate dolt who doesn't think through the consequences of his policies.
@@borisnegrarosa9113 I wish. Unfortunately America is made up of collectivists who think stealing is okay because they have a big enough gang.
The landlord industry is not capitalism, it's extortion. Feudalism has shape-shifted.
Rentier capitalism is parasitism
Good point. No one should provide housing. People should live in boxes on the street. Life would be so much better if everyone lived like a savage.
@@Markdfadf Your ridiculous. How about a state owned mortgage bank to guarantee working citizens a mortgage. Landlords need to get a real job: how about learning useful math and to use a hammer and saw?
@@PubliusUSA How about government having no role in housing outside of very limited cases to the extreme indigent? Government housing is single biggest failure in the country and you want to double down on doing something doesn't work. Government doesn't have the same market signals individual landlords have.
Landlords have a real job. Unlike the government, landlords actually have to satisfy the needs of a consumer and are punished if they don't. Landlords make money by helping. Government has no such incentive. It is kind of amusing you don't see providing housing as useful. It seems like a pretty useful service to me.
@@Markdfadf Landlords steal working class equity. Every working adult deserves a mortgage and to build equity. Landlords are useless middlemen that destroy the working class.
I am 58 years, a veteran, 6 years of college, I paid back my loans, I have never declared bankruptcy, I exercise, eat right, brush my teeth, and have worked hard since 14 years old. What do I have to show for it?
I have had my savings looted in 2008 and 2020, my field of profession destroyed. Therefore, I now find myself working 6 days a week in an extremely toxic environment (the turnover rate is stupendous), and camping out in a 30 year old travel trailer with no health care and no savings. I feel like I did everything right….
P.S. I don’t qualify for any assistance. I am white and work.
Was raised to work hard and also had a huge slap in the face when reality hit. Felt in in the 90’s in MA , now see it hitting everywhere. Can’t even afford to move back there where my kids and grandkids are bc I couldn’t afford the bare minimum pos lowest rent of $2000/mo, not even in nice or great area
What do you mean you had your savings looted? Did you make the mistake of selling your investments at the bottom of a crash and miss out on the recovery?
I don’t think you are telling the whole story
Well, you have a trailer don't ya? A little pricey considering what all you paid for it, but then again, live and learn I suppose....
Incredible interview! I cannot wait to read the book. We need to stop treating being poor as some kind of moral failing. If anything it’s the other way around.
It IS the other way around. It's obscene wealth. Sometimes I wish there really was a god to punish them all. But there isn't.
The real poverty is not about $, it's a lack of moral values.
Low morals can lead to poverty but other people are born into poverty. Others are insulated against the financial consequences of their actions by extreme wealth.
@@virginiamoss7045 In the USA, we need an HONEST EXAMINATION of the Underlying Conviction that
Poverty==Laziness== SIN
.
We Label OTHERS with LESS as being LESS Worthy;
as an individual who went from comfortable income to just above poverty, MANY CHRISTIANS condemned me for my "Moral Failings"
The Bible says we should take care of people -- How can USA mistreat our people so badly?
@@virginiamoss7045yep
This man was AMAZING. Immediately buying this book. We need educated and compassionate people like this in government.
Are you kidding? He thinks mortgage interest deductions that help keep people in their homes are worthless. He thinks abstinence outside of marriage has nothing to do with poverty because he's too much of a himbo to realize that TWO wage earners make more $ to support a family than one wage earner!
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 blaming the people jumping 101. Most people in poverty are born into it. What parents did they have to guide them in this world? What stability?
@@tastytoast4576 That's why they need those abstinence programs that the himbo being interviewed doesn't see the value in! If people have low morals, promiscuity is incentivized through aid to single parent families with the most babies. The population of illegitimate broke people expands faster than you can throw money at it and there's no end to poverty! LBJ never anticipated the amount that morals would drop in the future when he started the "war on poverty".
@@tastytoast4576 Also, what do you mean by "blaming the people jumping"? Do you think people aren't accountable for their own actions? Or are you saying society should catch more insane people before they harm themselves?
Few other good book recommendations:
- The Sickness is the System - Professor Richard Wolff
- Ubuntu Contributionism - Michael Tellinger
- The New Human Rights Movement - Peter Joseph
- Moneyless Society - Matthew Holten
So interesting, I was shocked how fast our family went from middle class to poor after loss of a jobs and health insurance , getting a lesser job with unaffordable benefts, partner not being able to work FT
I received the extra COVID food stamps and it enabled me to do so much, such as bringing my cat for dental work and replacing a broken vacuum cleaner without having to go without. The extra benefits allowed all the tightness in my chest to ease up. I stopped tossing and turning at night. My temper wasn't as hot. My jaw unclenched. It was so beautiful to have enough.
Same. It helped provide a bit of breathing room. 😢
Yup. I work in a school and I was making more when we were on lockdown and getting the covid pay instead of normal pay
I did not grow up with money and I’m not poor - and I’m angry at the system of poverty in this country. I despair at the deprivation around me while there is so little that I can do about it. This system is dehumanizing to everyone. Thank you Mr Desmond for calling out the systemic problem. Hopefully people will learn to vote differently and demand a more just society.
It’s a systemic problem. Everyone should have a living wage. Housing should be available and affordable for everyone. Housing and education and health care should be a human right. I grew up in a working class family and money has always been an issue. And I think about the wealth of some people. And the ones making the most are wealthy and don’t even need the money. The Starbucks guy is a great example. And if the poor and middle class people did better it would be good for everyone. There would be less crime and addiction and health issues.
There are countries where this is a reality. Denmark is one. Housing is a right not something reserved for the rich. If other countries can do it well, theoretically we should be able to as well, but we have a real problem in this country with people who think that capitalism should be completely and absolutely unfettered. We are seeing the dark side of that kind of system that has no limits. It's not good.
Yes!
a living wage isn't good enough...we need universal basic income
Military spending is 4% of GDP. It was 9% in the 50s. Cutting military spending might be good policy but it will do little to pay for your social programs. The government already spends 63% of the budget on entitlements.
In order to get wealthy, you (or someone along the way) has to deliver a product or service that people voluntarily pay for. Getting wealthy is a moral virtue. You are helping the world. Being poor helps no one. So the idea of punishing the people who help the world by stealing from them and giving to people who take is morally depraved and ends up making everyone poor.
The first rule of economics is scarcity. There is never enough to satisfy everyone's wants and needs. The first rule of politics is to ignore the first rule of economics.
The wealthy & the right wing absolutely want NO assistance for anyone because, God forbid, a person of color might get some help, some assistance, anything to support their human dignity.
Corporations are the root cause of poverty and food insecurity. I'm one of the "privileged" and I care enough about this issue to personally root out corporate greed in my life. There are almost no brand names or corporate products in my life. Yes, to a few vehicles and electronics. No to manufactured faux-foods, fast fashion, toiletries, cleaning products, furnishings, television, magazines, and newspapers. My breakfast cereal comes in a burlap bag, and my favorite beverage is well water. Nutritious food is not expensive if you get rid of the corporations that process the crap out of their crap.
Why are you supporting big burlap? Or UA-cam/Google for that matter? Is your ISP a "mom and pop" or a corporation? C'mon, man- do better.
@@libertarian4323 My Amish neighbors make their own burlap. UA-cam is one of the electronics. Support independent content creators, man. Get with the program.
@@GeckoHiker If you use UA-cam, you support evil corporations and evil rich people! You are impure and receive NO VIRTUE SIGNALLING POINTS for your post!
But who do you vote for?
bollocks! | or, in Elon Musk's language (not that I admire him): 🚽 | As the saying goes: "It's the capitalism, stupid", plus the human nature (of greed & selfishness & demagoguery)...
This guy seems like an incredibly decent human being.
Yes indeed. He sort of looks like David Bowie! 💫
Interesting , a number of the most eminent market experts have been expressing their views on the severity of the impending economic downturn and the extent to which the economy would plummet. This is because the economy is heading towards a recession and inflation is persistently above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. As I'm aiming to create a portfolio worth no less than $850,000 before I turn 60, I would appreciate any advice on potential investments.
I've been in touch with a financial advisor ever since I started my business. Knowing today's culture The challenge is knowing when to purchase or sell when investing in trending stocks, which is pretty simple. On my portfolio, which has grown over $900k in a little over a year, my adviser chooses entry and exit orders.
My advisor is SOFIA ERAILDA SEMA , a renowned figure in her line of work. I recommend researching her credentials further. She has many years of experience and is a valuable resource for anyone looking to navigate the financial market
@@jamesharrison6569 haha, You know Sofia Erailda Sema? crazy! I appreciate every single second of the six month I worked with her. She is such an amazing woman, patient and down to earth teacher my next monetary goal is leverage trading and I'll be starting with sofia’s strategy! i have heard many positive reviews from my Co-workers since the recent dumps.
Matthew Desmond has the story that relieves my gnawing reality! Thank you for this real voice.
Grew up in poverty as a child. Yes everything you said is pretty accurate. I always said the only way things would change is if everyone was forced to live in poverty for 1 year which is never going to happen.
Crash the economy hard enough and you'll have an electoral majority who "get it."
If they could all walk a mile in your shoes, they would see how things really are.
Some will _never_ change, regardless of how much hardship they’re forced to endure. Greed and narcissism have become the default human state. There are simply too few genuinely altruistic and compassionate people to effect any significant change.
@@anhedonianepiphany5588 Self-survival is the biggest factor. Capitalism is a vehicle that is fueled by fear. Insecurities cause selfishness and greed.
This is an incredible interview! He nails it on the head - we need to talk about the fire… I am definitely getting this book…
One big problem with government assistance to the poor (and middle class) is that corporations observe that and say to themselves, "They have more money. Let's find a way to put that in OUR pocket." Then they raise prices and service costs that do exactly that.
Well, when there's no oversight, and common sense regulation, that happens. Not to mention these corporations are allowed to fund politicians that represent their financial interests. That should be illegal, because there is a conflict of interest.
I’ve worked at store’s where when the state increased the minimum wage up from 7.25 a couple years ago, they increase all their prices and doubled the rent on the crappy apartments they rent. So I guess no one can catch up, never mind get ahead.
I totally agree!
Oligarchy.
When people work hard for $, they shop around for the best deals, but when they get free money, they're willing to pay more. It bids the prices up, like an auction.
People who come from privilege often don’t understand the implications that growing up in poverty has on people. It’s a life-long battle of having poor health, poor education, etc. Its waking up with dirty clothes and going to bed hungry-and the cycle often becomes generational. For those who are working hard to break these cycles, I commend you. I am doing the same myself and have lived experience of not having my basic needs met 90% of the time.
My hubs chose to die because pursuing the heart/kidney transplant he needs will cost the family home. He doesn't want us to go homeless while he spends every cent on to pays and medicines. So even if you have a house and no debt, you are still heartbreaking poor.
Beautiful man! Sorry for your loss.
@@1bluegreen2 no hospital charity. We got a help with the co pays for testing but UW medical in seattle explains the difference is so great the hospital specifically exempts elective procedures which transplants are elective
Wow, this is heartbreaking. I’m so sorry 😢
Only in America. We need universal health care like every other developed country in the world has some form of. It's absurd.
I'm so sorry 😔... that's outrageous
Problems exist because they are profitable for somebody. Poverty is extremely profitable for the wealthy. The sad part is the wealthy would be even more wealthy if there was no poverty. But there's too many people who can't control their predatory short-term impulses, and would rather spend their time figuring out how to extract wealth out of the poorest people right now, rather than solving a problem that would make them even richer down the line.
Poor people are historically looked at as something to be used and destroyed. People equate being wealthy, with being smart, and poverty the inverse. We all know that's not true..
How did you come up with any of these economic theories? How do you "solve" poverty? If you had custody of a guy who spends all his cash on partying, how would you fix him?
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 We have to separate finacially irresponsible behavior from structural barriers. Think of it as equal opportunity versus equal outcome. You can't fix stupid, but there are billions of people globally who are structurally blocked from even getting an honest shot at improving their lives. Everyone benefits from removing those barriers. So "solving" poverty as a structural institution is within our abilities if we choose to solve it as a society. But stopping individuals from failing to thrive is not. And that's ok.
@@claybutler Ok, so you would still have poor people, but it wouldn't be counted as real poverty because you removed some "structural barriers" to them getting rich? What are these "barriers" and how are you planning to get rid of them?
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 Simple barriers to remove.
Equal opportunity for education. No "bad" or underfunded schools.
Free preschool and daycare.
Child tax credit made permanent.
Universal healthcare.
No redlining. This is where banks, lenders and real estate agents refuse to do business in certain areas or with certain people.
No gerrymandered districts or voter suppression laws. Elections should be a paid national holiday. All elections held on Saturday and Sunday.
A true livable wage law and strict enforcement of workers right. Right to unionize. Imprisonment for anyone interfering with employee unionization.
Banning investment groups from buying residential housing. Housing is for real people and families.
Tax incentives for companies who are willing to do business in "food desserts". Millions of Americans cannot even get to a regular grocery store. They pay a super premium and buy food from convenience stores.
Ban all check cashing, paycheck loan operations. Everyone who has a job is guaranteed a real bank account and full services like everyone else. In many neighborhoods there literally NO banks. So they get screwed by check cashing places who take a sizable part of their paycheck just to cash it. And guess who runs these check cashing places. The big banks!
No more putting toxic waste dumps, landfills and toxic factories ONLY in poor neighborhoods.
These are pretty basic things to implement and would dramatically reduce poverty and help break generational poverty.
I’ve often found it very difficult working in a high end zip code, yet not being wealthy, to hear the needs, requests, and complaints of wealthy people, which are all usually very trite and nonsensical, be fully prioritized over the basic level survival needs of the people (workers) right in front of them! Also, I speak Spanish and English. So I hear the requests in English, then hear the responses in Spanish after the client goes back inside. It’s really sad. We can do better. Plus, for a majority Christian faith nation, we would assume that helping the poor world be a priority.. but what we see is that this is a farce, and a veneer of good intentions, and that maximizing profits and building wealth is the actual real priority.
Capitalism.
@@1LaOriental or a perverted form of capitalism.
Sad and all so true. Others who provide services to the wealthy (at costly resorts, for example) have similar stories of unreasonable expectations from a group of people who feel entitled to whatever their infantile brains desire.
@@1LaOriental unfettered capitalism. All systems have a dark side. Capitalism is great but unfettered capitalism is destructive to the overall society.
YES! ❤
He utilities his moral intelligence for compassion and social economic justice!
Thank you! I just bought a Kindle copy of Matthew's "Poverty" book. I am a 71 year old retired working class man. I qualify for subsidised housing here in the Olympia, WA area but there is no one place I can go to figure out how to proceed. It is quite complicated and I am muddling my way thru. I have a 46 year old son who is out of work and out of money and it is difficult to figure out how to proceed to get him help. I am over one year into the learning process but making slow progress. I am not too proud to ask for help! It would help if there was one place locally to go to and talk to somebody who could help me find the way. Generally the people I do contact refer me to somebody else. There is no shortage of non profit well meaning organizations to contact but they are not of much help. The focus seems to be on treating the symptoms of homeless people and not on how to keep people from becoming homeless much less why they are impoverished in the first place. Oh, well! =)
I live in Southwest Ohio and the waiting lists on subsidized housing for older folks are hundreds long.
So true!
Just a thought but can you and your son team up together to get a place? I know that you can buy something between two people that aren't necessarily married. My mom and I were going to do that. Maybe one of you can qualify for USDA. It's just a thought. I think we're going to have to start depending more on family than we traditionally used to, which isn't such a bad thing. I live close to my daughter like next to her like in the same place and I help take care of the kids and there are so many advantages to teaming up together. Life is better this way. It's just a thought.
@@lesliecurran1704 Thanx for your concern. I have considered that but it is easier said than done. The long term solution is my son having a basic income and affordable housing so that he can get by when I am gone. I am 71, Will I still be alive in 5 years? I can't afford to support him now and I am rent stressed all by myself. I brought up my situation not for sympathy or advice but to emphasise the systemic problem brought forth in the book. Rest assured that I am getting "schooled" on what does and does not work around my neck of the world in my particular case. =)
Thank you for your open critical empathy
Ending poverty and a more prosperous country will be absolutely beneficial for everyone. Everyone will be better off and have a better life
How are you thinking that can be done? Ending all disease would be good, too, while you're at it.
The rich don’t see it that way. They’re lazy, scary, and weak. They need poor people.
@3namechangezalowd Evry90dayzlernmor countries like Sweden and Finland have virtually no poverty- not like ours anyway. The socialist- Democrat societies are onto something.
@@monicabeaston4996 absolutely!
@@monicabeaston4996If Finns want to pay high taxes and cap their salaries to have a robust social safety net, let 'em. It's their country. Don't count on that EVER happening in the USA because the voters will fight tooth and nail not to give their hard-earned $ to slackers. Finland doesn't have millions of illegal/ semi- legal immigrants pouring in over its southern border, so that helps. (They are putting up a wall to keep the Russian draft dodgers out, though).
It’s heartening to see this viewpoint hitting the mainstream.
For 50 years, prices for essentials outgrew wages 3 times, one third of Americans in gig jobs, two of many more reasons. 🇺🇲😱
Finally, an author addressing the cause of this problem.
The problem with being poor in the United States is that it takes up all of your time.
Yep. Who has time to go to night school or trade school when you work so much to survive?
Cut your expenses as much as possible and find a reputable online program. Begin with the end job in mind. Don't waste time earning certifications that don't matter for the job you want.
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 You really think you're doing something in every thread doling out advice but without knowing and then tailoring your advice to someone's specific circumstances it's not necessarily helpful.
@@xtinkerbellax3 , We have an open forum here, Tink. We can b!tch, moan, and shake our fists at the mean ol' system or we can brainstorm some solutions to our individual problems. What may not work for one may work for somebody else. Start by assessing your situation and control what you can control.
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 Are there reasonably priced online programs?
Many thanks to Amanpour & CO for the interview and to Mr. Desmond for using his position and intelligence to broadcast this to society at large. How I hope all involved in making this knowledge known can continue this very vital work.
This guy's a ding-dong. See if you can find a copy of The Millionaire Next Door. It's based on actual research and there should be a free audiobook copy on UTube.
Someone once said that the only sin in America is to be poor.
Yes, Martin Sheen, the actor, said it's seen as a crime to be poor in America. Same type of thing.
Not a sin, but a crime. They'll throw you in jail.
I'm going to throw something out there that should be talked about. And that's built-in obsolescence. For instance right now I have perfectly good functioning phone and computer. The phone was expensive. But few to no apps work on the phone any more. So I'm forced to buy a new phone despite it being perfectly adequate. My computer has warnings now on it that say "you are running Windows 8, please toss this computer and buy a new computer because nothing will get updated".
Companies are learning the more control they have on our assets, the esaier it is for them to force to HAVE TO BUY NEW THINGS regardless if our current things continue to function perfectly well.
Imagine how that affects people that can't afford a new phone or computer? Or new car? Or new TV or whatver.
We need to wake up as a nation!!! We are only as rich as we are compassionate!!
This all hits home as I always remember a teacher who told us in class that for every millionaire, there needs to be a certain number of people below the poverty line. I don't remember the number but it was shocking to hear this.
Our government is really just a pyramid scheme.
Nonsense, no one is poor because someone is rich.
@@stevenalvarado-doc7334 sounds like we got a priviledged one defending wealth, here. The poor will soon have no one but the rich to eat.
It doesn’t NEED to be like that. It’s all so very crushing!!!
@@stevenalvarado-doc7334 Total global wealth is $13.2 trillion. The top 10 wealthiest people range from $182 to $86 billion. There are 2,600 billionaires in the world with a net worth of $12.2 Trillion. Where are the other 8 billion people in the world going to get their billion$, because billionaires have a lot of resources to keep their billion$ away from the thousandaires including, but not limited to, buying politicians to get tax breaks for themselves.
they arent just complicit they are primarily responsible.
Yeah complicit my ass
Finally! Someone with the proper response, the wealthy are primarily responsible for the shape of our economy. Poverty can only grow and will not decline because that is the way our economic structure is designed. The primary function of our economy is to grow wealth and financial assets are the means be which that wealth growth occurs. The purpose of financial assets is to extract wealth at a greater rate than economic growth and wages can support, which means poverty has no choice but to also expand. Our economy is completely enveloped by a sphere of financial assets that is five time the size of the economy itself. Our health care system is just one of many entities whose sole function is to grow the value of financial assets. Same with the guns, same with oil, same with real estate (housing), same with banking. Open ended, unrestricted growth is called cancer, and any type of cancer must be killed or the host body (our economy) will die. It really is that simple.
It used to be "the ultra rich" now it's the "middle class" who are to blame and should be forced to sponsor you? Take responsibility for you own spending. Work hard, live frugally, and invest wisely. The people that do, get out of poverty.
@@3namechangezalowdevry90day7 - Have you been under a rock for the last three decades? Either that or you bought into the daily diet of oligarch propaganda. Everyone knows that wages have not kept up with the cost of living, which increases because of the greed of "investors" who are the primary cause of inflation. Stop giving old trope advice, we have heard enough of that already.
Yes! Finally!
Matthew Desmond: "Poverty isn't just a lack of income, it's this #exhausting collection of social maladies and problems." Much more #MoralAction, needed, yes please!
Thank you for spending the time to create and share this content awareness
I learned so much from this program!
This is why a college education has been made inaccessible for most. The Kthru12 is designed to produce wage slaves to corporate profits as Mr. Desmond explains here.
Thank you Matthew for writing this book and speaking about this topic so eloquently and compassionately.
I wish officials and CEOs in other countries would shame US officials and CEOs for allowing such poverty in the US. Our country's rich and powerful don't care what the"little" people think about them, but they care very much about the opinions of peers in countries where they do business.
In the US the rich and powerful have decided that being cruel to the majority is good business
ua-cam.com/video/w-d3jFIGxdQ/v-deo.html
In the US the voters have decided that being cruel to the majority is good business. People are voting for this.
@@Hastur876 And they are voting against their own best interests, manipulated by the conservatives.
@@virginiamoss7045 People are generally dumb and want to be manipulated. The sad bit is that in the US, Democrats have no clue how to compete at the game, and potential third parties (like Farmer-Labor or Working Families Party) have no clue how to even engage voters successfully.
This whole credit reporting/credit scoring hurts so many people every day! It increases poverty and homelessness.
Very, very good interviews!! Thank you!! Mic'2023
Great... It's long overdue that someone brings attention to the horrible infliction called Homelessness.thank you Mr.Desmond
Gated near self-sustaining communities of the truly affluent was the subject of a New York Times magazine article titled, "The Secession Of The Successful." In the two decades since that article America's elites have found many more ways to closet themselves off from the common folk. And politicians vigourously support the richest Americans in enforcing this societal stratification.
Exactly. And it seems to me that 1) technology, 2) the pandemic and 3) the media have worsened this problem over the past few years. I know people who live in gentrified areas, work from home, and consume a certain kind of content, and they have no effing clue what is really going on in this country. Not the slightest inkling that there is anything wrong with the economy, the healthcare system, nothing. They live in a bubble of privilege. If you tell them you lost your job in 2020 and have been struggling ever since, they assume you must have made bad life choices, while they are comfortable because they made good life choices, end of story. I would actually not trade places with them because I'd never want to be that delusional.
Yes. Highland Park Illinois, I think chargers 25 or so dollars an hour for parking near a lake Michigan beach. I would much rather they charged 5 bucks to access the facilities than so much on parking. But they do it to keep poor and everyone who is not wealthy away. They are not even discreet a about it. They might pretend it costs to keep the beach open. Yeah because they have a dozen on white rich teens patrolling the parking lot at any given time so they have to charge that.
The free market electoral bribery system makes sure the rich hold all the keys.
If you are counting on politicians to the do the right thing, the 2023 article "My Dinner with Sydney, or, Roy Batty meets HAL?" may be of interest since it mentions Lampedusa's 1958 novel "The Leopard" whose main character says:
- What would the Senate do with me, an inexperienced legislator who lacks the faculty of self-deception, essential requisite for anyone wanting to guide others …Now you need young men, bright young men, with minds asking ‘how’ rather than ‘why,’ and who are good at masking, at blending, I should say, their personal interests with vague public ideals.
Saw this interview when it aired. Will be buying the book, can’t wait to read. These solutions are profound as I’ve heard few in politics espouse any of the solutions stated in the interview. I’ll chalk it up to a political class struggling to articulate what they don’t know. Those that do, aren’t breaking through fast enough.
I have a keen interest in this subject. I have been following your work for years, Matthew. I came out to see you speak in Houston.
If you're a senior in Georgia, your food stamp allocation is generally $10-15 monthly if you don't pay rent or mortgage. Most of the costs of keeping a home are not considered, insurance is about the only thing. Utilities are determined by a low percentage and has nothing to do with actual costs. Many don't bother with the cumbersome process and mounds of paperwork that is not considered.
Injustice causes poverty. This is especially true in countries with massive wealth, but it is also true in poor countries. Politicians or dictators in poor countries take advantage of the people and use the country's resources to enrich themselves.
Thank you Michelle and Matthew, informative as always
Thanks Miss Amanpur! That’s topic is very crônic problem growing every year , in USA ., I’m one immigrant try to surviving every day , but I ❤love USA .
I love him he speaks for us.
I would like to see Matthew Desmond and John McWhorter debate race and poverty. I have often felt that McWhorter blames without a lot of understanding of the effects of poverty on behaviors and choices.
My brothers and I all worked full time while attending college full time. We came from poverty but all grinded out degrees and graduate degrees. Even during my career I worked extra jobs.
You can rise above your station! Do the work. You’ve got this. BTW we are Mexican-American.
Blessings.
Thank you for sharing this interview with Mr Matthew Desmond. Since I grew up poor, I can tell you he knows what he is talking about. I hope he continues speaking up for people living in poverty. We need his voice.
Thank you for this conversation! Read Desmond's book this past week. Incredible writing, research, and pragmatic suggestions for change and acknowledging our complicity.
Complicit? The privileged drew the blueprints for the catastrophe. Thanks for video
I hope all politicians and Governments in the USA take lessons/advice from this book....
I worked for the Census Bureau in the late 1970's and I saw quite a few older folks who couldn't heat their homes.
You never met me... I hid! Lol. Nothing personal. Strangers with clipboards are usually not good.
We live in a de facto neo gilded age. These present day uber wealthy are the richest people who have ever lived. But contribute to a better society for their fellow citizens? Yeah, right.
Excellent interview.
there is no other advanced country that faces the kind of poverty that we do amongst all this wealth!
Matthew Desmond slayed in this interview.
This man ❤️
Absolutely brilliant discussion and he is right on the money - hit the nail on the head. If the corporate tax breaks alone were reduced, just imagine the good that could do for millions of desperate people. Philanthropy will not solve the poverty problem. That obsession to reduce the poverty problem by turning to the wealthy and saying "hey, you've profited off the back of the poverty class, it's now your turn to give back" is 1000% fair.
Poverty persists because the economic system we have requires it. Capitalism is a system that places profit as its ultimate goal. One significant outcome of a for profit system is that the ownership class takes the largest portion of the economic surplus for themselves; the profits that are created by the working class. Changing the economic system to one that puts regular people's and planet needs first would begin to seriously address persistent poverty and the climate catastrophe.
Thank you for rightly calling out capitalism for which poverty is a prerequisite!
But just like a narcissistic parent DOESN'T WANT to see their kids get ahead and certainly withhold helping them succeed because it threatens their power position. That is who is making the decisions for the working class.
Poverty can only grow and will not decline because that is the way our economic structure is designed. The primary function of our economy is to grow wealth and financial assets are the means be which that wealth growth occurs. The purpose of financial assets is to extract wealth at a greater rate than economic growth and wages can support, which means poverty has no choice but to also expand. Our economy is completely enveloped by a sphere of financial assets that is five time the size of the economy itself. Our health care system is just one of many entities whose sole function is to grow the value of financial assets. Same with the guns, same with oil, same with real estate (housing), same with banking. Open ended, unrestricted growth is called cancer, and any type of cancer must be killed or the host body (our economy) will die. It really is that simple.
@coolmodelguy6304 so what happens to rich people IN THE END? Where will they go for a steak?
@@whygohome172 - They will have to settle for Soylent Green.
Mathew is DEEP! REAL! SPECIAL! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK! 🎉❤🎉
One of the most informative videos I've seen on this channel. Must buy his book.
Loved this talk, makes totally sense and from an educated and privileged Professional! I hope we listen 👂🏼 thanks!
I commend this gentleman for writing this book and caring. I'm ordering his book so I can get to know him. It's just rare for me to be inspired by an American man anymore.
It's so true that even today in the build back better , only homeowners get tax breaks and government handouts ..
I've been a renter all of my adult life, and signing up for relief, that alone disqualifies me for all of the governments offerings... I'm not elderly, so I can't collect those benefits...
A minister I knew years ago often talked about this problem; he described the U.S. as "perhaps the cruelest wealthy nation that has ever existed."
So good to see this being addressed
As George Carlin famously said, “It's called 'the American Dream' 'cause you have to be asleep to believe it.”
or from the musical group Queensryche, "The rich get rich, the poor stay poor, and the cops get paid to look away as the One Percent rules America."
or if you prefer the Talking Heads, "Same as it it ever was...here comes the twister."
Tax the rich. Let’s end poverty and homelessness
This is the first video I have ever seen that has SOLUTIONS
AWESOME!!!!!!!!!
I am listening to this over and over again.
The time is now!!!!
Thank you for introducing us to Matthew Desmond. Hope that the powers-that-be are among the many to read his book and listen to his words. It's absolutely true that only if we are committed to the eradication of poverty can we say we are committed to freedom.
"Hope" won't make it happen. Only organizing with others of like mind will.
@@xlxfjh I agree. And I do a certain amount of political phone calling and plug-in to the Democratic party, calling places to support specific Democrat candidates. I do believe in working within the system. I believe we need revolutionary change but it's going to have to be done with revolutionary thinking and actions not violent revolution in and of itself. IMO.
This was a nice conversation. To bad it’s not going anywhere.
Well done interview you two...
Absolutely love this guest. He really gets what's going on.
Brilliant! Thx for sharing your insight!
We want a more fair and just society.
People in hell want ice water.
Very interesting and on point. Thank you for introducing us to a NEW way to move past the same old story.
This man speaks so well. I've never heard poverty broken down in that way. And the comments here are extremely informative and upsetting.
Knowledge is power, awareness is always a good start.
Wonderful book!
It's the paperwork as well, that discourage application for assistance!
For me, it is having to tell the government when I go to the bathroom and how much I poop 💩 is what discourages me from applying for help!
Also when government keeps changing the laws as when you can retire, is another Factor.
I fall CONSTANTLY between the cracks when I apply for something😢
Brilliant!!
This guy is my hero!!
Powerful and fascinating.
Thought-provoking analysis.