[ExI] Social right to have a living

[Kelly Anderson]

2011/5/30 Stefano Vaj <stefano.vaj at gmail.com>:
> On 27 May 2011 01:41, Kelly Anderson <kellycoinguy at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> The poor are poor because they have not been able to effectively apply
>> the resources they have to obtain more resources.
>
> Mmhhh.

The other day I met a fellow who's father was a very poor copper miner
in the Atacama dessert of Chile. The father even died when he was
young. NOT an auspicious beginning. In one generation, he had saved up
enough money to get to the city, and finally emigrate to the United
States. He now enjoys a comfortable life in the richest country in the
world because he was able to put his limited resources to their
ultimate use. Did he get a break? Maybe.

Part of becoming rich is wanting to become rich badly enough to do
whatever is necessary to do so. Many poor people that I have met are
unwilling to leave their village and family to go to the city and make
their mark on the world. Those who do are more likely to be upwardly
mobile. Stewart Brand gave a TED talk in 2006 about slums in the big
cities that was very convincing on this topic and corresponds with my
own experiences.

Remember too that "poor" is very relative. If you make $2 a day in
Haiti, you are not "poor" by local standards.

> The poor are poor because... they are poor, especially in societies where
> social upward mobility is very limited

The probability of escaping poverty is MUCH higher in places with
better governments, like the United States. But it is still possible
to escape poverty in most places. I admit that it is nearly impossible
in places like Haiti, where hard work doesn't get you very far. That
is obvious. But some people still DO escape. In the case of Haiti, you
pretty much have to leave the country.

> and has mostly little to do with
> one's ability "to effectively apply the resources they have to obtain more
> resources" in any capitalistic sense.

They don't call America the land of opportunity for nothing.

> As has for that matter downward mobility, given that the rich who are found
> wanting in this area have just to pay good consultants to supplement the
> ability they lack. :-)

I know quite a bit about downward mobility from personal experience. :-)
Downward mobility is easy. In countries like the US, downward mobility
does have a bottom, below which you typically don't go. Education
moves the bottom up to a higher level, barring mental illness issues.

-Kelly