Re: is poverty really noble?

On 5/30/06, glennmorton@entouch.net <glennmorton@entouch.net> wrote:
>
>
> Hi Iain,
>
> >>>On Tue May 30 15:54 , "Iain Strachan" sent:
>
>
>
>
> Glenn,
>
> Just a brief thought while it's in my mind.
>
> I don't think there was anything in what I said that could be
> interpreted as saying there was "nobility" in poverty. I said there
> may be richness (spirtually) in poverty, just as there may be
> spiritual poverty in richness. That's a different thing entirely than
> saying poor people are "noble".<<<<
>
>
> I guess, what made me think about this issue was that you didn't like my
> statment about the Tibetans being poor by choice--religious choice and then
> brought up the poem and Singh. I interpreted this as praising poverty as a
> value to be attained, yet, while I agree that there are people heavyladen
> with gold, there are probably more who are heavy laden with poverty.
>
> I chose the word 'noble', because it seems that the poor are always praised
> (especially the poor by choice), but few really want to live that way.
>

I think what I didn't like was the implication that being materially
rich was preferable to poverty because you could pay for this that and
the other, and hence live longer. All that's true, and I wouldn't
choose to be poor. But equally, I wouldn't choose to live through the
hell of clinical depression. Money doesn't solve problems and maybe
it creates them (how many rich celebs are crack-heads, for example).
And the fact remains that many, many teenagers in my country (and I've
no doubt in yours) are in such mental torment that the only relief
they perceive they can get is to cut deeply into their arms and watch
the blood flowing out. And the most at-risk for self harm tend to be
white and middle class. Paradoxically, it seems being part of an
ethnic minority, for example, gives you a stronger sense of identity
and belonging than being part of the class that apparently has it
easy.

I guess the point I'd make is that poverty has many faces, and so has
"richness". I found a richness in Okri's poem that frankly surprised
me. Equally, I see terrible terrible poverty among those who are
relatively speaking well off.

On a different point, it's worth noting that Singh's missionary
journeys were to Tibet, to bring people the Good News of Jesus Christ,
and help free people from the influence of the Buddhist monks.

Iain

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After the game, the King and the pawn go back in the same box.
- Italian Proverb
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