Part 3 of ongoing conversation-If you could wave a magic wand?

I saw a tweet the other day, and it posed the following question, If you could wave a magic wand and make one problem disappear, what would that be?

It made me really think hard, and boy, did my brain hurt...LOL.. I digress.

I put me in that philosophical mood, and expand my horizons well beyond their normal limits. I thought about how I see all the stuffed shirts on television and in the congress expound on this country being "exceptional".  I think I would rather live in a country where 30-40 million kids do not go to sleep hungry every night.  In the city of Dallas, 25% of the kids have "food insecurity" Yep, things are bigger in Texas!!!
That got me to thinking about how that one statistic can effect every facet of life. If you are chronically food challenged( how is that for a pc term?)  If you are child in the "richest nation in the world" and 25 to 30% of your kids are hungry, THATS A BIG FUCKING PROBLEM. Lets move on from children to adults.  In the last year, food banks, soup kitchens saw the biggest rise in membership in their history.. How pathetic is that? 

In 2012, there were 46.5 Million people living below the poverty line. Now when you factor in the shrinking middle class, and many are sliding to the poverty side, it just makes sense that childhood hunger is a huge problem. So there, I would wave the magic wand and make hunger in this country disappear. Whew, problem solved.  Except it will never go away.  I will add the caveat, that I am aware that there are some people who choose to walk the streets, not look for housing, not look for work, but you and I both know that number is very small. 

We are in serious trouble when there are over 100 million people on some sort of food assistance. 

That is the sort of staggering number that does a few things. That shocking number is something that those in power, well, it make them want to distract you from it. Plain and simple. It makes problems in Syria appear much worse than they are, because if you started to look at hunger, food stamps, homeless people, poverty in this "exceptional" country, then those who rule, start to squirm a bit. Go ahead, ask your congressman or senator about the rampant poverty and hunger, see how long it takes them to get back to you. On the same day you send them that letter, send one about a possible campaign donation. Guess which one comes back first? Just Saying.

One of the so called "saviors" to this country is the deal with the devil that many communities made, and now wish they didn't. Go ahead and build that Walmart wherever you want. Then watch as good ole Main St., USA goes away. Go ahead and try to prove me wrong. But watch this first.

Is Walmart the only problem, hell no, but does it contribute the the decline of  many small towns in America, hell yes.  Let me tell you a story. I am 52. When I was a kid in the 60's and 70's, I grew up in a house with 3 sisters and a brother. My mom, was a stay at home mom, and my dad was a firefighter. We lived a good life. White collar? nope. Barely getting by? nope. We were in the middle. How many one person breadwinner families do you know of today? When I was a kid, that's pretty much the deal all around. My dads friends were other firefighters and policemen. We would visit all the time, they all had stay at home moms. Whats Changed?  Where to begin... And that sums up many things, the cost of living in this "exceptional" country has skyrocket, taxes are through the roof, and the salaries are below what they were in the 1970's. You think I'm making this up? HUH!!!! This will get your blood boiling

I am well aware that the USA is good, but the pedestal its was once on, is not there anymore. That's just a fact.. I remember seeing this clip a few years ago, and what a shitstorm it raised, but when you listen, I mean, really listen, it is very sobering.

Folks, I really wished I could wave the magic wand, and make childhood hunger go away, nothing would make me happier. But its a systemic problem.  If you want to see a possible solution, or I should say, a different view of our economy. This video will blow you away.

Nick Hanauer explains how the "trickle down economics" is the biggest hoax ever to be perpetuated on the American public.  If the whole trickle down thing is such a great idea, how come we are at an all time high unemployment? Why are 30 million kids hungry every day?  

I traveled to Reno, Nevada last year. I went into this casino, and found a diner. I sat next to this older couple and we started talking.  The woman told me that they moved to Reno for their retirement. She was active at her church, and during the last year, the soup kitchen at the church could not feed everyone in need. She was heartbroken telling this story to a traveler, and her husband just nodded in agreement to what she was saying.  The neighborhood they lived in had over 60% of the homes foreclosed on. I really became more focused on my way back east. It was a long ride, but as I drove through New Mexico, Texas, Missouri, South Dakota, I saw what she was talking about. I saw so many small towns on the brink of collapse, it was a sobering trip. Go ahead and travel between the big cities on the secondary roads, and you will see what I am writing about.  It became almost routine to see the closed down factories, the main street, where most of the stores are closed. Then the few small family farms on the outskirts, that are hanging on by a thread.  I would like to think that we as a country are going to turn the corner. But first we have to see the corner. 

When I talk about these issues with co-workers, friends and family, there is lively debate on many topics, but there is one common thread that always seems to come to the forefront.  We must take care of our own. How is it possible that we can rebuild these countries in the Middle East, and we cannot afford schools, teachers, firefighters, fixing the roads, bridges, you get the point.  It can be a bit demoralizing to see all these things being built a half a world away, while we slowly rot here.