Widely Cited Poverty
| Economics vs. Poverty | | | Cindy Moore | 12/2/2012 |
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Poverty has several definitions however it basically means “a state of privation or lack of the usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions.” There is no universally accepted definition of “socially acceptable money or material possessions” that exists because poverty is a relative concept. In other poorer countries it is said to mean living at the brink of subsistence, while in America many suffer from undernourishment, not many confront starvation.
A key concern in the area of poverty is the reality of inequality. Inequality has been and continues to be a problem in all societies. There is no society that distributes income evenly. In spite of all the theoretical and technical problems of measurement, the government has developed a widely cited poverty index that reflects the diverse intake requirements of families depending on their size, sex, age and family location, while also surveying the gender of the head of household. Based on previous surveys, the creators of the poverty index determined that families of three or more persons would spend approximately one-third of their income on food. Based on the poverty index the poverty level for these families would be set at three times the cost of the economy food plan. For smaller families and people who lived alone, the cost of economy food plan were multiplied at higher factors taking in consideration larger fixed expenses for these households. The Census Bureau updates the poverty thresholds every year.
Another area of concern is that the poverty index has some defects. One of them being it does not allow for regional deviations in the cost of living or for higher costs in the central city areas, which is where many of the poor are concentrated. Another defect being the food costs for the budget were designed for temporary or emergency use and are inadequate for a permanent
diet because
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Poverty has several definitions however it basically means “a state of privation or lack of the usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions.” There is no universally accepted definition of “socially acceptable money or material possessions” that exists because poverty is a relative concept. In other poorer countries it is said to mean living at the brink of subsistence, while in America many suffer from undernourishment, not many confront starvation.
A key concern in the area of poverty is the reality of inequality. Inequality has been and continues to be a problem in all societies. There is no society that distributes income evenly. In spite of all the theoretical and technical problems of measurement, the government has developed a widely cited poverty index that reflects the diverse intake requirements of families depending on their size, sex, age and family location, while also surveying the gender of the head of household. Based on previous surveys, the creators of the poverty index determined that families of three or more persons would spend approximately one-third of their income on food. Based on the poverty index the poverty level for these families would be set at three times the cost of the economy food plan. For smaller families and people who lived alone, the cost of economy food plan were multiplied at higher factors taking in consideration larger fixed expenses for these households. The Census Bureau updates the poverty thresholds every year.
Another area of concern is that the poverty index has some defects. One of them being it does not allow for regional deviations in the cost of living or for higher costs in the central city areas, which is where many of the poor are concentrated. Another defect being the food costs for the budget were designed for temporary or emergency use and are inadequate for a permanent
diet because
Cited: Berkowitz, Edward, and Michael B. Katz. "The Undeserving Poor: From the War on Poverty to the War on Welfare." The American Historical Review 99.3 (1994): 999. Print. Fitchen, Janet M. Poverty in Rural America. N.p.: n.p., 1981. Print. Jansson, Bruce S. The Reluctant Welfare State, A History of Amercians Social Welfare Policies. Belmont: Wadsworth, 1988. Print. "Poverty in the United States." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 30 Nov. 2012. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_the_United_States>. "Poverty." Main. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/>. Shaw, William H., and Vincent Barry. Moral Issues in Business. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1989. Print.