Who Is Poor?

[El Cid]

I attended a quiz at a local pub. One of the questions was how many people living in the UK have never been abroad.

The answer was 8% of the population. I am not sure I agree with this figure. Google it and it's written about in the Daily Mail.

It got me thinking about how we measure poverty. Has anyone got a more reliable figure than 8%?

Millions of people go abroad on holiday every year, so all of those people cannot be considered poor.

Can a person that has two or more children be poor, surely if they don't have two children unless they can afford to care for them. 

[trastrick]

17 minutes ago, El Cid said:

I attended a quiz at a local pub. One of the questions was how many people living in the UK have never been abroad.

The answer was 8% of the population. I am not sure I agree with this figure. Google it and it's written about in the Daily Mail.

It got me thinking about how we measure poverty. Has anyone got a more reliable figure than 8%?

Millions of people go abroad on holiday every year, so all of those people cannot be considered poor.

Can a person that has two or more children be poor, surely if they don't have two children unless they can afford to care for them. 

Poor is a state of mind.

 

I prefer the term "broke".

 

One is permanent, the other is fixable.

 

I grew up poor by all standards, family of laborers, slum house, no father, left school at 15, blah, blah blah.

 

Got a job, and another one on the side, learned to show up on time with no excuses, worked hard, didn't gamble, or drink away my money, no hire purchse trap for a fancy bike or a used car, and resolved to educate myself.

 

It worked for me!

Edited September 11, 2022 by trastrick

[Kidorry]

That was then but now it seems some people think hard work is a dirty word.

[abbeyedges]

There are two new phrases -

 

'those that are living in poverty' and 'those that are vulnerable'.

 

I have no idea how many should be seen as 'living in poverty' and / or 'are vulnerable' but in my opinion thare are many who have been given these labels when in fact they are more than capable of looking after themselves.

 

The mantle of 'doing the looking after' has been left to the rest of us.  

[HeHasRisen]

58 minutes ago, El Cid said:

I attended a quiz at a local pub. One of the questions was how many people living in the UK have never been abroad.

The answer was 8% of the population. I am not sure I agree with this figure. Google it and it's written about in the Daily Mail.

It got me thinking about how we measure poverty. Has anyone got a more reliable figure than 8%?

Millions of people go abroad on holiday every year, so all of those people cannot be considered poor.

 

Where does that stat say 92% of people go  abroad every year?

[Guest]

I can't see why going abroad, or not,  defines whether you are poor or not.

This is an example of the generalisation of everything nowadays.
I am not poor but I have never been abroad in my life.

The reason why?   I have never wanted to.

I live in a country which offers beauty of all kinds.

I don't like it too hot and I don't like it too cold.

We live on such a beautiful planet and there is much to see for those who want to travel but,

for thousands of years, most of the poor only went abroad to fight and often to die, for their country.

I've already seen the wonders of the world through TV programs such as David Attenborough's.

I've also seen the horrors of war through newsreels and that's enough for me

I'm quite sure that I am  not alone in this and I think 8% is absolutely way out.

The next thing is poor people will take holidays on earth and the rich will take them in space.

They are welcome to it.

[gamezone07]

1 hour ago, trastrick said:

Poor is a state of mind.

 

I prefer the term "broke".

 

One is permanent, the other is fixable.

 

I grew up poor by all standards, family of laborers, slum house, no father, left school at 15, blah, blah blah.

 

Got a job, and another one on the side, learned to show up on time with no excuses, worked hard, didn't gamble, or drink away my money, no hire purchse trap for a fancy bike or a used car, and resolved to educate myself.

 

It worked for me!

Social Mobility is much harder to achieve these days, in fact  there is evidence that for some people it is going backwards, middle class slipping into working class, and of course whe  you are disabled/sick  plenty of middle class there strugging to survive.

[trastrick]

3 minutes ago, gamezone07 said:

Social Mobility is much harder to achieve these days, in fact  there is evidence that for some people it is going backwards, middle class slipping into working class, and of course whe  you are disabled/sick  plenty of middle class there strugging to survive.

I personally know of two people (here we go again) that have come from impoverished countries, to the U.K. and can't believe the opportunities they see in a welfare state to get rich.

 

Mind you, I doubt they give a whit about what "class" they are supposed to be in. 

 

But like always, YMMV.

[gamezone07]

I was waiting for that, still doesn't negate the evidence base.

[Baron99]

Well I know of individuals who say that they're struggling financially but at the same time they'll have the latest smart phone will be costing them £50+ (or more) per month.  And let's remember, that unlike the past when you had one house telephone, each family member will now have their own smart mobile on a monthly contract, with the parents picking up the bill for their children. (The old Sony Experia I'm typing this on costs me £22 per month).  They also have Sky, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Disney etc.   Then chuck in the cost of the Internet provider & the cost of the electricity to run & keep everything charged up.  It soon adds up. 

 

Some people / families will claim that they are struggling with the cost of food, yet they are quick to turn to the likes of Deliveroo at the drop of a hat rather than cook. 

 

Of course there's genuine poverty for a tiny minority in the UK, the rest could cut their cloth accordingly & save money.