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Current Events » in reply to Paternalism

You should get out of the garage more
Mary Anne — (archived)

I know these people. They really don't know.

They drop out of school because of their home life, or because of learning disabilities, or because they really believed (not having been taught differently when it could make a difference) that you can't get pregnant the first time.

They struggle to make a living. They can't read well. They don't know how to cook. They lose jobs because they don't know how to act once they get one. Sometimes they're on the street with no stoves, anyway. Peanut butter sandwiches get really old after a while. Fast food is cheap and it's filling. And it's sold at people like nobody's business.

Didn't you ever wonder how the poor got so fat and why the rich stay slim? It's because the poor can't afford the time and equipment to cook really good stuff, but they can supersize it and still get to their second part-time job. Or they can get a microwave meal. Have you looked at the average caloric (not to mention sodium -- helloooo, high blood pressure!) content of microwave meals lately? The poor also can't afford the time or the membership at a gym. And the places some of them live, I wouldn't go for a brisk walk after work.

The discerning poor will find a way to eat healthily, but those folks know how to read and have skills. They're down on their luck and will find a way back. The people I'm talking about never learned. The bus has left the station.

You think teaching them where to find the bus schedule is a bad thing? You think it's paternalistic? Well, Pater, look at your kids and wonder where they would be if no one ever took the time to teach them anything.

Regards--
Mary Anne

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