Margaret Thatcher once stated during an interview that poverty was essentially self-inflicted, a matter of a lack of “character”. That’s quite a statement given the brutal history of colonialism by England and the inequality it caused. Thatcher’s political philosophy supports a mentality which allows people to participate in creating inequality as they accumulate wealth. Perhaps it is really Margaret Thatcher and those like her that have the “character defect”. Rutger Bregman, a Dutch Historian, takes issue with this perception in his TED Talk titled: “Poverty is Not a Lack of Character, It’s a Lack of Cash.” It is an amazing talk and well supported by facts. I encourage you to become acquainted with his work. Take a look at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydKcaIE6O1k&t=1s
Margaret Thatcher’s particular view of reality is an example of how people with a great deal of wealth and power disavow responsibility for the poor by blaming them for being poor even though the policies of the rich and powerful created or exacerbated poverty. When such policies and practices have led to so many being exploited it is painful to face that reality, if you possess any empathy at all. But empathy can be disabled by blaming others. It is a classic example of attacking from your place of vulnerability, your responsibility for the poverty and suffering you have helped to create, to deny your guilt or more likely to avoid the responsibility for righting the wrongs you have inflicted on others. The most dreaded outcome for the super-rich is encapsulated in one word – reparations. So we can expect the very rich to go to any lengths possible to defend their riches. After all the way wealth was acquired for many, through colonialism, was ruthless so the mentality is there and it has worked. You may ask how anyone can possibly justify cultural and physical genocide to go along with the theft of land and resources. Well it has been and continues to be done. Whether adhering to doctrines of manifest destiny, realpolitik, a sense of entitlement, or a lack of empathy some manage to do it and many of us remain silent accepting inequality. The latter is a major issue. We have accepted the constructed narratives justifying inequality. You can argue that all this theft occurred long ago, but the effects are still present today. This includes racism and all the types of structural violence that accompany it.
Being poor remains a disadvantage when attempting to climb the economic ladder. Prejudice and discrimination continue to be a factor and Ruger Bregman points out many factors to consider along with solutions. Rutger was recently a guest on the Tucker Carlson Show on Fox News, I call them the Fox Propaganda Network, which turned into quite a surprise for the host. Hoping to point out the hypocrisy of the “rich” at the Davos World Economic Forum, the interview quickly was reversed and turned into a critique of Fox News and how the anchors are all millionaires taking “dirty money” from billionaires to support agendas that continue to coalesce wealth for the few at the expense of the many. Rutger emphasized the need to raise taxes on the rich and prohibit their tax shelters. The interview then deteriorated into attacks on Rutgers’ person including profanity laden assaults, by the clearly shocked and outclassed Carlson. Rutger was the perfect example of an informed, confident, and eloquent individual speaking truth to power. Take a look at the interview on: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_nFI2Zb7qE.
Rutger spoke truth to power as are others, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and they have the top 1% nervous. Be prepared to exercise your critical thinking skills and sort through the “Bullshit”, as defined by Harry Frankfurt a moral philosopher from Princeton University in his book “On Bullshit”, as most don’t want to give up their power voluntarily so you can expect narratives to be created around “democratic socialists”. But there is a greater power to be had. The power of awakening compassion and well informed people working cooperatively as we strive to save our fragile planet and all the ecosystems which provide us the opportunity to live. As Gandhi observed: “there is enough on earth for everybody’s need, but not for everyone’s greed.”