Op-Ed
Poor in Spirit
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The 700 Level
November 13, 2006 - 1:00amI once attended a leftist event on campus in which a girl said,” If only we knew how the poor felt.” Coming from fairly humble beginnings, I began to laugh as I pictured some of those in attendance at the event observing lower class families as if they were zoo animals (“Golly, they’re having spaghetti and chicken for the fourth time this week!”) Last Tuesday, as the election results came in and the Republican Party received the fiscal wake-up call that it sorely needed, I reflected on why coming from a less than fiscally wealthy background makes being a conservative a logical choice.
First and foremost, just because people are poor does not mean that they should be coddled. It seems to be so easy to blame people’s circumstances on familial situations or tough breaks in their lives. Sure, there are times when you lost your job or fell on hard times. That’s why I am so proud of the Welfare to Work program enacted back when the phrase “Contract for America” was still in vogue. Helping people while they get back on their feet instead of throwing money on them as they lie in the gutter betters both them and America, and promoting assistance with responsibility is a core conservative value.
Yet our country is based in Judeo-Christian roots, and that tradition’s focus on helping those in need is oftentimes practiced in misguided ways. I know a man in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania who applied for disability dozens of times for dozens of reasons. He is now living on my tax money because the court ruled that he was unable to sell insurance because of chronic athlete’s foot. Unfortunately, we are currently living in a society where this is acceptable (the manipulation of the system, not the athlete’s foot). Perhaps one of the most intrinsic differences between liberals and conservatives is that liberals think that throwing federal money at the problem will make it all better, while we realize that the government is the worst dispenser of aid possible.
The best thing about America, and the reason that so many are risking life and limb to get here, is that we are the country that gives you a shot. Case in point: my grandmother worked in a lamp factory at age eleven to support her younger brothers and sisters when her parents died. My mother is currently an assistant for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Within three generations, my family has gone from sewing lampshades to receiving an Ivy League education. If you want it badly enough, and if you refuse to accept no for an answer, you can improve your quality of life. This is not the immediate feel good answer that liberals so often seek, but rather a reality on which conservatives thrive.
What is most infuriating, however, is the fact that liberals love to write off those who do not meet their own standard of living. One of the main arguments with abortion is that kids will be born into poor families who can’t take care of them and will thus have a horrible life. Terrell Davis, former running back for the Denver Broncos, used to have his dad shoot bullets past his head while he was drunk. What did Terrell take from those horrific playdates? He got quick feet, and used the speed he developed trying to stay alive in the most literal sense to become a football star. There are plenty of other examples but the underlying theme is that no matter how bad a situation may look, there is always a way out. Just because people may not be brought up in the best environment does not mean that we should be denying them a shot at making it. Human beings are human beings, and just because you think they’ll be unhappy gives you no right to deny them the chance to prove you wrong.
Thus, contrary to popular belief up here, conservatives have overwhelming faith in the financially disadvantaged. We just know that the long term answer to serious problems cannot be solved by a free check. I used to play on an AAU basketball team that traveled around the country to compete in front of college coaches. From the age of eleven, we were taught that if we wanted something — in this case winning a national title — we were going to have to fight for it, whether it be collecting money in the streets at 6 a.m. or going door to door to sell T-shirts in the rain. We are a school of overachievers, yet, for some reason, the drive that we recognize in ourselves many here cannot recognize in others.
So to that curious girl from last year: the next time you’re driving your Volvo or Benz through a bad neighborhood on the way to a much nicer neighborhood, do not give that pitiful look of sadness and condescension. Frankly, if you cared that much you would have put the money that went toward the car to helping those on the outside. Simply remember that the poor are not a side show, and just because they can’t afford your car does not mean they’re not on their way to getting there.
If only we knew how the poor felt, indeed.
Megan Sweeney is a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at mps65@cornell.edu. The 700 Level appears alternate Mondays.
So, what you're saying is
So, what you're saying is that instead of welfare, all poor families need is to put their children to work making lamps? Are you trying to pull the ladder up or what?
I agree with you. But this
I agree with you. But this GOP Government has the worst spending record in the history of the country. GWB has spent more discretionary funds than LBJ. The GOP Congress has thrown cash in a million pork barrel projects, not just the Bridge to Nowhere. People actually voted Democrat to find politicians who would SPEND LESS. The problem with Conservatives is often that they still claim an ideology that their party (GOP) doesn't practice...So the GOP doesn't hand out free checks to the poor as much as the Dems? Maybe, but they hand out checks to everyone else including oil companies and huge agro-industrial companies. Now, I don't think one is morally different than the other, but don't say Republicans are all about hard work and nothing comes easy. If you want fiscally responsible politicians you're not gonna find it in either of the 2 big American Parties...