politics for the 99%

Publishd on Evening Times, by Stewart Paterson, Oct 10, 2014.

NEXT week is Challenge Poverty Week and an opportunity to highlight the problems and seek achievable solutions. The problems are many and with poverty comes a load of related social issues that form a spiral of decline and a cycle of poverty. Poor health leads to a life expectancy of people born in the most deprived areas more than 10 years lower than those in the most affluent. In Glasgow it is characterised by 1.7 years off your life for every stop on the west to east train line from Jordanhill to Bridgeton.  

Healthy life expectancy is worse with people becoming ill much earlier in poorer areas and leading to a death before retirement age. Children in deprived areas have lower educational attainment, which affects their opportunities and leads to poverty being transferred to their children, in a reversal of privilege being passed from one generation to another.

The key to tackling these issues as espoused by many, including Sir Harry Burns, former chief medical officer for Scotland, is early intervention, but what is also needed is extensive intervention … //

… Poverty is a political choice. You choose to accept it is inevitable for some in society or to tackle it and its causes. I fully expect the new First Minister, when she takes over, to choose the latter.

(full text).

Related Links:

• County’s pockets of poverty often invisible, on Portland Tribune, by Shasta Kearns Moore, Ocz 9, 2014;
• Video: A Multi-Generational Approach to Global Poverty Alleviation, 97.07 min, uploaded by New America, Oct 9, 2014;
• The Cycle of Poverty Spins Faster, on Dissident Voice, by Sheila Velazquez, October 9, 2014;
• Top Ten Policies To Lift Parents and Children Together Out Of Poverty, Released By Ascend At Aspen Institute, on PRnewswire, Oct 8, 2014: 89 percent of Americans favor two-generation programs to raise families out of poverty, and 70 percent would strongly favor the approach even if their own taxes were increased;
• Program aims to help break cycle of poverty, on CHRON, by Tamra Santana, Oct 7, 2014: Montgomery County teams up with United Way to teach residents how to become more self-sufficient;
• The beatitudes of poverty alleviation: An enduring formula for sustainable development, on Jamaica Obserer, Oct 5, 2014;
• Utah seeks ways to end cycle of poverty as a family tradition – report, on The Salt Lake Tribune, by Christopher Smart, Sept 30, 2014: Children born in poor families can succeed with nutrition, health care and education;
• Poverty’s Vicious Cycle Can Affect Our Genes, on WSJ, by Alison Gopnik, Sept 24, 2014: on new epigenetics research that reveals genes’ role in a vicious cycle;

on en.wikipedia:

• Cycle of poverty: In economics, the cycle of poverty is the “set of factors or events by which poverty, once started, is likely to continue unless there is outside intervention … // …  The poverty cycle can be called the “development trap” when it is applied to countries[1] …;
• Poverty reduction;

Websites resp topic-pages in medias:

• Intrepid Report;
• Dissident Voice;
• The Guardian;
• Child Labour, Poverty Link;
• Poverty and Homelessness;
• Poverty in Africa.org;
• Global Poverty.org;
• UK child poverty.org.uk;
• Save the children.org.uk;
• Others See Poverty.org;
• Oversea Poverty Mission.org;
• Effects of Poverty.org;
• How to end Poverty.org;

Other Links:

Modi-Obama meeting underplayed, on Geopolitical Analysis, by K.N. Pandita, Oct 10, 2014;

From Washington’s ‘Fear Factor’ playbook: The Khorasan Group is coming to get us, on Intrepid Report, by Dave Alpert, Oct 10, 2014;

Eurosceptic UKIP wins first British parliament seat in landslide victory, on Russia Today RT, Oct 10, 2014;

Warning: Stocks Will Collapse by 50%, on MoneyNews, Oct 9, 2014;

On the ISIS front line with RT’s correspondents LIVE UPDATES, on Russia Today RT, Oct 9, 2014;

Anarchy vs. Stability: Dictatorships and Chaos Go Hand in Hand, on Spiegel Online International, a commentary By Mathieu von Rohr, Oct 9, 2014: The argument that a stable, autocratic state is better than a failed one has become increasingly fashionable. But it misses the fact that autocracies are ultimately the source of that chaos;

Islamic State is lesser evil for Turkey than Assad or Kurds, on Russia Today RT, Oct 9, 2014;

Washington’s secret agendas, on Intrepid Report, by Paul Craig Roberts, Oct 9, 2014;

Sayed Kashua – Etgar Keret: une correspondance par-delà l’exil, dans Le Monde/Livres, par Jean Birnbaum, le 8 et 9 octobre 2014;

Freedom vs. Stability: Are Dictators Worse than Anarchy? on Spiegel Online International, a commentary by Christiane Hoffmann, Oct 8, 2014: Although there is always reason to celebrate the toppling of an autocrat, the outcome of the Iraq war and the rise of Islamic State have demonstrated in horrific terms that the alternative can be even worse;

Five Stupid Things About Poverty, 5.04 min, uploaded by Steve Shives, Oct 8, 2014;

Digital Jihad: Inside Islamic State’s Savvy PR War, on Spiegel Online International, by Christoph Reuter, Raniah Salloum and Samiha Shafy, Oct 8, 2014 (Photo Gallery): Islamic State’s methods may be medieval, but the group’s propaganda is second to none. The Islamists target their professionally produced videos at specific audiences — sometimes to spread a specific message, sometimes merely to terrify;

More bad news from the jobs front, on Intrepid Report, by Paul Craig Roberts, Oct 7, 2014;

Russian parliament to consider 4-day workweek, on Russia Today RT, Oct 7, 2014;

Pak’s monkey business, on Geopolitical Analysis, by K.N. Pandita, Oct 7, 2014;

Video: Making Cannabis Legal Would End Poverty Globally, 4.20 min, uploaded by Brian Blowings, Oct 7, 2014;

… and this:

• Blues Junkey: Don Baker & Mick Pyro, 5.32 min, uploaded by Conor Ryan, Nov 8, 2013 … and 160 other videos (rugby, music, shows) in autoplay.