Wal-Mart
Wow! I knew there was a reason that I don't shop at Wal-Mart but other than the horrible feeling that I get when I go in there, I really couldn't articulate why I choose not to shop there.
I was amazed and angered at the thought that management would encourage employees to seek health care or benefits from the state because they were not willing to pay a living wage. That means that I, as a taxpayer, am helping subsidize Wal-Mart.
I was also outraged at the thought that managers would suggest to their employees to work off the clock. What is wrong with these people? And I would have to disagree that this is a few bad managers that have made those decisions. Those decisions come from higher up and are the accepted practices of the company. Companies have values and this company's values do not match with mine. I will continue to not shop at Wal-Mart.
(But I do shop at Target, and now I'm scared because I like Target!!)
Classism
Something was said in a different class by a fellow student, whom I respect and whose opinions I value, that has stuck with me all week. We've been talking about physical environment and after some class discussion about whether or not parks or green areas or community gardens were relevant to impoverished neighborhoods, she offered, "If you're thinking about parks, then you're not low class." Maybe she meant something different then how I interpreted it. Maybe I'm completely on the wrong side of the ballpark on this one (pun intended). I interpreted "low class" as "poor"- maybe I'm off here. If so, then please forgive me.
But...
Wow. This comment made me very sad. :(
Parks and green spaces, in my opinion, are important to poor people and to poor neighborhoods. I spent A LOT of time in parks as a child- and we lived in an impoverished neighborhood, and we were poor. Some of my happiest moments were spent at the park with my friends and my sisters. Digging in the sand, swinging on the swings, playing castle, playing chase... Those were great times where we were physically active, outdoors and we had free time to use our imaginations.
I think about all the kids I played with and how this was one of our only forms of entertainment. We didn't have money for the movies, we didn't always have a working TV and when we did, we didn't have cable. We played outside, at the park, in the playground.
I understand that things have changed a little in some neighborhoods, some parks are unsafe and may have bad people in them doing bad things, but that, to me is a different issue.
Playtime, particularly outdoor playtime, is just as important to poor children, as it to children with higher economic status.
I can also see where parks might not be a neighborhood's primary concern. I can see that a parent of a child might not be able to put food on the table or might not be able to keep the lights on, and that playing at the park might not be very high on a priority list, but I still think it's an important way to keep a community together and a healthy alternative to other activities that children might get involved in.
I don't mean to judge or to offend anyone, I'm just voicing my opinion. I would really love to have an open dialogue about this subject. :) Maybe I just don't understand and am only seeing one side from my limited worldview.
Chapter 40- The Debt Trap.
Reading about Diane McLeod left me with a couple of different thoughts. First of all, I do believe that banks prey on the disadvantaged or the uneducated with their high interest rates and their fees. I do think that people of color are treated differently and charged differently. I worked in banking, so these things I know to be true. However, I do think that people should be held somewhat responsible for their purchasing decisions. I feel that many people overspend and rack up the charges on their credit cards to keep up with their peers, or to keep up with the people they see on TV. Sure, one could argue that media plays a big part in this, and one could also say that people aren't educated on finances. I know that I was not educated on finances. When I was 18 and in college for the first time, I got a credit card. I had a part time minimum wage job and I had a credit line of $2000. What did I do?? I charged that sucker up- all the way up. I bought a TV, clothes, shoes, meals, etc. Shoot, I even bought clothes for my roommate. And what happened? I defaulted on that card. I spent years paying it back. YEARS. For clothes that were long gone, a TV that was tiny and completely obsolete and meals that had long been forgotten. But, you know what, I learned that lesson. It was a hard lesson to learn. But I learned it. It took me years to repair my credit.
I would love to say that I was completely debt free, but I'm not. I have a small amount of revolving debt, but nothing I can't manage.
When I see people charging things they don't need, I get it, I completely understand, I've been there, I've done that, heck, sometimes I still do, but I am completely responsible for that debt.
The whole mortgage debacle, in my opinion, is a completely different matter. Banks purposefully mislead buyers into buying things they couldn't afford or mislead them into interest only mortgages. But then, I struggle with this: Whose job is it to educate people on large purchases, or on how to manage their finances? As a parent, I feel that it's my job to teach my child. But, what if you don't have a parent that can or will educate you on finances. Does one have to learn the hard way as I did? Or should there be a high school course on finances (maybe there is) and if there is a course on finances, will it make a difference?
I believe that poor people get charged differently than other people. I can see how people get into a sea of debt just trying to play catch up with the bills. But charging all that money on stuff from QVC, it's difficult for me to have any sympathy for Diane. :(
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