A Paradox of Plenty; Hunger in America

Here is, in my view, is an excellent discussion by Bernd Debusmann on USA today. He discusses the obscene distribution of wealth that has created a true third world dichotomy within USA. Well worth a read.

But equally w ell worth the read is a comment by one of his readers which really got to me. Wondering what you think;

"I live in one of the poorest major cities in America, Cleveland Ohio. Admittedly, I’m a middle-class American with no fear of hunger (unless I get down-sized, which is always a scary possibility in America) at the moment. However, I think the notion that 1 in 6 Americans is “hungry” is exaggerated. Hunger is a serious issue for many of the poorest Americans, true. However, many of the Americans claiming difficult with their food supply have little problem paying their cell phone bill, high-speed internet, cable TV subscription (with movie channels), iTunes charges, and other personal media monthly payments that account for as much as 20% of the average American’s budget. Like another person said, most of the people I see in lower-income sections of the city I live in are overweight, chatting on their cell phones, buying cigarettes and alcohol (both of which are extremely expensive here), and driving new cars (complete with GPS). The problem is America is not lack of food…it is lack of education, rampant consumerism, our fear-mongering news media, and a government more interested in “right vs. left” politics that actual solving our countries ills. Americans consider food and basic necessities to be “extras” in their budget. My own sister needs to borrow money from my parents to buy groceries, after she has already paid her expensive rent, SUV payment, and assortment of extra monthly expenses. The newest flat-screen TV, cell phone model, and MP3 players are the American “bread and butter” today. All of which require ridiculously high monthly payments. I won’t even get into the American obsession with credit card debt, which takes up another giant slice of the average American’s food budget! Until the bread-and-circus culture of America ceases to dazzle the uneducated masses, our country will continue to appear to be a “paradox of plenty”.