On Poverty

Capitalism sucks, guys. As the reality of college debt begins to sink in, I'm suddenly feeling the injustice of the system in a bitter way. Despite the excitement of being awarded a full-tuition scholarship (in very pretty trimmings, I must admit), the thrill soon wanes as I stare another $14grand in the face with no help from my poor school; they didn't even give us loans. No outside scholarships have yet come through, except National Merit. If I work full time at $8/hr (who knows where...) for the rest of the summer, I'll make about $3200, a frustratingly small amount, but still more than I have. It is thus that I enter the ranks of the working poor. Did I already say capitalism sucks? One thing I ask of you, my friends, particularly those of you who will in a very few years rock the marketplace: Do not forget the poor; never think that everybody's problems would be solved if they just got a job or were more industrious. I was listening to my grandmother talk about the beautiful houses being built around her subsidized apartment complex the other day, and my mother commented that one day her ship might yet come in, she might yet be able to live in one of those homes. To this my grandmother replied that she'd long since stopped waiting for her ship, but her boat (Social Security) comes right on time every month, and thank God for it. This is a horrible ending, but I have to clean my room now. Peace.