Third world countries are thriving with poverty stricken families and individuals. The article "Live Free and Starve" by Chitra Divakaruni focuses on relieving poverty but offering programs to help keep children and families off the streets, getting them real jobs, and giving them a bright future to look forward to. There was a bill passed by the House of Representatives stating the United States would not be importing any goods from factories in countries with child labor laws. Most third world countries do have some sort of child labor laws or poor working conditions, that America may not agree with, but until America can make its own goods, either the citizens learn to live without them or learn to accept other countries have their standards for working conditions and we have ours. If the Senate and the President sign this bill almost a million children will be jobless, resulting in their families' already shaky finances to plummet even more. "[The children] aren't even allowed to stand up and stretch. Each time they go to the bathroom, they suffer a pay cut," (530). These children are working to help support their families and they know that if going to the bathroom means a pay cut, then they will make sure they do not go. The children are often not even feed enough or hydrated enough to even have the urge to go the the bathroom. These children are often sold at the age of 5 or 6 and are too young to fight back from abuse, and these children are then found begging on the streets for food, clothing, water, and shelter. When they become desperate to survive they steal crops that are not ready to be eaten, knowing they will be beaten if caught. They live in a very grown up world, thrown into a job and caring for themselves at an extremely young age. The next article, "The Singer Solution to World Poverty" by Peter Singer focuses on people who spend large sums of money on a lavish lifestyles, when they could be donating to oversea relief programs to save children's lives. "Whatever money you're spending on luxuries, not necessities, should be given away," (539). Singer is advocating for people to stop spending money on lavish lifestyles and send it to agencies to help the starving children, but how can the people sending in the money be so sure it will make it to the children? Singer claims the money will get there, but if it does, will some cruel slave owner take the money and use it for his personal gain? There are a lot of gray areas when sending money overseas to help children. I am not advocating for people not to, it just makes it difficult to believe in a something when there are so many unanswered questions.
My heart does go out to child in need. ASPCA commercials make my cry, and it would be a lie if i did not say I have a soft spot or bias toward children in need. Both of these articles prove that Americans really do not know how great they have it. Children are starving, being beaten, and being sold for money. Singer does put all the blame on people who live lavish lifestyles but when one is not physically there to hand one's money over to a relief organization, one typically does not. One person can make a difference in a child's life, but will that difference even amount to something? The child may live another year or two but may never make it off the street. That is why I would have to stand in favor of Divakaruni's article. To prevent the current situations in third world countries, there needs to be programs to help people get on the right track. Educational options, shelters, and job security need to available to actually help these people.
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