The Idealist Summary

Another project that was mentioned was, the irrigation systems in India and a bedding net manufacturer in Africa. Novogratz’s motivation to change the world, started when she was young. She wrote about who assembles, who engages, and the insightful stories about her journey toward effective philanthropy. When traveling in Africa in her 20s, she see a boy wearing a cherished blue wool sweater she had donated to Goodwill 11 years earlier.

In the essay, “Lifeboat Ethics: The Case Against Helping The Poor,” Garret Hardin addresses the weakness of our current society with the long pondered questions of “who gets to live the happy life,” and if so, “why are others born just fated to suffer?” These questions reveal to readers how “bias/corrupt” society has become, especially in global affairs. If one really checks under the radar of international activities it is easy to see how skewed the worldwide trade system is towards lining the pockets of those in power. The rich only get richer while the poor are exploited and destitute. People have long condemned such discrimination/manipulation of those of apparent “weaker and or vulnerable” members of society. Yet, at the same time, the

    In her writing, George examines how certain organizations, such as the “Habitat for Humanity” that aim to eliminate poverty may be working against themselves by the way they choose to show the problem. The visual representation that the organization gives reflect the understanding that most Americans have when it comes to what poverty really is. Showing the typical shacks, dirt, and black and white photos will alter a person’s mindset on poverty and cause them to not be able to recognize themselves in that situation. In reality, the poverty in countries like Africa are no different than the poverty we have in America. Georges writing gives examples of how Americans within our society are not motivated to help people as compared to other countries. All the sources she uses in her analysis are representing

As a main point of her argument, she argues that poverty is generally stereotyped into the poverty that would only be seen in Africa, or another third world country. To support this, she establishes a sense of ethos for her readers by citing other individuals that have also noticed the poverty representation gap. Seeing that poverty is a complex issue to begin with, George addresses this complexity by simply suggesting that it should be represented as such in the media. Nonprofit charities may now have to reconsider their

Application of the same example to a more global perspective of poverty, if we can reduce avoidable death of 400 million people

Jan Narveson 's Moral Matters plays an important, if controversial role in the field of applied ethics. Narveson 's unique, contractarian approach analyzes ideas as diverse as suicide, abortion, sexual ethics and affirmative action. Amongst the more contentious aspects of the thoughts expressed in the book is his view of global poverty. Narveson extends foundationalist, anarcho-capitalist approach to this issue; arguing that while charity is morally virtuous, there is no moral obligation on the part of the global rich or developed nation to alleviate the global poor from their precarious position. He also argues that by continuing free trade, enough economic growth will occur to relieve the global poor regardless. *This essay will elaborate on Narveson 's position on global povery and criticize said position in the following aspects; *it 's counter intuitiveness*, *descent into skepticism or relativism* and a failure to account for the interconnectivity found in global financial institutions, *capitalism* and climate change.

Based on the article “Changing the Face of Poverty” the issue that Diana George is responding to is poverty and its representation in the world. George first discusses how the nonprofit organization Habitat for Humanity tries to eliminate poverty by constructing houses for Americans who are suffering because of poverty. However, she states that the images which the nonprofit organization uses are pictures that try to “evoke the desire to give or to act, so that the benefactors don’t turn away” (George 240). These pictures may not completely depict all people who are suffering from poverty.

Here, William F. Buckley Jr. sends a warning: that idealism itself is fine, but idealism which threatens reality can have prohibitive consequences. W.D. Valgardson’s short story, The Novice, shows a sailor reflecting on his life, and his fate, as he and what’s left of his crew wade in Alberta’s Lake Narrows, waiting for sunrise. In WD Valgardson’s, The Novice the reader should come to the realization that idealism may be dangerous when it skews the truth, but that it is ultimately necessary in the face of misfortune, so one may maintain hope in the face of challenging obstacles.

The American dream is threatened by the widening gap of wealth distribution, in which the few at the top accumulates 75 times the wealth of those at the bottom (Kochhar and Cilluffo). The ultimate consequence of this nightmare is perhaps the nascent inequalities in America. In the New York Times op-ed column, David Brooks advocated for assertion of acceptance and unity among Americans and the imposition of rehabilitative judicial system, so that the “have not” Americans will successfully join their “have” counterparts. Brooks’ idealism of a more understanding, cohesive, and equal America remains, at large, mere optimism in a hierarchal society, where the finish line is predestined for only a few.

Hardin informs us that the well- intentioned of helping is actually counterproductive. When the United States gives international aid to third world countries, we cause more suffering in the end. The poor country that receives aid is not growing wealthy or

In order to construct a meaningful definition of humanity, we must redefine the definitions that have been previously taught, and focus on what humanity is no; by doing this we can improve humanity and create new definitions that relate better to the world we live in today.. Of the many aspects humans acquire that separates us from basic animals, is our ability to empathise with one another. However, empathy is useless unless we are telling the truth. Removing general stereotypes adopted and repeated by shallow societies, and eliminating "the Dream”, as Coates references it, is very important when dealing with such a complex issue as poverty and attempting to solve a human rights issue such as poverty.

2. Become a leading authority on poverty and agree that everyone else should ‘Feed the World’.

Within “Famine, Affluence, and Morality” Peter Singer delves into the topic of famine; specifically, the moral obligations individuals in affluent countries have to those who are suffering. In his example, Singer focuses on the population of East Bengal, and their struggle with famine and extreme poverty. Singer proposes that with enough aid from both individuals and various governments extreme poverty can be eradicated. Therefore, the question he presents is why poor people are dying while affluent people are spending excess money on luxuries? Singer argues that affluent people, living in affluent countries, are not helping developing countries by failing to give enough to alleviate extreme poverty.

With nearly half of the world’s population living on less than $2.50 a day, poverty is clearly one of the biggest issues in our society today. The real question is, is it even possible to fully abolish poverty? We live in a world that relies so heavily on cheap labor and manufactured goods, that it is hard to imagine what it would be like if we didn’t have these impoverished people filling these critical, yet unwanted, roles in our society. Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo tells the stories of the intertwining lives of the poverty stricken slum of Annawadi, in the booming metropolis of Mumbai, India. Through the lives of Zehrunisa, Karam, and Abdul, a family struggling to climb out of poverty, Asha the slumlord and her daughter

Unfortunately, it was estimated that roughly 1.2 billion people in 1993 lived in extreme or absolute poverty, that which Robert McNamara regards “‘a condition of life so characterized by malnutrition, illiteracy, disease, squalid surroundings, high infant mortality and low life expectancy as to be beneath any reasonable standard of human dignity’” (Singer 219, 220). These estimates can be projected at nearly 2 billion today. A large majority of the people living in absolute poverty resides in underdeveloped countries. Among the nearly 4.4 billion people in these countries, “3/5 lives in societies lacking basic sanitation; 1/3 go without safe drinking water; 1/4 lack adequate housing; 1/5 are undernourished, and 1.3 billion live on less than $1 a day” (Speth 1).