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> There are almost 47 million people living in poverty in the US

Look at the definition of poverty and you'll agree it's certainly a form of poverty, but again compared to the majority of the planet doesn't really cut it.

Living paycheck to paycheck is generally an unfortunate choice or lack of education, but the point remains that there's a paycheck.

And I can certainly agree that the culture of credit/debt isn't the best.

> Just because the average American has it much better than the average African doesn't mean their situation is necessarily very good.

I completely agree, it's not good at all. I think this underlies my point at the beginning that we need to give even if we don't have $45B. Our ability to generate the paycheck or our ownership of assets on average outstretches the vast majority of the planet.




> Look at the definition of poverty and you'll agree it's certainly a form of poverty, but again compared to the majority of the planet doesn't really cut it.

Poverty is defined along a spectrum, not relative to some kind of global nadir.

> Living paycheck to paycheck is generally an unfortunate choice or lack of education, but the point remains that there's a paycheck.

You're misrepresenting the situation by arguing it's a lifestyle choice. When you're poor it's very hard to save much of anything. Housing, transportation and food can quickly eat up most of a weekly paycheque.

> Our ability to generate the paycheck or our ownership of assets on average outstretches the vast majority of the planet.

Nobody is arguing the US the is place to be if you have money. The point I'm trying to spell out for you is that the averages you discuss are massively skewed by huge inequality. America's middle class are no longer the world's richest and they are shrinking in number. More, America is increasingly opting for a a system of governance that is leaving more and more people behind, especially its most vulnerable.


Americans are the most charitable people on earth.

So you don't really have a point.


If you read up you'll see the attitude I was responding to was contrary to that of charity.


So are you commentating on attitude, or on people's actual real world efforts towards charitable giving?


Saying that "He's rich he can give a lot. I'll give when I get rich."

When in fact the OP is already in a position to give, he just needs some perspective.




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