Benshir wrote:Luzvimindia wrote:IMHO, the middle class and upper-middle class are the ones in the best position to help solve the problem of our country. They are not as rich as most of the known corrupt bureaucrats and political dynasties but are not too poor to be uneducated. Also, most of the middle class people have a history of coming from poorer circumstances and so they know what it means to truly work hard to become well-off. Unfortunately, the middle class is not very well represented in our society and usually go into business rather than politics. We are stuck in a medieval-type society where there are only two major divisions in society: the rich and the poor, and we all know what happens when that's the case.
That is true, and economics can explain why.
The middles and upper-middles of the country have much more to gain and lose from socio-political and socio-economic issues plaguing the country, and there are many of those to go around. It would be illogical for any political movement that seeks to reform or galvanize the Philippines, to turn to the poor and illiterate of this country. As charming as it is, their immediate interests lie in day-to-day affairs, and their lot is a lot worse than say, the homeless of of more developed countries. They are unable to see past their own plight, which is unfortunate yes, but will definitely not help in forming national policy for the PH.
That we will somehow be able to accommodate them, as a matter of political policy, immediately breaks the economic law of scarcity. To think that we can somehow accommodate all of them or that Keynesian economics is going to bail all of them out of the cycle of poverty is a pipe dream. They are not skilled workers. We've all heard the aspiring politician say that he wants to reach out to the poor - touching, but futile. The answer is in re-calibrating our policies and approach to investments both local and foreign. It's in investments in infrastructure, and in hanging (figuratively speaking) the incompetent buffoons in our government and injecting some fresh blood in, not only with aspirations and all their political agendas but also with a knowledge of economics and political economy. RAGE.
EDIT: I am not hating on the poor. I am just saying that policy grounded on their interests or social welfare catering specifically to their SEC, particularly when there are so many of them, and given our unsustainable population growth and misguided social policies, is only going to drain taxpayers' money and waste a lot of valuable time and resources the government could otherwise redirect to more profitable and beneficial investments.
Well said. I am actually very disappointed whenever I hear in the news that a mayor or a government official decides to give away money to the squatters in the cities. To me that's just allowing them to be EVEN MORE lazy to look for work and to enhance their skills. I mean, why does the money of most of the population go to these people when all they do is clog up our rivers by building homes there and cause security and safety problems for the people who live legally in those areas? They cause traffic jams because they build into the nearby roads, cause floods because they block the river passages, increase crime because they are forced to do illegal things for money and the list goes on and on. And these people are the ones getting all the taxpayers' money? Do they even pay taxes? I highly doubt that since they live on land that is not even theirs so they don't pay as much tax. Also, WHY in the world does the government have to pay for them to leave? They are illegal settlers in the first place. They should be FORCED to leave the city or find a better, legal place to live in.
There is nothing bad about helping the poor but our politicians should be prudent enough and smart enough to know what would really help them and what would not. These squatters are becoming spoiled and the "bahala na" attitude kicks in as a result. Unfortunately, the corrupt politicians take advantage of these people and use them to increase their votes in the elections. I would definitely support a law banning all illegal settlers and those living in a land that they do not pay for legally, to vote in any election. That's one sure way of keeping the corrupt from taking public positions and might just force the squatters to leave. Voting is not a right but a privilege, one that should be denied to anyone living illegally.
I'm sorry for ranting but really, we must all see that, not only is this country run by the corrupt and selfish, but also by the illiterate and the lazy.
