Miss Isness
Jedi Master
I've been looking for more signs of the economic downturn in the U.S. since I saw the BBC video of the homeless camp in Southern California. This article really brings home the sad truth. The woman is 67 years old (The retirement age used to be 65, remember?), has raised three children, is still working part-time, and can't even afford a roof over her head aside from her car, and she's not the only one.
I had to do the same for just a few days once, when I was in my 20's, and even at that age it was demoralizing. My family wouldn't help me either, something that's verrry difficult for Italians to understand. I was also unable to afford enough to eat, confining myself to a small bowl of soup and a piece of bread for one meal a day. I was working full-time and going to university. Needless to say, I got sick and eventually had to stop going to university about 6 months short of my degree. I felt like an outcast. Now it seems like it's becoming quite a common experience.
The worst part was that the people who supposedly cared about me, couldn't be bothered despite the fact that they were in the position to help. I was made to believe that it was my fault, and they were justified for ignoring me. At the time (in the early 80's), it was kind of an unusual experience for someone coming from a white upper - middle class family.
It's shocking how easy it is for people to blame the victims of economic warfare, just to avoid sharing what they can easily spare. I wish there was more coverage on what's really going on. It doesn't seem like people in my corner of the world know much about it. Unbelievably, many Italians still dream about moving to the U.S..
I had to do the same for just a few days once, when I was in my 20's, and even at that age it was demoralizing. My family wouldn't help me either, something that's verrry difficult for Italians to understand. I was also unable to afford enough to eat, confining myself to a small bowl of soup and a piece of bread for one meal a day. I was working full-time and going to university. Needless to say, I got sick and eventually had to stop going to university about 6 months short of my degree. I felt like an outcast. Now it seems like it's becoming quite a common experience.
The worst part was that the people who supposedly cared about me, couldn't be bothered despite the fact that they were in the position to help. I was made to believe that it was my fault, and they were justified for ignoring me. At the time (in the early 80's), it was kind of an unusual experience for someone coming from a white upper - middle class family.
It's shocking how easy it is for people to blame the victims of economic warfare, just to avoid sharing what they can easily spare. I wish there was more coverage on what's really going on. It doesn't seem like people in my corner of the world know much about it. Unbelievably, many Italians still dream about moving to the U.S..
