Why can't humanity take care of others?

[JesterFace]

On this planet there's poverty and somewhere else more wealth than anyone ever needs.
Why are some people starving and some have more wealth they can ever use?
I'm tired of bad news around the world and then somewhere there's a list of wealhiest people on the planet.
Why can't those gazillionaires share?
Is it greed?
If there's a reality show called "Planet Earth" on some other planet I'm almost embarrassed to be a human beign.
And I'm one of the lucky ones being born into a working society.

 

[Phil123]

There is greed in there, but I also there there is apathy and a feeling of helplessness to really change anything.

 

[fireproof78]

There is greed in there, but I also there there is apathy and a feeling of helplessness to really change anything.

Agreed. Many people see it but feel powerless in the face of the largeness of the problem. Others feel helpless and traumatized at not getting their own needs met when they were younger so they feel the need to get more to satiate anxiety. There was a whole book I read recently about how poverty impacts the mindset around money, especially when growing up in poverty.

 

[JD]

And then you also have the clueless asshole rich people out there who think that poor people just don't try hard enough or are choosing to be poor.
And I do think there are quite a few people with money who do try to help, but even they can only do so much with such a massive problem. I would like to think that these decent people outnumber the clueless assholes, but sometimes I'm not so sure.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Cause most people don't have the power to, and the process to attain the power to favors the people who don't want to.

 

[Phil123]

I'd also say there is a difference between pure greed and prioritising one's self and family. There are some greedy, terrible people out there but a lot of people are existing in a flawed system as best they can. I'm not saying it's right necessarily (that's another debate) but we probably nearly all perpetuate an unfair system just to get by or protect our loved ones.

Is it fair if one parent can afford extra tutoring for their child and another can't? No, but it's totally understandable that the more affluent parent wants to give their child an advantage to do well in this unfair world.

You could come up with any number of examples like this. Because the issues are so systemic we are (nearly) all complicit even if we'd rather not be. Do you know how everyone who made your clothes were treated? What about your iPhone or PC?

Watch the Good Place in you haven't! It explores this in later seasons with humour but wonderfully.

 

[Kor]

Even then world's "stingiest billionaires" donate hundreds of millions of dollars to charities each year. And the more generous ones donate billions. Sure, it may be a small percentage of their net worth, so doesn't seem to involve any real personal sacrifice or make a dent on their lifestyles. And some may be doing it mainly to look good in the eyes of the public (I really don't like to speculate on/criticize people's motives for doing good things, though). But in terms of sheer numbers it's much, much more than I could ever hope to give personally.

Kor

 

[JesterFace]

I recently watched movie 'Elysium' taking place in the year 2154 where the wealthy live in orbit with luxury and the not so wealthy live on filthy Earth with almost nothing. It was kind of reminder of how Earth is today. Perhaps the biggest thing that caught my attention was how sick or injured people were treated. For a wealthy person, no problem. Someone with little money, they're on their own.

 

[JD]

Even then world's "stingiest billionaires" donate hundreds of millions of dollars to charities each year. And the more generous ones donate billions. Sure, it may be a small percentage of their net worth, so doesn't seem to involve any real personal sacrifice or make a dent on their lifestyles. And some may be doing it mainly to look good in the eyes of the public (I really don't like to speculate on/criticize people's motives for doing good things, though). But in terms of sheer numbers it's much, much more than I could ever hope to give personally.

Kor

My mom told me this morning that Elon Musk donated several billion $$$ to help fight world hunger.
With the way taxes and things work, at least here in the US, when you have the kind of money that people like him, Jeff Bezos, and Bill Gates have, you almost have to give at least some of it to charity.

 

[Velocity]

It's easy to think the worst of people, but I know many in this town who volunteer to cook and serve food to indigents and other poor people with no expected reward. They just do what needs to be done because it's the right thing to do and because they care. Some people help dig wells to provide water to places in Africa who have little to no access. I believe there are many people who help, but they are unsung heroes for the most part.
Instead of focusing on those who aren't helping, we should focus on what we can do.

 

[Mrs. Silvercrest]

Good Question!
I get down about many things I see and hear about in this world.
I think about all the things I can't do anything about.
And think about things no one wants to do anything about.
I like to think Star Trek the good things about it could be real, it makes me feel better.
Do I really believe it? I don't know.
When I feel this way though, I try to do something nice for someone.
Like call a friend or family member just to see how they are
or donate pet food to the canned food bin at the store.
I really love animals and that makes me feel like
I did something.
People are great things we are. We just have to have someone tell us that every once in a while and we do get together and do the most thoughtful and amazing things. I have seen it. It just takes a spark and off they go. It is amazing to see.
Maybe some day...many things can be different, we just have to do what we can.

 

[fireproof78]

I think it comes down to fear. Fear that if we give away that our needs won't be met. Fear that people will take advantage of generosity. Fear of not being able to do enough. Just out and out scared that personal needs won't be met. More I study humanity the more I realize a lot of our struggles come from reactivity and fear.

 

[scotpens]

Even then world's "stingiest billionaires" donate hundreds of millions of dollars to charities each year.

They also own or invest in businesses that keep millions of people gainfully employed.

 

[dupersuper]

They also own or invest in businesses that keep millions of people gainfully employed.

Well, often less gainfully and more technically...

 

[Starbreaker]

The richest 1% of the population own half of the world's wealth or more. The driving force is to make money than anyone in their entire lineage can ever spend and then die. Most politicians don't give a crap about their constituents. It's only going to get worse.

 

[Oddish]

Problem is, there's only so much people in wealthy lands can do to aid those in poor ones, because of the systems in place that made them poor. In Somalia in 1993, there was brutal, systemic starvation of the population going on. The US tried to help, and the result was, among other things, the movie "Blackhawk Down".

On a smaller scale, I live in an area with among the best services for the homeless anywhere in the US. And yet I still see people by the side of the road with signs, and every time, because if the opioid crisis, it's a decision. Am I giving this person money for food or shelter... or am I helping them destroy themselves, and financing a poison peddler?

So, in general, I donate money to either my church or reputable charities, and let them decide where it goes.

 

[Non Sync]

We can't take care of ourselves.

 

[Oddish]

Not far from true. If the power grid got knocked out, basically putting us back in the 1870's... some of us would survive. But not very many.

That's why I consider Kirk's actions at the end of "Spock's Brain" to be virtual genocide... turning people who lived in a tech society into essentially cavemen rarely ends well.

 

[publiusr]

The one person who did more in terms of feeding the world was the man talked about here:
https://agrilifetoday.tamu.edu/2020/10/16/the-borlaug-legacy-helping-feed-the-world/

Now, today’s harvests rely heavily on his method, though it was meant as a stop gap and often fossil water intensive. Solve on problem and you create others. But people are working behind the scenes, even if—like Borlaug—they don’t get a lot of press.

 

[Oddish]

Another problem, internationally, is the simple matter of overpopulation. There are two ways for human population to be limited. One involves finding a way (rhythm, abstinence, some sort of product, whatever) to manage the number of people... the other is to let Mother Nature do it. And you see the latter in those pictures of starving kids in the World Vision catalog.

Unfortunately, this is not a problem we can solve for people in other countries. Given the status women have in many of them, they generally don't have access to birth control, and often don't get to refuse sex. And so the problem self-perpetuates.