Recently, there has been a lot of news about Dr. Sun, a Fudan prodigy wandering in the United States. WeChat Moments has also been telling about his magical experience. After graduating from the Fudan Junior Class, he went directly to the United States to study and studied all the way to the doctorate, and then stepped into Wall Street to earn an annual salary of one million. But soon after, he encountered Waterloo in his life, suffered emotional damage and mental illness, and became a member of the American street army. Hungry, like the American version of "Les Miserables". Regarding Dr. Sun's experience, some say that he suffered a "porcelain" marriage. Because he couldn't stand the mental blow, he suffered from delusional psychosis and abandoned himself from society. There is also a theory that Dr. Sun became obsessed with gambling after entering Wall Street and flew to Las Vegas every week to gamble. Repeated gambling and losing led to mental abnormalities, and finally had to live on the streets. There are also different voices about Dr. Sun's future. One is to take him back to China to support the elderly, so as to show the tolerance and care of the motherland;The other is to call on Chinese people in the United States to lend a helping hand and help him reintegrate into society. Among them, there are naturally many Internet celebrities who come directly to the door to cut traffic. There are also clear barriers between the supporters and opponents of each viewpoint. Few people care about these arguments,Since Dr. Sun is destitute in the United States, why did he still refuse the kind advice to let him return to China for treatment and retirement?Is it really as Dr. Sun said, because he is ashamed of the motherland and does not want the old man to see sadness?Is there another interpretation hidden in Dr. Sun's story?
I think that when discussing this kind of issue, if we only analyze Dr. Sun's life experience and do not understand the relevant social background, it may be difficult to argue for a while. Although many friends do not live in the United States and Canada, they can see a group of homeless homeless people living in the bustling cities of the United States and Canada from the travel process and **. If you look closely, you will find that most of these homeless people are middle-aged people with "intact" bodies. Yes, there are even people with "overnutrition" obesity. Although their clothes are dirty, shabby, and dirty, it is rare to see mutilated people or children begging in the streets. One can't help but ask,Aren't countries like the United States and Canada developed capitalist countries?Why has the US imperialism, as the leading boss, not completely eradicated poverty until now?
In fact, in reality, the homeless man in the United States is often a kind of personA "lifestyle" of active choice. Yes, many of these homeless people are willing to live such a "bitter" life. They would rather eat the last meal than do the work they can. That feeling of lying on the street and looking at the sky, wanting to suck something, and being unrestrained is what they want most. What the hell is work?Didn't think about it!Sleeping on the streets, they will not only not be driven away by the chengguan, but will also receive all kinds of assistance from ** and social groups. From free food to tent clothing. Every once in a while, there will be a volunteer organization to help them get checked up. If you are willing to participate in the occasional simple manual labor, you can also get cash. So,The disabled, the elderly and the disadvantaged who really need assistance will have a social backing. Most of the people who live on the streets just choose such a life. Of course, there are also some people who have come to the United States specifically to "lie down," and this kind of person should be treated differently. And U.S. law states that homeless people have the right to sleep on the streets, and as long as they don't break other laws, no one can take them. It is even more impossible to be evicted because it disturbs the city's appearance. Even homeless people can have equal dignity!
In North America, New York and Toronto are two large cities that are very close to each other. The land distance in a straight line is only more than 500 kilometers. Equivalent to half a day's drive. The air is even closer. Although the two cities belong to different countries, they are very close in language and lifestyle. Compared to New York, which is full of homeless people, Toronto's situation is much better. It can be said that, with the exception of a few areas of downtown, the vast majority of places barely see a single homeless person in a year. Why is this so?Is it the homeless who loves the United States more?Or is Canada not friendly enough to the homeless?I tell my friends about a more "remote" knowledge:It is the climate that causes this. Although Toronto has a cool summer and pleasant climate, it faces low temperatures of minus twenty or thirty degrees in winter. At such times, even fools do not sleep on park benches. Of course, these people will be provided with warm houses and hot food. But the condition is that the rules are followed. For example, you can't smoke something inexplicable in violation of regulations. But the last thing this group of uncles want is to be managed. So, they will choose New York, which has a better climate, over cold Toronto.
In fact,Among these homeless people, there are not a few people like Dr. Sun. Because in countries like the United States and Canada, credit is a person's most valuable asset. If you have a bad credit history, you can't take out a loan to buy a house or a car. It's hard to rent even if you're renting a house. After the 2008 financial crisis, a large number of Wall Street elites lost their lives. One step to heaven and one step to hell. Some people went crazy, and some became homeless people sleeping on the streets overnight. For these people, it is impossible to find their old job after they have gone bankrupt. Simple manual labor can't be done. Anyway, the debt owed will not be paid off for a lifetime, so I simply won't pay it back. From then on, let go of personal qualities and began to enjoy a life of lack of morality. Of course, I'm not saying that Dr. Sun necessarily had the same experience. But that's not a possibility. Dr. Sun claimed to have been wandering in the United States for 16 years. Wasn't it 2007-2008 16 years ago? ActuallyBehind every tragic story, a certain social reality can be illuminated.
So,Why haven't countries like the United States and Canada completely eradicated poverty until now?Much of this has to do with the definition of poverty. In the U.S., the low-income standard is usually defined by the "federal poverty level" set by **. The federal poverty level is called the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) or Federal Poverty Level (FPL). This line is not divided by an absolute value, but by a division that combines social considerations. For example, in 2023, the FPL standard for a single-person family in the United States is $14,580 a year ($1,215 per month), which is about RMB 103,600. Then there is an increase of $5,140 for each additional person in the family. In the case of a four-person household, for example, the poverty line is $30,000 per year. See attached table.
Anyone who is below this income standard, even if it is poor in the United States, can enjoy a variety of federal and state social welfare assistance. These include medical subsidies, white cards, food stamps, red and blue card subsidies, maternity and child nutrition subsidies, American school lunch programs, children's medical insurance plans, and more. Make sure they have adequate shelter, food, clothing, and health coverage. Don't underestimate these social benefits. In the case of a family of four, the free food stamps distributed each month alone are worth more than $700. The normal food cost of a family of four is about this amount. However, food stamps can only be used to buy food in supermarkets, but cannot be used to buy alcohol, tobacco and luxury foods such as caviar, nor can they be consumed in restaurants.
Of course, this is only the federally set poverty line standard. Each state also adjusts its standards to suit its own realities. For example, Alaska and Hawaii have a much higher standard of living than they do in their home countries, so the poverty line is also much higher. In the United States, poverty is defined as "the lack of living materials owned by the mainstream society and the inability to enjoy the services that the mainstream society is entitled to". And based on this principle, the poverty threshold in the United States was formulated. The specific calculation method is relatively complex, so I will not expand on it. You only need to understand that the United States** will include a certain proportion of the population in poverty every year by calculation. In recent years, it has been about 10% of the total. This leads to:There will always be a certain number of poor people in the United States. Even if they can eat hamburgers, drink milk every day, or even have nothing to do to go on vacation, they are still poor. And this ratio is based on comparison, not a fixed number. At the same time, because income other than cash income, especially welfare benefits, is not included in the calculationSo the number of poor people in the United States is actually magnified. Food stamps and public housing, for example, can raise the standard of living of the poor, but because they do not include equivalency calculations;So the poverty line will not change. This has led to the fact that many Americans would rather be a homeless man than work. Some people even love this wandering life of eating and waiting for death for ten minutes. When they get tired of playing, they can also return to normal society. Anyway, there are social organizations that are willing to help them find a job that is enough to support themselves. It cannot but be said that US imperialism is still far from fulfilling its historical mission in poverty eradication, and there is still a long way to go
Speaking of which, I may answer some of my friends' questions. Why Dr. Sun can live on the streets of the United States for 16 years and still be unharmed. There is no lack of this and that, nor has it been driven out and abused as a low-end populationAnyway,Dr. Sun's situation can be described as despairing, but it is far from the misery, pain and despair that some netizens have said. And Dr. Sun himself did not use misery to win sympathy, earn traffic, or cut patriotic vegetables. That alone deserves respect.
Recently, I heard that Dr. Sun has been properly housed with the help of volunteers. He also said that he would restart his life. While congratulating Dr. Sun, I also hope that more eyes can be cast on those who are not doctors, not genius teenagers, but who also need social tolerance and assistance. In an era when human beings have entered modern civilization, they need to be treated equally and with equal dignity.
Because,
A good society must be good to all!