Dear Middle Class:
I don't think you have thought about your ire for the 'poorest of the poor' too thoroughly. Let me enumerate the points that you might have missed.
1. The poor have little to do with the broken system that is taxing you of your income. It is a system offered as a solution by the middle to upper classes to fund society. Sure, they have voted for it, but the upper class and the middle class offer them no other better choices. It is the middle to upper classes that decided to tax income.
2. There is little upward mobility for them. Anecdotes about certain people making the hop from the lower class to classes above do not negate the fact that the vast majority of the poor will remain poor not because they cannot be hardworking but because there is no incentive to be hardworking.
3. It is said that the Philippines is a rich country or that it has lots of natural resources. But where is all this wealth going to? Think about this. It goes to a few private individuals. But to whom should these natural resources belong? Shouldn’t it be everyone? But the returns are not there. Had it been so, you would have been able to feed everyone and provide wealth that everyone could pay for their healthcare. The Philippines is rich enough in natural resources to feed and care for everyone.
4. What is the most useful natural resource to everyone? It is not gold. It is not beaches. It is not coral reefs. It is geographic space - or in other words the land itself. In fact, it is the natural resource that the poor is denied of and whose value the poor is denied of. They are not only unable to access it (forcing them to live in slums) they are also denied of its value (forcing them to beg for dole outs and vote for the next politician handing them a lifeline). But the access to land and therefore its value is their common right as human beings.
5. What then is the solution that would be equitable to everyone? Remove or diminish income taxes, collect the rent of land, streamline government, and use the funds to provide services and/or a UBI to everyone. This is not new. The classical liberals have talked about this centuries ago. Collecting the rent of land has the effect of land being returned to its natural state - common. Has this ever worked? See how much land is privately owned in Singapore or Hong Kong. Most of land is leased/rented with the rent funding government services.
When the poor are not worrying about how to get the basic things needed to survive, they would have more time to spend for upward mobility. Don't beat on them too much.
Sincerely,
A Just Nation
Re: https://www.facebook.com/rodolfo.caparino/posts/2995485123828135
Sincerely,
A Just Nation
Re: https://www.facebook.com/rodolfo.caparino/posts/2995485123828135
