Have we no shame?? And where to draw our own lines...

**I wrote this post before the flooding in New England took place - obviously the winds and initial impact of the storm was not the concern - I stand fully corrected that this was a pretty major disaster - but still think there is a LOT to be thankful for - our infrastructure will prevail and ALREADY DID prevail in successful evacuations saving the lives of so many people**

I was honestly embarrassed by the amount of press that Hurricane Irene received. Even some of my friends on the east coast enduring the storm were flabbergasted that the Hurricane received 24/7 coverage. Yes, it was a very large storm, yes there is damage, yes people died - but in the grand scheme of things, this is not world news. The infrastructure in the US is so solid that the damage will be easily repaired, people (if they even lost power) will not be without it long, and this will not do long-term damage to our society. (See my newer post for a correction on the damage of Irene)

Think of Haiti - that was devastation - that was world news.

The flooding in the midwest earlier this summer - that was devastating - and barely made a wrinkle in the news.

Sometimes I feel the US is SOOO spoiled that we forget how lucky we are that everyone has power practically all of the time. Our poor, yes, they struggle, yes their lives are difficult - but there is government support, food stamps, shelter - at minimum. The poorest 10% of Americans live better than hundreds of millions of people around the world.

"Most of America's "poor" live in material conditions that would be judged as comfortable or welloff just a few generations ago. Today, the expenditures per person of the lowestincome onefifth (or quintile) of households equal those of the median American household in the early 1970s, after adjusting for inflation. (http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2004/01/understanding-poverty-in-america)"

Don't get me wrong - the economy in the US and the need for more jobs is critical. In fact "A recent NPR report states that as much as 30% of Americans have trouble making ends meet and other advocates have made supporting claims that the rate of actual poverty in the US is far higher than that calculated by using the poverty threshold. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_the_United_States)" And health care - let me not even get started about that... We should always be trying to improve our country. But let's be realistic about what is life critical.

To put America into perspective - look at the graph shown on the following blog: http://tenthingsithink.com/2011/02/08/the-poorest-americans-and-the-richest-indians/

"How can there be so many people in the world who make less than America’s poorest, many of whom make nothing each year? Remember that were looking at the entire bottom chunk of Americans, some of whom make as much as $6,700; that may be extremely poor by American standards, but that amounts to a relatively good standard of living in India, where about a quarter of the population lives on $1 a day."

So here I am in Africa - enjoying the fact that my room is cleaned for me every day, tea is laid out in the department every day, I don't have to worry about the 'little things'. Why am I so spoiled here? Because it is so inexpensive to hire workers. There are so many people who need work that the pay for workers is ridiculously low.

Patience, the cleaning lady in the physics department at UCT has worked there solid and full time for 11 years. She lives in the slums. Slums. As in make-shift shacks, electricity often hand-spliced and run to different shacks, water not in all dwellings. I hope her home is one of the nicer ones - one that is built of solid brick and has plumbing and electric - but they are the vast minority in the ~500,000 person slum in which she lives. MY cleaning lady in Oregon has a nice car, provides her daughter with a solid education, and lives a middle-class lifestyle compared to Americans.

I am always torn when I am here. I have the means to enjoy luxuries and live comfortably. I appreciate not needing to worry about cleaning and cooking - it is in part why I can accomplish so much work when I visit here. But I hate knowing that my TIP for the taxi driver (that I think nothing of) is more than the cost of the city bus that the middle-class here can afford to take - overcrowded and sometimes unsafe because of accidents. Middle-class is hard to define, even. If you discount the slums, Cape Town is largely modern and affluent. But the slums hold a sizable fraction of the population. Only 38% of the population has at least a high school education and the MEDIAN (not average, but middle) income is just over $3000 per year. It's not cheep to live here - going out to eat costs a bit less than in the US, but not much. Housing costs are similar to the US - in fact it is not easy for a new faculty member to afford a house.

I go to Kirstenbosch and enjoy the gardens, and spend $20 on a nice lunch. That's expensive. Even for me. I look around and see an elite group and tourists. No ethnic diversity, no sign even that an average city dweller is there. Yet I enjoy going there because I can lay in the grass in the sun and feel completely safe - knowing that everyone inside the gardens is probably richer than I am so I won't be robbed! It is one of the most beautiful botanical gardens in the world. But I LONG to see it free to the public, free for all people, and safe for everyone to enjoy.

How fortunate we are in the US that places like Central Park are free enjoyed by all cross sections of the population? How fortunate are we that it is a 'crisis' that a storm might cause us to go without power for a few hours? How fortunate are we that a 'historically devastating' Hurricane will not impact our infrastructure more than for a few days?

And what of Patience, the cleaning lady? Oh so many people I know that would make any number of excuses not to take her in. It would be awkward to share the bathroom, there is only a couch for her to sleep on, one doesn't want to share private space, it will be inconvenient, one can't trust her... Bullshit. Seriously. Bullshit. I have more space, comfort, food, and more than I need - by a large margin. I don't have to 'give' anything to her - I only have to treat her as a friend, as someone who is respectable and human and therefore equal. She no more deserves to sleep on the floor in the department to preserve her safety while refusing to go on strike than anyone. She is a mother, a worker, a friend to many. She may not be someone I know well, but she is valued by many.

One thing I always try to remember when traveling abroad is that humans have dignity and if there is a practice which a culture engages in, it is done with dignity. (with some exception not limited to under developed locations!!) If someone has a different level of comfort and living, they have a way to make it safe and effective - if it can work for them it can work for me. Human dignity, decency, respect. Sometimes we all need to drink a dose of this. We are all equals.

Am I doing the right things? No. I could live more modestly, donate more, help people more. Absolutely. We all need to draw our own lines and find a balance between how we are comfortable living including ethical decisions. Will I continue to visit Kirstenbosch? Yes - it is lovely. But I will have mixed feelings about being there. I will always try to do good - but I will always know that there is more I COULD do. Awareness is something of value, at least. Remembering my relative place in the world is critical.

The minor troubles of mine shall NOT overshadow the major troubles of my fellow human. This is my goal.