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The very nature and origin of the word ghetto was a temporary place for Jews, IMO people (humans) are not suited to live in close proximity with other (humans) people that they don't share; familial, communal or tribal bonds with. A ghetto is an unatural setting for permanent habitation.
Not to be nit-picky, but I think that you are referring more to project and tenement buildings, or even low-income apartment buildings. However, many inner city "ghettos" are just middle and working class neighborhoods of the '60's that (for various reasons) fell into disrepair, neglect, crime, and blight. I agree in that I don't think project buildings are fit for human habitation. But, with a certain amount of effort, i think many crime infested communities can be turned around and returned to their former glory (and still keep many of their residents).
In Atlanta, there are inner-city neighborhoods that people wouldn't step foot in 10 to 15 years ago, that are now that now some of the desirable areas in town. They didn't raze the whole area. They just bought some of the existing property, cleaned it up and then started a snow-ball effect. However, it took various initiatives, all with overlapping objectives, but all looking to improve a particular area and make it habitable again... (without kicking out the original residents).
I totally agree. But isn't this in direct opposition to this quote you said earlier:
"The solution to our American "ghetto problem" is NOT going to come from outside the ghettos - neither geographically or racially. Those in the ghetto have to want to get out, just as an alcoholic wants to stop drinking."
No, it's not in direct opposition to my earlier comment.
My comment is about people who want to live elsewhere and pontificate about the ghetto areas - specifically wealthy white suburbanites who wring their hands and cluck their tongues about said ghettos.
Racially diverse people in ghetto areas will not respond positively to that. It's like some city kid telling a farmer how to do his job.
In addition, I was earlier talking about the PEOPLE in ghetto areas. You're primarily talking about people moving in, buying properties and fixing up neighborhoods. Though those two things overlap, they're not the same.
Not to be nit-picky, but I think that you are referring more to project and tenement buildings, or even low-income apartment buildings. However, many inner city "ghettos" are just middle and working class neighborhoods of the '60's that (for various reasons) fell into disrepair, neglect, crime, and blight. I agree in that I don't think project buildings are fit for human habitation. But, with a certain amount of effort, i think many crime infested communities can be turned around and returned to their former glory (and still keep many of their residents).
In Atlanta, there are inner-city neighborhoods that people wouldn't step foot in 10 to 15 years ago, that are now that now some of the desirable areas in town. They didn't raze the whole area. They just bought some of the existing property, cleaned it up and then started a snow-ball effect. However, it took various initiatives, all with overlapping objectives, but all looking to improve a particular area and make it habitable again... (without kicking out the original residents).
That is a BIG part of what is necessary. What would happen if, for instance, every vacant house in some blighted area was sold with a "no property tax for 5 years" guarantee?
There probably has to be more than just Good Samaritan motivation to drive such neighborhood revitalizations.
We cannot help the people in the ghettos, or the ghettos.
The help has to come from within. Organize, unify and vote in representatives that will help the ghetto, then get off your tail and volunteer, help, etc. But many will say "that's not part of the black experience". Change perception, change the experience, be positive.
If you want someone to get out of poverty, give them an education. So if you want someone to get an education, make it visibly rewarding. And here's how:
In the projects, getting an education is among the most aspirations that is looked down upon. This comes from all parts of a lower-income inhabitants, the old people, the middle-aged people, and especially the young people. Some kids who want an education even face physical threats, let alone verbal and social threats from their peers.
So the main solution is for the people in the projects is to get an education, but not just talk-the-talk, do the walk. Have families exalt their smartest and most successful youth to a highly honorable status while at the same time, rebuke, shame, and even banish slackers and troublemakers from their family. Have peers to praise their educated and dishonor their slackers; this ranges from embracing the most smart individuals in social cliques, not seeing intelligence as something "corny," "lame," or "white," and not just using them to help you with your homework. But the most important thing to this is a young female's response. Young females in the hood reward anti-social behavior en masse, and this causes many young males to perpetuate such behavior for impressing their opposite sex if nothing else. To give an example, who gets the most @ss in the hood? Who gets the most attention from chicks? (and BTW, this attention isn't just from hoodrat broads). Compare that to an inverse example in Asian communities, where their females at a young age embrace their nerdy and geeky male counterparts in all kinds of way, from platonic to sexual! This is what a lot of people in the ghetto (and honestly, this is what blacks females in general need to do in insurmountable numbers) to reverse the effects of not only of the recent catastrophe in the black community, but the effects of centuries of atrocities, lower the number of single-parent households, and increase the number of married black women.
B*tching about others not compensating for centuries of oppression has done nothing, so what is there to lose? And think about this: Once these steps are taken, especially the change of attraction in black females, when success is reached, you don't have to answer to nor thank anyone else for your success!
If you want someone to get out of poverty, give them an education. So if you want someone to get an education, make it visibly rewarding. And here's how:
In the projects, getting an education is among the most aspirations that is looked down upon. This comes from all parts of a lower-income inhabitants, the old people, the middle-aged people, and especially the young people. Some kids who want an education even face physical threats, let alone verbal and social threats from their peers.
So the main solution is for the people in the projects is to get an education, but not just talk-the-talk, do the walk. Have families exalt their smartest and most successful youth to a highly honorable status while at the same time, rebuke, shame, and even banish slackers and troublemakers from their family. Have peers to praise their educated and dishonor their slackers; this ranges from embracing the most smart individuals in social cliques, not seeing intelligence as something "corny," "lame," or "white," and not just using them to help you with your homework. But the most important thing to this is a young female's response. Young females in the hood reward anti-social behavior en masse, and this causes many young males to perpetuate such behavior for impressing their opposite sex if nothing else. To give an example, who gets the most @ss in the hood? Who gets the most attention from chicks? (and BTW, this attention isn't just from hoodrat broads). Compare that to an inverse example in Asian communities, where their females at a young age embrace their nerdy and geeky male counterparts in all kinds of way, from platonic to sexual! This is what a lot of people in the ghetto (and honestly, this is what blacks females in general need to do in insurmountable numbers) to reverse the effects of not only of the recent catastrophe in the black community, but the effects of centuries of atrocities, lower the number of single-parent households, and increase the number of married black women.
B*tching about others not compensating for centuries of oppression has done nothing, so what is there to lose? And think about this: Once these steps are taken, especially the change of attraction in black females, when success is reached, you don't have to answer to nor thank anyone else for your success!
So what happens now since our planet is overpopulated with human beings... which is the main reason our world is undergoing an economic recession. And it means the US and our planet doesn't have enough decent jobs to go around. So in these challenging economic times, where the US unemployment rate is so high and people collecting unemployment can't find a job in their field after two or more years... how can we guarantee the poor and in ghettos the economic incentive to become educated?
In my Chinese culture and in my stepdad's WASP culture, getting well educated was just part of becoming a functioning well rounded human adult being. Getting rewarded financially was just a perk of a good education. But the main focus was really having the joy of having knowledge and being able to appreciate the fruits of civilization. Even when my parents, friends or myself have been going to trying personal times, we could still feel good after reading a classic novel, a walk through a museum or arboretum.
I think that it is a mistake to emphasize the financial rewards of a good education to those that are in the ghettoes. I think where our current society is failing is that so many people are driven by the desire for wealth and the power to buy luxury items. Being wealthy is not the only definition of a successful human being. Our value system is very screwed up imo.
On the other hand, I am also frustrated with religious people that think their god-given purpose in life is to create more human beings. Our planet being so overpopulated with human beings is also ruining our collective quality of life.
For whatever reason the America has a poverty cycle that is very tough to break.I personally believe that these would really help solve the problem:
1. Every student with a 3.5 or so GPA, and decent SAT scores should recieve free tuition at a state university no matter your income. IMO, education should be a right(as long as you earn it), not a commodity(same with healthcare).
2. We need to completely change our public schools. IMO, we need all schools to be sort of charter-like. Rather than students going to their neighborhood school, schools throughout the area should compete to get highly qualified students similar to how our colleges work. IMO, this would make our public schools better because they have accountability, and need to compete w/ other schools or parents won't send their kids there. It would also create a system that no matter where you live you can get a good education, and I believe a huge problem is that all of the low-income students go to the same schools which creates the poverty cycle(and things such as being called too-white). It would be much better for schools to have a diverse group of students from different backgrounds. As a side note this also may help our society because people won't only move to certain areas because of schools, which happens a lot. Maybe families will start to move back to the cities.
3. We need to legalize drugs. So many lower-class people strive to be drug-dealers. This would not be realistic if they were legalized. The whole gang-culture is centered around underground drug trade.
Sorry for my rant, but I have strong opinions on this subject.
PS, I know this may be controversial, but I really think that welfare hurt the lower class of this country. It completely eliminated accountability, and I think hurt the black community and lower-class in general. I was listening to a radio show one time, and someone stated that almost directly after welfare was started blacks primarily became one-parent households. Before this supposedly although they were poor, they typically had two parents. That is another thing that I belive really hurts our ghettos is the absence of fathers. I'm glad there is now a limit on how long it can be used.
I personally don't care if they legalize drugs but I'd like to point out that the end of prohibition didn't kill the mob off. They just moved on to other stuff.
So basically, you have some 25yo gang member making 10k a month selling drugs....is he going to suddenly take a $7/hour job at Subway?
Heck, a number of gangs make their money by extortion\protection rackets and they get a cut from thefts, drugs, the tamale vendors cart....everything.
Location: Where ocean meets up with the naked land.
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I'm adopting a child from the ghetto. I truly am. I don't want another child put into "the system". It's just not fair. It's not fair how a child has to be BORN INTO a destructive household. They have no control over who is going to raise them and that is the hardest part. The only problem I have with having children is having to deal with other parents.. yuck.
So far the majority of of replys is about more government dependence . Better schools, more programs, more welfare and blame directed to others instead of the ones who refuse to take responsiblilty .
The main problem in these places and America are immoraliy and iiresponible people . We always had poor n-hoods but until the familiy unit was destroyed mot came out of them . Each generation did better until the 60s when the communist and socialist took over the nation and our people .
Like all soialist nations the people become more dependant on the government and lose their self respect and will .
Stop feeding them and they will work, lock up men who abandone their kids and women who keep having kids they can't feed .
Impeach leaders who allow the drugs to enter our nation through wide open borders .
Most kids born today are on some form of welfare . And the majority are new immigrants . Free education, shelter, food, medical and even many get put into business with grants Americans cannot get . These business could go to hard workign poor Americans .
Thanks to Americans we are now going into a third world nation so get use to it, it will get much worse .
We can only print up some much money and support so many deadbeats and foreigners who are incresing the amount of gettos monthly .
Government intervention is not the solution, it just makes the problem worse... education won't cure the ghetto, the educated are smart enough to leave the ghetto which makes the ghetto even worse... there is only one solution... hard work... it will take the residents to actually BE neighbors instead of just living next to so-and-so... clean-up your neighborhood and be a part of your neighborhood, if you don't, the ghetto mentality will move on in... not amount of government is going to help a ghetto unless you stopped being ghetto... and no amount of money is going to stopped you from being ghetto... if you want to stop being ghetto by being involved with your neighborhood then do it instead of begging for money cause that's what a ghetto would do....
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The only problem I have with having children is having to deal with other parents.. yuck.