The Opportunity City
What does it mean to you?
The legendary Fidel Castro, who is close to a God as any leader the Western Hemisphere has ever produced, was not a perfect man. Cuba, like every other country, is not a paradise despite outlawing Republicanism and advertisements.
But say what you want about him, the man ruined the American mafia’s attempt to turn Havana into a cesspit like Las Vegas. He kicked out a United States-backed dictator and lifted millions of Cubans out of poverty and taught them to read. He erected one of the most respect universal healthcare systems in the world He did this all in spite of crippling economic sanctions and insane CIA plots to overthrow him for the high crime of refusing to worship at the altar of American hegemony.
Castro reckoned with capitalism in a way our leaders never do. He famously said capitalism lacks the capacity, ethics or morality to solve poverty. There are many more empty houses than unhoused people in America. Yet, our political leaders don’t have the courage to tax Jeff Bezos and put an end to the plague. Hmmm, maybe he was onto something.
We push unhoused people out of society and make jokes about them. They’re not suffering from debilitating mental illness and/or drug addiction; they’re bums who are in their predicament because they refuse to work.
Take the most recent episode of 60 Minutes, which featured a segment of the inequity of the coronavirus pandemic in Columbus, Ohio. While people with fake email jobs are now tweeting about their anxiety to return to “normal life,” millions of poor Americans never had the option to have their groceries delivered or work at home while wearing athleisure. Their jobs were obliterated by coronavirus and there was no social safety net to provide them.
It’s a heartbreaking segment featuring a young expecting mother who got her tent slashed for the high crime of “being on railroad property.”
It also featured overworked charities like Star House, Mt. Carmel’s homeless outreach program and the MidOhio Food Bank. (Click those links if you’d like to donate to good causes.) Their resources have all been stretched as more people have fallen down the social ladder.
My question is… why is a city as rich as Columbus relying on charity programs to feed the unhoused or find them apartments to rent so they can return to society and prosper?
The answer, of course, is that none of these people can vote. They can’t donate to political campaigns. So they get swept under the rug as we let charities and their networks of volunteers attempt to fill the void.
Here’s one example of terrible policy that city government enacted when tens of thousands of its citizens were attempting to survive the last days of what’s been a frigid winter, via columbusfreepress.com:
At the City Council meeting Monday, March 1, Council members approved of a 75% 10-year Enterprise Zone Tax Abatement for Freeland Contracting that will save them approximately $981,723 in property taxes over a ten-year period. Freeland Contracting has been in business for 40 years in the Columbus area as a noteworthy plumbing and HVAC contractor that specializes in commercial, retail, multi-family and hospitality plumbing and piping projects. Freeland says it will invest $5.50 million dollars towards expanding its business while adding “TWO” jobs with each paying $15.00 an hour.
Good to see we pissed away $981,721 to a company with $5.5 million laying around to invest in exchange for two jobs that pay $15 an hour, which amounts to $31,000 — before taxes. That’s barely enough to support a single person in Columbus without considering things like retirement or healthcare, let alone a family.
But like Fidel said, capitalism lacks the capacity, morality and ethics to deal with this issue. In America we judge people’s worth on how much money they make. Are you rich enough to pay two people $15 an hour? Hell, here’s nearly a million dollars. Are you struggling with addiction and living in a tent on railroad property? Fuck you, here’s a list of underfunded and overstretched charities who are doing the work we should be doing ourselves.
To me, the entire premise of a government is to protect its citizens and better the lives of the most marginalized members of society by improving their material conditions. Our leaders don’t like thinking that way, however, because then suddenly their moral failures become obvious for the world to see.
It’s easier to demonize socialism and paint people like Castro as some insane dictator. That’s where we are today, and our most vulnerable citizens are worse off for it. But hey, maybe one day we’ll eradicate this problem when Mayor Ginther discovers how to feed people suffering from food insecurity with tax abatements. Suck on that, Castro!
THOSE WMDs. What the media is missing about Joe Manchin… … When to expect your stimulus check and other questions answered… The Lincoln Project’s secrets, side deals and scandals… A long, messy year of reopening schools… The mystery of why some people become sudden geniuses… There’s no reason to eat three meals a day.