AL'S MORNING BLOG 4/24/2023

I am going to weigh in on "Rich man, Poor man". Anybody remember that TV series? A good one, I thought, but after all, a TV series. Every bit of information out there is about the underprivileged, as if it's a brand-new baby just discovered. Please give me a break. I am only 87 so I cannot go back as far as the history books do, but if you have any sense at all, you know this is something about as refreshing as climate change. My folks were not poor, but we were right there at the river's edge. like many of you. We lived in a 40 dollar a month rent house with 2 small bedrooms, one bath with tub and no shower, transom heat fired by coal (yes, coal) and no air, ceiling fan or window fan. New York could get hot as hell in summer and cold as hell in winter. How does that work, anyway? My dad worked 12 to 14 hours a day and my mom bought her groceries daily, depending on how the money held out. We were considered middle class. My best friend on the block was Jewish. No, they were not rich as all people think all Jews are. We had Italian, Irish, Dutch, Puerto Rican and Black folks living in our neighborhood. We all were poor, just didn't know it. I drive down my street yesterday and saw some folks mowing their lawn. There are also Hispanic companies mowing for other homeowners. Many do not have autos, others driving 10- and 15-year-old vehicles. Not rich. I buy donuts from an Asian family that opens up at 3am daily. Not upper middle class. I see many African American folks cleaning houses, working for the city and the like. They are just getting by. I see lots of white folks hoping the money holds out to the next paycheck. Many simply don't have enough money to tithe at church. Not wealthy. Not even close.The one common denominator is they ARE POOR. And they know it!! Not everyone of those folk ask for help and they do get passed by daily. Being poor is not a state of mind. It's reality. Poor is poor no matter who you are or where you live. The leaders of this country need to find all the poor and help them. ALL of them. Do not leave it up to the faith-based organizations and facilities like the Salvation Army, Catholic Charities and Some Other Place. I wasn't

poor as a kid and if I was, no one told me. I am richer for the experience. There are rich and poor and the people in charge of our nation need to do something about it. For everyone. Every ethnicity. Hispanic, African American, Asian, Muslim and even white folks. Please stop being segregationists. How about that?

Al Caldwell