Wealth & Inheritance
Current mood: 
thirsty
The Kampf
Chapter three
Wealth and Inheritance
They say poverty is relative. Heather Mills’s idea of poverty is a mere 24 million in the bank and a paltry 35k annual allowance for the orf spring. I wonder what Paul said to her to piss her off so much? Hell hath no wroth, as they also say. I loved it when she came out onto the court steps proclaiming a victory and then went on to say that the child will have to suffer b-class travel arrangements due to the stingy amount awarded, astonishing ineptitude and a public relations disaster, for her.
Lets make poverty history?
Of course, I agree with the general sentiment here but this much over used slogan is clearly ridiculous, especially when said by politicians and the like. It’s very much like this idea or utopian stupidity of ‘full employment’ and everyone can get back more than they put in etc. It’s just not possible and I wish people would stop pushing the idea. Provided you agree with the fundamental principle that some people get paid more for doing certain jobs than others then relative poverty will always exist. I must admit, I find it mildly irritating when I see that oik Bono pon-sing around the world hob-knobbing with all and sundry pretending to be some kind of modern-day poverty wizard. It’s clearly a load of bollocks, and does Bono actually believe that just by talking to whoever at the top of the food-chain can somehow eliminate global poverty? Has he eliminated poverty in his own backyard, is my question. Obviously I don’t know the man but it does seem that poverty and Bono along with most other celebrities that jump on the poverty band wagon are not exactly bed-fellows.
Apparently, the imaginatively named Nigella Lawson, daughter of Nigel Lawson (ex Chancellor of the Exchequer) has been saying that children should not inherit their parent’s wealth because it is a good lesson in life for them to earn their own way. My immediate response; well, that’s alright for her to say isn’t it. As far as I’m concerned the very worst kinds of people are nearly always those that have ‘endured the struggle’, the kampf indeed. Let’s face it; those that have the most have had to, at some point, get very nasty and or selfish in order to obtain that wealth. This would perhaps explain why, whenever you meet a genuine Lord, landed gentry (old money) as it’s known, they’re nearly always relatively reasonable people, and the reason is that they haven’t had to endure the struggle for wealth because they inherited it. That’s not to say they don’t care about money, of course they do, its just that they look at it differently. To them, their function is one of caretaker for the next generation, and why not? If you can’t look after your own family, who can you look after?
When people like Nigella talk of this subject in this way what does it tell us about the attitude of people in general? It is a clear challenge to the basic principle of – better to give than receive. What sort of lesson is it when you tell your own children; no, you’re getting fuck-all, get a JOB you lazy fuck! And by the way, he’s not your father! It’s Lord Bath! Of course I jest, in saying that I do think we would be much better off scraping local Government and going back to a feudal lord system with people like Lord Bath running the country. Imagine it, would it not be infinitely better to deal with Lord Bath than some snotty-nosed over-paid up-start at the local council office. Neighbour problems could be almost instantly rectified by his-lordship making a decision on the spot and have the offending neighbour larched and or put in stocks; this would certainly put an element of fun back into the justice system, would it not.
Higgs Boson
Relative poverty will always exist. I agree. but what the Make Poverty History campaign was about was eliminating the absolute poverty that disfigures the lives of 1000 million people. I deal with this in my new novel “Beyond Reach?”
This is an account of the 2005 Make Poverty History campaign in the UK, told in a novel way.
“Beyond Reach?” employs a fact-cum-fiction plot to tell a witty story of how a feisty young married woman inspires a church minister to join the campaign. The result is an explosive mix that takes them into a world that neither bargained for. Their relationship energises them for the campaign, leading them to an exposé of government duplicity, of how the claims made about more aid and debt relief were far from all they seemed.
The debt relief came with strings attached and there was not much of it – four years later, only about 20 per cent of developing country debt has been wiped out – and the aid increase included money for debt relief. There was huge double counting, and the government was slow to act on climate change which is reinforcing poverty.
I am a journalist and author, and covered most of the national Make Poverty History events in 2005, including the G8 summit in Scotland. I was also involved in local campaignin
Royalties from the book go to agencies working to eradicate poverty.
“Beyond Reach?” is published by Longstone Books, 239 pages, price £9.99. ISBN: 978-0-9554373-7-3.
I am the author of nine factual books on development issues, including the best-selling “Hungry for Trade – How the poor pay for free trade”. and “100 Ways to Make Poverty History”. The book is available direct from me, or from all good bookshops.
John Madeley
e-mail: john.madeley@gmail.com
website: http://www.JohnMadeley.co.uk
‘A revealing story about a scandal of our time, witty, sharp – and above all urgent’ – Rosie Boycott
Beyond Reach? is a wonderful tribute to all those ordinary people who take action against the scandal of global poverty. For those of us who took part in the Make Poverty History campaign, it’s also great to revisit the experience of that year’ – John Hilary
‘In this amusing novel, John Madeley links modern ethics and politics with the age-old issues of relationships and the meaning of life. All this, with serious intent, too’ – Tim Lang
‘In the tradition of Saturday, this outstanding novel weaves together the world of public events with the private world of individual lives’ – Carl Rayer
‘Be warned, this book could change your life’ – Ann Pettifor
‘A gripping and inspiring story of forbidden love and the struggle for justice. In a hundred years people will look back on our culture of greed and realise books like this helped change the world’ – David Rhodes
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