The most common answer you will get from people if you ask them why they work will be to overcome poverty.
Poverty is the absence of purchasing power. The fact that one can not afford the things they want or even need puts them in the hustle mode.
But what will happen if everyone is poor?
Poverty can not exist without wealth. You can not tell if someone is poor without using a rich person as a unit of measurement. It is because Mr. A can not afford the meal Mr. B can but goes for a meal of lower quality, that we say Mr. A is poor.
How then will we know that we are all poor? There's no one wealthier than the other so the word 'poor' might not be used to describe our financial state. But I was asked to write about what will happen if everyone is poor, so here goes.
If everyone is poor, there would be no absolute power because wealth brings absolute power. The knowledge that one can afford a lifestyle, or belongs to a certain class that others can not belong to because they do not have the purchasing power brings some level of pride.
Dare I say if everyone was poor, pride will not exist? Everyone will be humble. The popular Nigerian saying in our colloquial language 'life no balance' will not exist because poverty will balance the scale for everyone. Maybe this will bring about the equality that human rights activists have been demanding.
Everyone will be dependent on the other for something of need. This might result to trade by barter, the ancient way of trade. Resources will not be controlled by a particular person or group of persons. This might result in socialism, where the means of production, distribution, and exchange will be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
This will mean that everyone will be paid equally regardless of what they do and everyone will afford the same quality of things. Then, there will be less dispute, no need for competition, and no form of oppression whatsoever. Life will be boring because I think competition, a healthy competition I must add, makes living interesting.
On the bright side, all forms of material oppression will not exist. There will be no need to show off because, who are you showing off to my dear? We will all have the same brand of wear, eat the same quality of meals, and live in the same kind of houses. The word 'trenches' will not exist. Lol. Now, that will be a great equalizer.
Would anyone want to work hard if we were all poor? Correct me if I'm wrong, but if one's hard work will not yield any extra results, what is the use? It's like saying no matter how well students read for a test, they will not score above a D. Why stay up all night to read then? You could just read the morning before the exam and waltz into the hall and write what you know. The results will always be exactly the same anyways.
Also, will theft be non-existent? I mean, why would you steal from someone who does not have more than you do?
However, this might not be the case. Broke people can rob broke people too. According to Alan W. Watts, human desires tend to be insatiable. Greed, an excessive and extreme desire for something, often more than one's proper share may abound. People will want to take more than they have and this will end up disrupting the socialist state.
However, one of the flip sides to this, because there are a lot, is that nothing in this world is evenly distributed and that is why everyone cannot be poor.
All pictures are originally mine
Edited with canva
The most telling result of what socialism will bring if it occurs is what happened in Russia during Stalin. Communism leads to socialism which destroys the entire country for all except those in government at the higher levels. It was an experiment and one that failed miserably on the level of humanity, but passed brilliantly on the level of these tyrannical leaders and their thirst for power and destruction.
If we remove the incentive to work hard and everyone gets equal no matter what, it completely destroys the fabric of humanity. In human history that has never been the case to have worked, from when we were hunter gatherer nomads to present day. Those who work hard get and deserve more of the reward than those who don’t work hard.
The obvious exception to that is people born into wealth but you and I aren’t in that category as is billions of people so I’m leaving that out of this.
Socialism will never, ever fix any of the problems of society. Look at how Venezuela is a complete disaster right now. You can speak to any number of Venezuelans here on hive to learn how it turned out! It’s a complete failure for humanity as a whole but it’s worked marvelously for those corrupt criminals in government.
It has always been clear and no longer a news truely, coming together to make the world a better place might just be lyrics till eternity, everyone seems to care only for themselves, and the few that want to help are not in position, that's if they will really do as they protest though.
Talking about this doesn't have a end and still no answer to it. So sad.
Thanks so much @cmplxty for your contribution 💞
Exactly what I thought of when I saw the topic, all points are 100% smart
Super cool 🥂
yes indeed poverty or wealth doesn't remove greed. and even the poor can do anything to be rich. I will say there is always a rich man even in the land of the poor
Yea yea, you got the point 🥂
Nice post I couldn't help it but stop to read, the topic is tempting I must say🤣 I kept on pondering on this topic if that happens mhen this world would be a really tough place to live in honestly. Even as we have rich and poor yet the world is at it is talk more of having everyone poor the world would have been a place for survival of the fittest 🤣🤣
A country like Nigeria will have lots of bad people.
Thanks for sharing 🙏 I love your post👍
Oh really, I'm glad you stopped by:), I also wrote the opposite as well, and it's really crazy though.
Thanks for your contribution @obrisgold1 ❤️
Yeah I never regretted visiting your blog. I also followed you for more...❤️✌️ Thanks
I'm so glad, I followed back so I can see more of your contents as well❤️
Thanks thanks 🥂
You are welcome ❤️👍🙏