The Current Discussion: In the future, global prosperity will present more of a threat than poverty, according to a recent Post op-ed. Is this just rich-American rhetoric, or is the world really getting too prosperous for its own good?
I do agree with Michael Gerson's concluding remarks that learning to live with challenges posed by growing world prosperity is better than the alternative of challenges posed by rising poverty.
However, I do not agree that the world has reached a point of a crisis of rising prosperity.
The rising billions -- if they are indeed billions -- of prosperous populations around the world do not automatically mean decreased poverty. Advanced technology and a globalized market place had allowed millions to join the ranks of the affluent classes, but it is also pushing a bigger number toward abject poverty.
Living in Doha I witness rising affluence every day: in the high rises, in residential communities emulating Riviera and Venice, and in luxurious life styles for the rich and privileged. But I also witness the rise of segregated communities in which there is no decent place for middle class professionals or laborers.
I see the rising number of affluents accompanied by downward mobility for the middle class and professionals in our area of the world.
There is growth and affluence. But I cannot call it prosperity. More alarmingly, the expatriate remittances -- source of prosperity for millions in the Arab World -- would decline if not cease.
Across the region, inflation prevails while governments have, under pressure from the international monetary fund, already lifted fuel and food subsidies further aggravating living conditions. But on the surface, Arab capitals show deceptive signs of prosperity: construction of real estate, resorts and world-class hotels to meet the needs of a growing affluent class. These are signs of emerging class divides and social barriers.
I agree with Gerson, albeit in different terms: the rising affluent classes in the world will compete, even fight fiercely, over natural resources. The rest will scramble for leftovers.
Please e-mail PostGlobal if you'd like to receive an email notification when PostGlobal sends out a new question.
