The Political Aspect of Poverty and Welfare Policy in the United States.
While we live in a time of apparently unprecedented prosperity - although admittedly a recession may be in the immediate future - we also live in an era defined by government cutbacks in areas of social welfare. This apparent policy paradox - great prosperity coexisting with extreme conservatism in budgetary policy - will be the focus of this essay. It will argue the thesis that the explanation for this "paradox" lies not in finance or economics but in the fragmented social dynamic of our society. In this analysis, poverty will be shown to be as much a political as an economic construct. However, the prevailing political orthodoxy with respect to poverty and social spending is not likely to change - it will be argued - until economic despair grips a large portion of the population. 6 pgs. Bibliography lists 2 sources.