MondayMourning: The $2.50 Club

​3 billion people live on less than $2.50 a day. Let that number sink it. 3 billion. Some of us pay twice that just for our coffee. But it actually gets worse. Because about 1.3 billion people live on less than $1.25 a day.

Apple is worth over 700 billion; Exxon Mobil, over 350 billion; Berkshire Hathaway, over 350 billion; Google over 345 billion; Microsoft over 330 billion. There are over 5,000 companies that earn more than a billion dollars a year.
 
But let’s not forget us as consumers? Because every year we spend nearly 100 billion on beer, 65 billion on soda, 40 billion on lawn care, 15 billion on chocolate, and 10 billion on romance novels.
 
I’m not telling you to give up your beer—to mow your own lawn—or to stop reading Danielle Steel. I’m just using the numbers to point out how good we have it. By wiping out five things that we don’t actually need, we could actually help the people who don’t have what we have.
 
If you would like to help fight poverty—either financially or through volunteering—below are a few organizations to look into:
Project Bread: www.projectbread.org
Mercy Corps: www.mercycorps.org
The Hunger Project: www.thp.org
 
While we may typically think about poverty in terms of other countries, it’s still very much a thing in America as well. Feeding America (www.feedingamerica.org) is one organization helping to fight poverty in our own country.
 
NOTE: I am not associated, nor do I endorse, any of these charities; before donating to any charity, it is always advisable to research them and make sure the money is being used responsibly. One of the largest charity watchdog groups has a database here: http://www.charitynavigator.org