Some Facts About Hunger in the U.S.

United States is the wealthiest country in the world. Yet 13% of the population live in poverty. One in four children (16.7 million) live in households that struggle to put food on the table. The government tries to reduce hunger through nutrition programs. But, it's not enough.


In low-income budgets, food is the most flexible item in low-income budgets since transportation, utilities, rent, and child care are usually fixed expenses. So families tend to sacrifice food expenses in an attempt to  survive with their budget.


It is not surprising that today there's a large amount of people who struggle to provide food for their families as a consequence of the recession  from which our nation is slowly recovering. This are just a few more facts that prove that not even our country can escape from this serious issue, therefore we should make an effort to donate at local organizations such as food banks to help alleviate this endless crisis.

It's never too late to contribute

The fact that most people don't know how bad the issue of world hunger does not make it disappear, it is an issue that haunts every single nation in the world, on different levels. And if only we all made an effort to mitigate the problem, the poorest people in the world would have a reason to smile, at least for a moment.

It is sad to realize how usually the biggest contributions are made when a tragedy occurs, I realized this the other day as I heard something on the news about donations for Japan. It's great that we contribute when people need us the most, but why do we help the needy until a catastrophe occurs? Why is it so hard for us to realize that generous donations can be done  anytime? It's never too late to help the less fortunate, that's the purpose of thousands of organizations across the country that send not only food but also, medical services, education, etc to different nations.

Libyan Airforce Wiped Out..

The ongoing attacks by the allies have wiped out the Libyan airforce, according to the BBC. Latest reports  say that government tanks attacked a hospital in the rebel-held  city of Misrata. However, tanks pulled back due to the relentless attacks by international forces.Meanwhile NATO ships are patrolling Libyan coasts to enforce the UN arms embargo against  Gadaffi.

Some say it was not a good move for the U.S to get involved in this right now. Others say it was absolutely necessary for us to intervene and defend the innocent people. Both views are right in their own way. But what concerns me the most is: What is going to happen after Gadaffi gets killed or steps down?

"We are watching over the innocent people of Libya and ensuring that we protect them from attack"

I'm sure that our country is doing this to prevent more innocent people from dying in hands of pro-Gadaffi forces, but as they say: The road to hell is paved with good intentions... Is Libya going to become a new Afghanistan/Iraq? Are we going to cause more rage in Middle East and trigger more disturbances? What is going to happen? I have no idea. All we can do is hope for the best.

Detroit census confirms desertion like no other...

Detroit used to be a thriving metropolis, but according to an article by the New York Times a recent census shows that its population is declining at a record rate. The situation is  no surprise for the city, considering that residents started  losing hope on the city as people's lives have been affected by unemployment which leads to a massive exodus from the city in a search for jobs.

The number of people who have left Detroit in recent years (237,500) is staggering even when compared numbers of cities such as New Orleans (140,000).

“You can just see the emptiness driving in,” said Joel Dellario

I would not be surprised if the population keeps falling in the following years. And saying that there's going to be a turning point in the city would be fooling ourselves, because as cities start losing people, they also start loosing tax revenue, jobs, etc. And issues such as crime, urban decay, and such arise concern among the people and make the recovery even harder.

Mental Health Break

Left Brain/Right Brain Mercedes Ad Campaign

Economy Is Better Prepared for Rising Gas Costs

According to an article by the New York Times, even though the gas prices are rising the economy may be better prepared for higher costs. Gas prices have risen by approximately a third of what they were a year ago, driven by fears of extended Middle East supply disruptions and increased demand. The spike might slow down the economic recovery but it isn't likely that it derails the economy unless prices rise a lot further.


One of the main reasons why we can say we are prepared for this is that we've learned that fuel-efficient cars are helpful in that sense. Hopefully prices will stop going up so that our economy can keep recovering the way it has.

Despite growth, India's youth still struggles with malnutrition

According to an article by the New York Times, scientists from Harvard and the University of Michigan say there's no evidence that India's prosperity has reduced hunger among Indian children.

" India’s rapid economic growth may have benefited only the privileged sections of society.”

This is disappointing in a way because it shows that Indian government has failed to focus on the fact that 75% of the population work on farming/manufacturing, however the development has been mostly on technology jobs, which has left poor families at the mercy of systems similar to food stamps.

Community Service

After calling and e-mailing several organizations I finally decided to help at the Food Bank of Contra Costa
 and Solano. The people in charge explained me that usually people went there to work in groups, however for community service I've always felt like it is easier to focus and that way you can do it according to your own schedule.

This food bank is basically a huge warehouse, people often collect food and bring it to the place so that the volunteers can organize it and distribute it to the needy. It is amazing to see how people make huge contributions to this kind of organizations because they are the ones who keep them alive, but at the same time it is kind of sad to realize how some people in America don't have any food.

I had different tasks at the food bank such as packing food, taping and moving boxes, organizing the food people donated, etc. Even though my community service doesn't really affect peoples lives directly, I feel good about what I did because I contributed for a good cause which is reducing hunger.

The world has different opinions on poverty and what should be done about it. Some people care, some others don't. But in the end what counts is that you follow your principles and you do what you think is best to help.

Community Service

The world has many issues that have not been resolved, and so does our country. However, all it takes to make it a little bit better is the effort from people interested in helping society in any way we can. I think that is pretty much the point of community service, learning to help society in any way we can so that the less fortunate can have better lives. For my community service I decided to help at a food bank in Concord. It is well known that world hunger wouldn't be a problem if the world's wealth was appropiately distributed, but obviously our society is not willing to change our ways, so all we can do is donate ,etc

This is an interesting chart that shows this facts.

We live in America, so probably lack of food is not as bad as in other parts of the world. But the issue is still there and I believe people should not go through this kind of suffering considering the amount of resources in our hands
.