We Bahamains like to look at other Bahamians who have 'made it' then call ourselves poor.
We are the most properous country in The Carribean in terms of money. We have it made.
How many Bahamians do you know how has HAD to leave here on a raft or boat in search of a better way of life? I know none.

Even the ones who cannot afford a car at the moment and are catching the bus, have cellphones. Everyone has a cellphone. Cellphone vendors are poping up all over the place, most are drive by or drive thru.

You may be wondering why I chose cellphones to pick on. Well, one of my friends owns a store that sells them. We don't just buy them, we must have the BEST and the most current and the most expensive. He thought when he first got in the business that a $300 cell phone would not sell, now he is selling ones that cost $800-$1000.

He runs out of the prepaid cards all the time, no matter the cost. He has customers who buy cards from him 2-3 times a week. Thats plenty talking. My big clunky Nokia is post paid and my bill is no more than $40 per month. I never answer my cellphone if I am at home or by a land phone. NO WAY. My family and kids make their conversations very brief cos I tell them I gatta go. I never give business houses my cellphone number, I tell them I have an answering machine at home, leave a message.

But I digress. Back to the poor. I visited Mexico a few years ago, Mexico City. Some of those folks are POOR. I mean PO!!

Whole families live on the streets. Whole families. I watched a family share a bag of chips. While eating at a resturant, children would come up to the glass windows, press their dirty, hungry faces on the glass and beg. One cannot eat when you see those kids. The waiter tried to give us seats in the middle but we, in our ignorance insisted we wanted to sit by the window to get a view. We came out gave them some pesos and we back to eat. Before we could settle in, more kids came up to the glass. The waiter asked us to please move as the begging never stops.

The whole time we were there, the begging was non stop. Poverty was everywhere. It could not be ignored.

When I got back home, I had a different perspective on what and who is poor.

We in The Bahamas are not poor. We may have lived beyond our means and spent out monies badly, or made poor choices or had far too many children, but we cannot call ourselves poor.

Y2 is poor. .. cause i feel sorry for him.:sailing:

Y2 is poor. .. cause i feel sorry for him.:sailing:

Rory is poorer but not as poor as me though...

We Bahamains like to look at other Bahamians who have 'made it' then call ourselves poor.
We are the most properous country in The Carribean in terms of money. We have it made.
How many Bahamians do you know how has HAD to leave here on a raft or boat in search of a better way of life? I know none.
Even the ones who cannot afford a car at the moment and are catching the bus, have cellphones. Everyone has a cellphone. Cellphone vendors are poping up all over the place, most are drive by or drive thru.
You may be wondering why I chose cellphones to pick on. Well, one of my friends owns a store that sells them. We don't just buy them, we must have the BEST and the most current and the most expensive. He thought when he first got in the business that a $300 cell phone would not sell, now he is selling ones that cost $800-$1000.
He runs out of the prepaid cards all the time, no matter the cost. He has customers who buy cards from him 2-3 times a week. Thats plenty talking. My big clunky Nokia is post paid and my bill is no more than $40 per month. I never answer my cellphone if I am at home or by a land phone. NO WAY. My family and kids make their conversations very brief cos I tell them I gatta go. I never give business houses my cellphone number, I tell them I have an answering machine at home, leave a message.
But I digress. Back to the poor. I visited Mexico a few years ago, Mexico City. Some of those folks are POOR. I mean PO!!
Whole families live on the streets. Whole families. I watched a family share a bag of chips. While eating at a resturant, children would come up to the glass windows, press their dirty, hungry faces on the glass and beg. One cannot eat when you see those kids. The waiter tried to give us seats in the middle but we, in our ignorance insisted we wanted to sit by the window to get a view. We came out gave them some pesos and we back to eat. Before we could settle in, more kids came up to the glass. The waiter asked us to please move as the begging never stops.
The whole time we were there, the begging was non stop. Poverty was everywhere. It could not be ignored.
When I got back home, I had a different perspective on what and who is poor.
We in The Bahamas are not poor. We may have lived beyond our means and spent out monies badly, or made poor choices or had far too many children, but we cannot call ourselves poor.

The thing here though is we love to cry about how poor we are and how the guvment gatta look out for the lil man.
Mind you most of us have our own transportation, take vacation every year etc.
Oh and ofcourse we hate the fella what gat something more than us, and we automatically assume that fella is some how trying to keep us, the lil man down.

This thread speaks volumes to how under-exposed most bahamians are.

I use to think I was poor until I started reading more and watching more documentaries on tv.

As a kid I use to wonder why tourist came to the bahamas. Aint beaches everywhere? Until a family trip to new york where I saw the hudson river...well the dirty part and then I just knew. This is all the water some people know and its awful.

You dont know how beautiful home is unless you go somewhere else.

This thread speaks volumes to how under-exposed most bahamians are.
I use to think I was poor until I started reading more and watching more documentaries on tv.
As a kid I use to wonder why tourist came to the bahamas. Aint beaches everywhere? Until a family trip to new york where I saw the hudson river...well the dirty part and then I just knew. This is all the water some people know and its awful.
You dont know how beautiful home is unless you go somewhere else.


exactly.

exposure always adds a different persepctive to things.

some of these "poor" folks would be surprised at how good they have it...compared to those (elsewhere in the world) that barely have shirts to cover their backs; haven't had a hot meal in months.

it's amazing though.....b/c i know of some 'poor' (financially speaking) families that were beyond rich in spirit, traditions & values. and i also know of some 'poor' families that allowed their financial state to break their spirit.

not having money, is hard. there are no if's, and's or but's about that. but some people are able to pull through b/c they still have each other.

This thread speaks volumes to how under-exposed most bahamians are.
I use to think I was poor until I started reading more and watching more documentaries on tv.
As a kid I use to wonder why tourist came to the bahamas. Aint beaches everywhere? Until a family trip to new york where I saw the hudson river...well the dirty part and then I just knew. This is all the water some people know and its awful.
You dont know how beautiful home is unless you go somewhere else.



:hammer: :hammer: :hammer: :bouncy: :bouncy:

Thats my point, we are very, very blessed. I think we tell God we don't appreciate what he has done for us when we go around calling ourselves poor.

There is no one stopping us but ourselves.

I read somewhere where the author was describing abundant life. He/she said adundant life is to live in happiness. Happeness is free, it is also a choice we make.

Looking into the eyes of our children and spouse and feeling the love is free. How often do we do it.

Smelling roses or other flowers is free, so is picking fruit of a tree and marveling about how that tree was once a seed. That is also free.

Making love, what can be more beautiful and fulfulling. It SHOULD be free. Do it with the one you love. A clear example of abundant life.

See all of us can be so rich if we look for it in ways other than actual wealth and money. When you look at it that we, we can never be poor.

I feel like preaching up in here.

We Bahamains like to look at other Bahamians who have 'made it' then call ourselves poor.
We are the most properous country in The Carribean in terms of money. We have it made.
How many Bahamians do you know how has HAD to leave here on a raft or boat in search of a better way of life? I know none.
Even the ones who cannot afford a car at the moment and are catching the bus, have cellphones. Everyone has a cellphone. Cellphone vendors are poping up all over the place, most are drive by or drive thru.
You may be wondering why I chose cellphones to pick on. Well, one of my friends owns a store that sells them. We don't just buy them, we must have the BEST and the most current and the most expensive. He thought when he first got in the business that a $300 cell phone would not sell, now he is selling ones that cost $800-$1000.
He runs out of the prepaid cards all the time, no matter the cost. He has customers who buy cards from him 2-3 times a week. Thats plenty talking. My big clunky Nokia is post paid and my bill is no more than $40 per month. I never answer my cellphone if I am at home or by a land phone. NO WAY. My family and kids make their conversations very brief cos I tell them I gatta go. I never give business houses my cellphone number, I tell them I have an answering machine at home, leave a message.
But I digress. Back to the poor. I visited Mexico a few years ago, Mexico City. Some of those folks are POOR. I mean PO!!
Whole families live on the streets. Whole families. I watched a family share a bag of chips. While eating at a resturant, children would come up to the glass windows, press their dirty, hungry faces on the glass and beg. One cannot eat when you see those kids. The waiter tried to give us seats in the middle but we, in our ignorance insisted we wanted to sit by the window to get a view. We came out gave them some pesos and we back to eat. Before we could settle in, more kids came up to the glass. The waiter asked us to please move as the begging never stops.
The whole time we were there, the begging was non stop. Poverty was everywhere. It could not be ignored.
When I got back home, I had a different perspective on what and who is poor.
We in The Bahamas are not poor. We may have lived beyond our means and spent out monies badly, or made poor choices or had far too many children, but we cannot call ourselves poor.

Man Jamaicans have better and more uptodate cell phones than Bahamians

Man Jamaicans have better and more uptodate cell phones than Bahamians

Boy in jamiaca cell phones are dirt Cheap!!!!!!!!!!

Bahamians for the most part have no idea what poor is. I was astounded to see how the truly poor live around the world. When you pick your dinner out of the city dump is poor. When you live in the city dump and make your house from the garbage you are poor. I witnessed this in South America and it made my heart heavy. I realize that we have some in the Bahamas that are "dirt" poor but for the most part if you are willing to put in an honest days work you can take care of the basic's. Now i have no time for the ones who will not work nor the ones that breed like rabbits and have so many children that there is no way you could ever properly pay for their needs. The reason they are poor is because of their life decisions and nobody is to blame for their predicament but themselves.

Man Jamaicans have better and more uptodate cell phones than Bahamians

And they also had GSM way before us.

there will always be someone poorer than you and there will always be someone richer

its all about perspective and perspective comes from experience. does the fact that many people in mexico are poorer than you make you feel good that your lights are off cuase u cant pay the bill and ya belly rumblin cuase the little bit of craft dinner/tuna/corn beef u had to split between everyone in the house aint holdin u.

no bahamians dont roll out on rafts but they rollin out on bahamasair, american eagle, and air canada.

no for the most part bums arent all over the street corners but i know of many single mothers struggle and hanging on for dear life. the beg borrow save and shortcut to try hold it together

the same can be said for a homeless/poor american (and ya gats lots of them), if ur poor and broke down r u suppose to feel better about it cuase ur in one of the richest nations on earth?

as for the expensive cell phones, shoes, cloths etc. in our world the poorer folks are the ones who save, beg, borrow, steal to race to buy that stuff to make them "feel" wealthier. so if a "poor" person from bain town save for months on end or steal to buy a 800.00 cell phone does that make them rich?

ur friend that owns the store he onli see's when the person buys the product does he know what they went through to be able to buy it?

jamaica is one of the poorer countries in the caribbean and everybody and their mamma have a cellie down there. and yes phones are cheap down there BUT if u onli makin 75 usd per week a phone that cost 800 in the bahamas yet onli cost 300 in jamaica would still be expensive

anywho the whole point to all of that is perception is based on experiance and reality is skewed.

And they also had GSM way before us.

We mussy poor, since we so backwards and apparently primitive.

We Bahamains like to look at other Bahamians who have 'made it' then call ourselves poor.
We are the most properous country in The Carribean in terms of money. We have it made.
How many Bahamians do you know how has HAD to leave here on a raft or boat in search of a better way of life? I know none.
Even the ones who cannot afford a car at the moment and are catching the bus, have cellphones. Everyone has a cellphone. Cellphone vendors are poping up all over the place, most are drive by or drive thru.
You may be wondering why I chose cellphones to pick on. Well, one of my friends owns a store that sells them. We don't just buy them, we must have the BEST and the most current and the most expensive. He thought when he first got in the business that a $300 cell phone would not sell, now he is selling ones that cost $800-$1000.
He runs out of the prepaid cards all the time, no matter the cost. He has customers who buy cards from him 2-3 times a week. Thats plenty talking. My big clunky Nokia is post paid and my bill is no more than $40 per month. I never answer my cellphone if I am at home or by a land phone. NO WAY. My family and kids make their conversations very brief cos I tell them I gatta go. I never give business houses my cellphone number, I tell them I have an answering machine at home, leave a message.
But I digress. Back to the poor. I visited Mexico a few years ago, Mexico City. Some of those folks are POOR. I mean PO!!
Whole families live on the streets. Whole families. I watched a family share a bag of chips. While eating at a resturant, children would come up to the glass windows, press their dirty, hungry faces on the glass and beg. One cannot eat when you see those kids. The waiter tried to give us seats in the middle but we, in our ignorance insisted we wanted to sit by the window to get a view. We came out gave them some pesos and we back to eat. Before we could settle in, more kids came up to the glass. The waiter asked us to please move as the begging never stops.
The whole time we were there, the begging was non stop. Poverty was everywhere. It could not be ignored.
When I got back home, I had a different perspective on what and who is poor.
We in The Bahamas are not poor. We may have lived beyond our means and spent out monies badly, or made poor choices or had far too many children, but we cannot call ourselves poor.

Right off East Street, I have met families who survive off 100 dollars a week. A single mother with 3 children. I see them eat hot dog and rice for Sunday dinner and that was heir big meal...the specialty. Their usual diet is corn flakes. I have met several families like that off Market Streets. These are Bahamian families, not immigrants. Women and children who bathe outside...who still use outside toilets and their house nearly see through due to the numerous holes in the clap board house. Granted we in the Bahamas may not be as poor as the Mexicans...but we have people in this Bahams who hurting...who hurting so bad that their kids are forced to work at city market and at gas stations to add to their mothers small salary. We have too many poor people in this Bahamas.

This thread speaks volumes to how under-exposed most bahamians are.
I use to think I was poor until I started reading more and watching more documentaries on tv.
As a kid I use to wonder why tourist came to the bahamas. Aint beaches everywhere? Until a family trip to new york where I saw the hudson river...well the dirty part and then I just knew. This is all the water some people know and its awful.
You dont know how beautiful home is unless you go somewhere else.

I use to think I was middle class until I find out those who make up to 300k a year are middle class too...And I know I aint no place near that...