Global Social Inequality: An Insight

I would just like to post a link to a very insightful article (although this course focuses on inequality in the U.S., looking away from our shores for a minute can't hurt):

http://www.homelessnation.org/en/node/7412

It contains a collection of pictures that details how much families around the world spend on food every week, and how much food they consume. Aside from being an interesting take on assessing global standards of living, it also brings to mind social inequality as it makes us realise that the problem is not confined to a single country. How much one family eats in a week is also representative of the affluence of the household and what constitutes the "standard" in a country. The fact that the family from Chad survives on less than US$2 a week in comparison to the American family's $300 a week is indicative of the inequality that is prevalent around the world. Looking at the types and quantity of food consumed adds further insight into this analysis. Of course, family size should be taken into account for more accuracy.

Another thing about this article is that it made me compare my own family's food consumption and expenditure in relation to these families' and assess my own social standing. As with all types of documents or statistics, its validity and reliability must be taken into account, and perhaps the families depicted here are not the best indicators of consumption or the best representatives of the average family in these cultures. Regardless of that, this puts our lifestyles into real perspective and it is that aspect of the article that I found most engaging.