I attended a local business forum, and we were having coffee and discussing ways to encourage entrepreneurship when one of my co-panelist commented that the poor will always be with us.

I have never thought about it this way, and quickly begged to disagree.

"We are much better off economically than our counterparts 30 years ago, who were certainly better off than THEIR counterparts 60 years ago.  We are getting better, and we will continue, and it is not too much to think that we should soon join the leagues of the developed countries in a matter of due time.  It is possible that we can eradicate poverty."

"So the poor will not always be with us, but the feeling of poverty will always be.  Because even in the most advanced economies, where the ‘poor’ are relatively very well off, they are not happy, nor satisfied, because if our definition of being poor is not being as well off as our next door neighbor or the person is still wanting in certain needs, that will never go away. "

"Being contented is still a rare virtue, and for the majority, they will continue to feel poor irregardless of how far we have gone.  In a country where the income per capita is $800, the person earning $400 will feel poor.  IN a country where per capita is $22,000, the person earning less than $10,000 will feel poor.

Is it not a credible observation that we human beings will never be satisfied?