Jamie Oliver, you haven’t tasted real poverty. Cut out the tutting | Alex Andreou | Comment is free | theguardian.com
▻http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/27/jamie-oliver-poverty-ready-meals-tv
What I had not understood before I found myself in true poverty, and what Oliver probably does not, is that it means living in a world of “no”. Ninety-nine per cent of what you need is answered “no”. Ninety-nine per cent of what your kids ask for is answered “no”. Ninety-nine per cent of life is answered “no”. Cinema? No. Night out? No. New shoes? No. Birthday? No. So, if the only indulgence that is viable, that is within budget, that will not mean you have to walk to work, is a Styrofoam container of cheesy chips, the answer is a thunderous “YES”.
When their daily entertainment consists of sitting in a 4ft by 6ft semi-basement living room watching TV, you can rest assured people will make any sacrifice they must to at least get “a massive fucking TV”. In a world of “no”, you are grateful for every “yes”, no matter how illogical or how unhealthy. “When I was poor, I smoked,” said a friend recently, “but that was all I had for me. Cigarettes were the only thing I owned. I was a non-person.”