IT’S too sad for many of us to think about those out in the cold, who’ve genuinely had to give up a functional lifestyle for a life on the streets.
The closest I’ve been to that was as a boy in my teens, lying in a bush beside my own vomit. The only thing I gave up on that occasion was my dignity, and perhaps the push I needed to drink less and make smarter choices.
Therein lies a pointed moral to this story – that most of us don’t know what it’s like to give up the luxuries we’ve become accustomed to.
In the media, we’re often sent surveys which come wrapped in a ribbon with the expectation we’ll blindly publish statistics from a sample of 100 people as if it’s data scraped from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
But this week there was an interesting one from Compare the Market, a company that prides itself on finding us all cheap insurance, among other things.
They asked 1010 people what they’d be prepared to give up, or more importantly what they weren’t prepared to sacrifice in the face of a sharply rising cost of living.
I’ve spoken in this column about my love of an occasional fast food outing, a fat-soaked piece of chicken or a mass-pressed rissole wrapped up in bread they’ve mysteriously created to survive a week past the used by date of any normal bun.
But if I had to substitute my spiced-up chicken leg for an oversized nugget that’s been disguised as a schnitzel at the supermarket, I’d cope.
Similarly, if I had to burn my own buns, I’d be fine to pop a patty on the stove to keep myself from staying hungry. I wouldn’t have to worry about throwing away the pickle.
If I had to find a substitute for coffee, I’m sure I could find a way. Tea, anyone?
Some sacrifices are easy, particularly when money is tight. We prioritise, and ultimately determine that a roof over our head is high on the agenda.
Others aren’t so lucky. They’re prioritising survival over all else, giving up their warm beds and blankets, all while surviving on one malnutritious meal a day.
But this survey, probably conducted in the affluent suburbs of Melbourne, tells us one in five people – 20% – wouldn’t be willing to give up fast food or their favourite caffeinated beverage.
What arrogant, self-entitled dolt thinks this is a fair response to a question that requires some thought and empathy. It riles me to the core, makes my blood curdle, to think that anybody could say they’d refuse to pull back on lattes to help make ends meet.
But then I re-think. They’ve been asked a question. And they’ve responded without thought for an unforeseen outcome. They’ve answered on a platform which currently provides them creature comforts.
Would I give up my morning beans if I was a bit short for cash? Hell no, I’d use the machine at work.
No way am I giving up my two-all-beef anything for anyone, they say. Why would they? They work hard, they’re suited up, and kebabs are a well-priced go-to.
You see, if they wake up in their own vomit by a bush, they figure they’ve only got themselves to blame.
Because they’ve never been abused by a partner, unable to get a job, or found themselves sleeping in a car with little more than the shirt on their back.
Three percent of the well-to-do clowns in the survey said they’d never give up gambling. It’s tough to gamble without money, or a phone, or a shower..
Maybe they’ve plotted how they’ll resort to a life of crime to feed their addiction, but as is often the case with these surveys, context is lost in the brevity which provides a means to a convenient end – letting you know that we’re the good guys because we understand you (and your insurance needs).
What wouldn’t you give up, they ask. Yet, what they don’t ask is what you would do if you were forced, through no fault of your own, to give up your lifestyle, your home, your TV.
To the 17.2% who say they value their health and beauty appointments the most, I say that’s great for the salon owners.
It’s not, however, a pragmatic view of a problem which is no longer tucked away in a corner, festering its way into the core of our communities with increasing frequency.
Poverty, homelessness, increasing cost of living isn’t something deserving of a flippant response.
Hey Wanda, electricity prices have gone up again and we’ve still got too many lights on. Let’s give this some thought.
