Between the rich and the poor

JAKARTA (JP): A young girl climbed the stairs to the main entrance of Plaza Senayan, one of Jakarta's prestigious shopping malls. She wore torn pants. They seemed to have been ripped purposely. The shreds were on both knees and the front and back part of both thighs.

A youngster standing on the pavement a few meters away turned to his friend and said: "Distortion. The poor want to be rich and the rich want to look poor".

His friend replied: "It has nothing to do with the rich and the poor. It's only fashion."

I was very sure they knew well the girl seemed to come from a well-to-do family, judging from her appearance and her car.

So what? What's wrong with that? Nothing.

But the words: "Distortion, the poor want to be rich and the rich want to look poor" seriously impressed me. I do not want to argue with them, but in our daily life we often come across distortions and odd things. Our world has become one of absurdity. Right has become wrong and wrong has become right.

How about the rich and the poor? Reality tells us that the poor want to be rich. But how about the rich who want to look poor? Isn't it crazy? No, not at all. There are some of us like that. They are rich but they live in little houses, drive in cheap or old used car and wear modest outfits in public.

This kind of person may have embraced the philosophy or concept that modesty and a low profile are beautiful.

What's wrong with them? Nothing. Whether they lead a simple life like that honestly and sincerely or as camouflage in order to keep a low profile is not our business. So, do not be surprised if you see a company director wear a shirt with a hole in it to work. He is happy with that. Just as happy as the young girl wearing the torn pants at Plaza Senayan.

Oddity is always around if we open our eyes to it. Let us put up a question. Where in the world does one have to pay a large amount of money just to get a job as a civil servant? Here, in our beloved country. Basically, one has to go to work to get paid, not the other way around. But here, this practice is accepted. One has to work for years to get back the money paid to get the job. Despite its oddity, it is widely accepted. There is no point of disputing it.

Let us return to the issue of the rich and the poor. Being poor is really unfortunate. Socially, the poor are always marginalized. The poor would rather go to traditional markets than plush malls like Plaza Senayan because they can not afford the lavish products on display. They even feel discouraged to be in the malls because they think they have to wear the right clothes.

If they saw a girl like the one with the torn pants at Plaza Senayan they might have a mixed reaction. First, they might wonder why a girl with indecent pants was allowed to enter the plaza. Second, they might feel they are represented by the young girl.

But this is only hypothetical because it is not easy to find poor people at such a luxurious plaza.

-- Sori Siregar