The demands of the poor
The three demands that poor people made whenever they were able to make demands were for the cancellation of debts, the abolition of debt bondage, and the redistribution of land. What does that mean, and why did they do it?
Let me tell you a little story:
At some point, people began to live in villages, and they began to get their food from farming. But some years there was not enough rain to grow enough food. Rather than starve to death when there was no rain, this one couple, Imgua and Iltani, got in the habit of asking their neighbors for food. Imgua and Iltani had these neighbors, Bittatum and Baba, who had really good land, and they always seemed to have enough food to give Imgua and Iltani. So they didn't starve, and they were really grateful to Bittatum and Baba and gave them presents in return as much as they could.
Then after a while, when there was a bad year Imgua and Iltana went to Bittatum and Baba to ask for food, and Bittatum and Baba were just getting sick of lending Imgua and Iltani food all the time, and they said, "Okay, but you will have to pay us back TWICE as much food when you have some." Of course rather than starve Imgua and Iltani agreed. So then when the rain fell, Imgua and Iltani worked hard to pay back the debt. But their land wasn't that good, and they had a lot of kids, and they just could not seem to ever get that debt paid off.
Then another bad year came, and again Imgua and Iltani
went to Bittatum and Baba to ask for food. This time, Bittatum and Baba
said, "Okay, but you already owe us a debt, you know. This time, if
you don't pay off the debt we will take your land, okay?" And Imgua and
Iltani said okay, because otherwise they would starve.
But again they couldn't really pay off the debt. One day Bittatum and Baba
came with some big mean guys who worked for them and took the land.
But they said Imgua and Iltani could still live there, only now they would
have to pay rent on it to Bittatum and Baba.
Why did people want to punch Socrates?
Where did Egyptians bury your liver?
How old are the Rocky Mountains?
What does a half-timbered house look like?
How do you spin wool?
(a project)
Well, the next time a bad year came, not only did Imgua
and Iltani owe Bittatum and Baba money, but they also got behind on the
rent. Bittatum and Baba said, " We'll give you food, but if you don't
catch up on the rent and pay off your debts, we'll make you and your
kids our slaves, okay?" And Imgua and
Iltani said okay, because otherwise they would starve. But they didn't
feel so friendly toward Bittatum and Baba anymore.
But again they couldn't really pay off the debt. One day Bittatum and Baba
came with some big mean slaves of
theirs and said that now Imgua and Iltani and their kids were all slaves.
They could stay on the land and keep farming it, but all the food would
go to Bittatum and Baba, and they would just give back just enough to
keep Imgua and Iltani and their kids going.
Well, when Baba decided he wanted to be tyrant,
and asked Imgua and Iltani to support him, he asked them what he could do
for them in return. And they said: "Cancel our debts, make us not be
slaves anymore, and give back our land!" and those are exactly the demands
that poor people always made, all around the Mediterranean, whenever
they got a chance.
Some examples are Greece under Solon and Pisistratus, and Rome in the time of Tiberius Gracchus.
Main government page
