I return to this theme, as once again, the term 'underclass' is being used to refer to the poor which is simply incorrect. What the victorians used to call the 'undeserving poor' is nearer the mark and even Karl Marx had a moment of partial lucidity when he wrote of the lumpenproletariat which, according to his prejudices, consisted of:
"This scum of the depraved elements of all classes ... decayed roués, vagabonds, discharged soldiers, discharged jailbirds, escaped galley slaves, swindlers, mountebanks, lazzaroni, pickpockets, tricksters, gamblers, brothel keepers, tinkers, beggars, the dangerous class, the social scum, that passively rotting mass thrown off by the lowest layers of the old society." [A bit harsh there in parts, Karl - but we do get the point.]
My definition is never one which includes the pathetic, the mentally ill or the socially incompetent but rather that ever growing, malicious, parasitical, criminal group which undermines the very fabric of society - and who are allowed the luxury to do so effectively unchallenged. Their lifestyle is often significantly higher than that of the toilers for minimum wage who live close by them.
