Um, okay. I went to boarding school with a lot of African girls who are upper middle class. Yes, I think they think about those problems. BUT this sort of thing has come up before on MN and I've discussed it with them and they are amazed how out of touch some people are about what life is like for more ordinary in the 3rd world in Africa. I'll give you some examples of them relating to your post:
- do you really think people in 'third world countries' are so busy being poor that they don't care about what their hair looks like in the rain
They're often more worried if it will rain at all. 65% of sub Saharan Africans are subsistence farmers and many more depend on agriculture. So when it rains, most subsaharan Africans are busy running around collecting water and checking their irrigation systems. Not worrying about how their hair looks.
or what kind of drink to serve when their friends come over
1 in 9 people in the world don't have access to a safe or clean water supply. Getting water is often an arduous and lengthy process and quite often the water you do get can make you very sick or kill you. This is a particular problem in subsaharan Africa again, there you are more likely to be worrying about anybody in your family having anything to drink rather than if red or white or fizz is more appropriate.
which school to send their kids to
In subsaharan Africa only 22% of primary aged children are not in school. Only 63% of adults are literate.
The primary worry would be being able to access education for your children. Not which school they should go to. In rural areas there is usually no choice at all and children travel long distances on foot to be educated.
or what car to buy?
In most subsaharan African countries car ownership is very low, as little as 2 per 1,000 people in Somalia and Togo and 3 in Bangladesh.
I find it quite strange people don't seem to realise that western lifestyles aren't everywhere and that they really are for a privileged few in poorer countries.