Here is a question: How does the United States of America produce less than 5% of the worlds resources, consume upwards of 75% of the worlds resources, export hardly any cost effective products, and import nearly ever modern commodity, yet still remain one of the richest nations in the world? It isn't logical that America spends more money to maintain itself than any other nation in the world, buying even our own "American made cars" from the cheap labor of China.
I'm not an economist, so perhaps the exact financial reason is fully explainable, but to be honest I really dont care. I only bring up the question to make a finer point about what seems to be a root cause of personal and political differences. Let me explain.
There are a few ironies in the way things work, at least as i see them. When America was founded, the general idea was that each person was willing to work hard for their freedoms and possessions. Things weren't easy, and that was good. This is the root of the old adage "Nothing worth having is easy" or "Freedom isnt free". Because of technology, or political shift, or social "enlightenment", the two hundred forty years since the Deceleration of independence have seen the the birt of the modern world market.
Americans want their goods cheap, but at the same time, we join unions to make sure we are payed fairly and equally at a higher grade than nearly any other nation. We want to have a lot of money, and make sure everyone gets the same amount whether they are good workers or not, and we expect to buy everything we need for cheap.
This creates a problem. Manufacturers are expected to pay all their good and bad employees a high rate for products that their consumers expect to get for low cost. Now add in government induced business taxes, and what is left as a solution? Can we wonder why businesses send their factories to China and India, where the labor is cheap because there are no unions? The loss of American jobs can be blamed in part on "big business", but what other option do we leave them if we expect the best for nothing.
Then we wonder why they things we buy are cheaply made. Does anyone remember the problems we had with Chinese made toys having lead based paint?
The root problem is this: Americans are so used to having everything, that now they expect it without cost. We have forgotten that everything we have is a result of someones hard work. Nothing is free, nothing comes easily, that is the truth of it.
We have strayed so far into the irony that now we even believe that the unemployed deserve to be taken care of even though they dont work. I;m nto saying those with money shouldnt give to those who dont, but to quote comedian Brad Stine "If yo didnt have a place to live, the didnt give you government housing, they gave you an axe. See that group of trees over there? Thats your new duplex." Another saying goes: "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime" My Point is this; our providing for the unemployed doesnt mean giving them what they dont have, and enabling them to continue as they are. No man should live without working for what he has.
Here is a solution that makes a lot of sense, but Americans are frankly too lazy to ever try: Start a company, for the sake of argument, lets just say a car company. Lets employ American workers, and not give heed to the unions who demand equal high pay. Let's expect a small salary at the beginning, because costs are high. The cars we make will be expensive, but they will be good quality cars. Lets buy our good quality cars because they are good and they are American made and they support American jobs. The more cars we buy, the more we can be paid for the good, hard work we do.
Expecting that what we have should come cheap and easy, from our cars, to our homes, to our American liberties, only leads to cheap and lazy Americans.
(NEW! Quotable Quotes) Segment 2: Voting
"If we Vote for McCain, we sin. If we Vote for Obama, We sin. If we Say we Vote for Ron Paul, we lie and there is no truth in us" -Paul and Nancy Sisson
(NEW! Newsworthy,Notables) Segment 3: Hoogendyk
The Senatorial Debate: Hoogendyk V. Levin
Jack Hoogendyk Home Page
Segment 4: Eighteen
I'm less than a week away from the "most important" birthday of my life so far. Eighteen marks the legal age of "adulthood". I can now vote, drive, manage my own finances, and make my own decisions according to law.
Anyone who knows me well at all will attest to my love of birthdays. Its the selfhish little boy in me that will always love the day every year that we celebrate my life. As a child my love language was gifts, so it always excited me to know i was gonna get stuff. But things seem different this year. I havent been counting the days or making a list of things i want. It even slips my mind that im even having a birthday.
Dont get me wrong, i want to distance myself from the disaster that was my seventeenth year. I made alot of mistakes and lost some very good friends.
My mom is also having a birthday soon, and hers is an important number aswell. Because are birthdays are 11 days apart, we decided to have a joint costume/birthday party on Nov 1st, and invite some close friends.It hit me really hard that i could only think of two people to invite that werent on my moms list. In 18 years I havent made any friends that I feel i can invite to my birthday celebration. What hurts worst is that two of the people I would most like ot be there wont be because of somethings i did.
As for the number eighteen. I dont see its significance. I've had two siblings make the wors mistakes of their life after turning eighteen, so i dont really consider it a sign of adulthood. In face most eighteen year olds i know are less mature. I disagree with laws that give full rights at such an age. But it doesnt really matter. I am still under my parents, untill I am ready to be on my own. Age will have nothing to do with it.
Segment 5: "I Just Can"
This is a segment of one of the Ebooks im writing. It is older, and unedited, so my typing and grammatical issues arent corrected, and it jumps in part way through the story. The full thing Can be read at The Hunter Diaries
Hanna watch, slightly perplexed as the fire grew under his hands. Still watching the flames, her curiosity got the better of her, "
"Hunter."
Hanna jumped at his word, having already forgot her question "
"Khannyah" He replied, "
"Hunter..." She repeated, letting the word echo through her mind. It echoed and echoed for what felt like only a few minutes. The next thing she knew was that the fire was gone altogether, and she could see nothing. Realizing she must have fallen asleep, Hanna cutiously began to crawl across the cave floor. The peaceful feeling that had been keeping her calm up till now was gone, and the fear, anger, and sadness that it had been warding off returned with a vengace, but fear the most prevalent. The memory of what happened to her grandfather, in addition to the cold blackness of the cave she didn't know her way out of terrified her. Then there was this mysterious man with the mask and swords who called himself Hunter. Suddenly, not knowing where he was made her anxious, afraid of what he might do to her. Realizing that in the total blackness, he might be only inches from her without her knowing it, and she froze, waiting. She began to cry, yet trying to to make a sound.
Something touched Hanna on the shoulder and she screamed, and it was gone. There was stillness again for a second and a fire ignited form across the room, where she thought she had been. The golden flame glowed, growing in light, and floating an inch above the gloved hand of Hunter. Again curiosity overwhelmed her fear.
"
Hanna was the first to react. "
Hunter looked hat the girl through his helmet, trying to understand what had just happened. He was unable to find the right words because of his limited knowledge of t he language she spoke. One moment before Hanna was on all fours, not moving in the darkness. His keen eyes could see well enough without the light, so he had reach out to touch her, and let her know where she was in the room. the moment he touched her, she cried out and was on the other side of the small cavern, cowering against the wall. No sound other than her voice had been made, no discernable movement, but she had gone from one point to another instantaneously.
After several minutes of Hunter trying to convey what had just happened, Hanna sighed heavily, getting he general idea.
"
"" Hanna replied, "
Hunter was silent for a moment, "" With that he stood up as much as possible in the shallow cave room and motioned for her to follow him. "It morning. We go now."
A level of calmness settled over her again and Hanna followed Hunter out of the cave-room through a small outlet she hadn't seen before. After about a ten minute walk through the narrow stone passage, the emerges out of the side of a mountain into broad daylight.
Hanna looked around, squinting as her eyes adjusted tot he natural light. Around her was only desert, witha mountain behind. as she search for some sign as to where they were she noticed what she first thought was another mountain range off to the distance, but it didnt seem quite right. The mointains were shining in the sun and were oddly shaped for mountains. She was somewhat astonished to realizs that she was looking at buildings, not moutains. The Vary tall buildings of a massive city, miles in the distance. She looked at hunter, sheilding her eyes fromt he glare of the sun off of his helmet. "Is that where we are going?" she asked.
Hunter nodded. "Centuron"
Segment 5: Untitled
I open my eyes
I try to see but I’m blinded by the white light
I can’t remember how
I can’t remember why
I’m lying here tonight
And I can’t stand the pain
And I can’t make it go away
No I can’t stand the pain
Everybody’s screaming
I try to make a sound but no one hears me
I’m slipping off the edge
I’m hanging by a thread
I wanna start this over again
So I try to hold onto a time when nothing mattered
And I can’t explain what happened
And I can’t erase the things that I’ve done
No I can’t
How could this happen to meI made my mistakes
I’ve got no where to run
The night goes on
As I’m fading away
I’m sick of this life
I just wanna scream
How could this happen to me
No comments:
Post a Comment