"Deep Stuff"
Some good ideas don't work right when you plug them in:
- Communism;
- Capitalism, and/or The Free Market System;
- Democracy;
- Force feeding school subjects to kids;
- History;
- Geography;
- Religion;
- Unions;
- Freedom of Speech;
- Sex.
- Communism. Communism sounds great. Everybody works together partners
(comrades), and all share in the goodies. We've seen that when you plug it in it
causes poverty, shortages, a police state, and a tendency to want to take over
the world.
- Capitalism. Capitalism and/or The Free Market System sounds good. The problem
is that the rich and powerful keep trying to take more from the masses, and give
them less in return. And don't tell me the rich all deserve to be rich. Most of them
are born with it. Greed spoils it, like most other systems. The anti-trust laws were
designed to curb this trend, but they aren't used much.
- Democracy. Many people say this country was not even meant to be a democracy.
They say it's a republic. A semantic argument. The Electoral College is an example
of our founders' views. They figured the American people are not smart enough to
vote. Maybe they were right. Look at the top 50 TV show ratings.
It's been said that the only good form of government is a benevolent king. But even
if you can find one, he has to die sometime, and his son is probably nuts.
- Schooling. Every child should learn reading, writing and arithmetic. Geography
changes with political boundaries. People who think they own this or that hunk
of the earth are like fleas fighting over who owns the dog.
We've traveled through all the states, and I've never seen the dotted lines between
the states. Geography is good, but it's not permanent, and partly imaginary.
- History. History is a collection of opinions, usually written by the winners,
the dominant powers. The truth may be in there, but you have to look for it.
- Religion. Religion can be a wonderful thing. Or it can cause wars. I like to
call myself "spiritual". I spend a lot of time at my church. I carry it around with me.
- Unions. Unions can be good and bad. Before James Petrillo made the Musicians
Union into a power, the musicians were the next thing to slaves. The union gave us
a living, and some dignity. Our union has no clout anymore.
When I belonged to the Teamsters, I went to one meeting. The guys running it
seemed like gangsters. One member stood up and asked a question, and was told to
sit down and shut up. My personal opinion is: They've done more good than bad.
The little guys have no power at all unless they stick together. I don't think the
charity of the rich can be depended upon.
- Freedom of Speech. The thing that bothers me most about it is this:
Other people's opinions.
- Sex. Maybe it should be outlawed. It can lead to dancing.
"The greatest evil and the worst crime is poverty." G.B. Shaw.
I hope they don't arrest you for it. A lot of us are in trouble.
Copyright © May 10, 2001 by Jack Blanchard. All rights reserved.
