Wealth or Destitution

Wealth or Destitution

May 12, 2019

If you are fearful that the new generation of voters don’t get it, read this article written by Alyssa Ahlgren. I think her analysis of why they think the way they do is fundamentally correct. 

 

“I’m sitting in a small coffee shop near Nokomis trying to think of what to write about. I scroll through my newsfeed on my phone looking at the latest headlines of Democratic candidates calling for policies to “fix” the so-called injustices of capitalism. I put my phone down and continue to look around. I see people talking freely, working on their MacBook’s, ordering food they get in an instant, seeing cars go by outside, and it dawned on me. We live in the most privileged time in the most prosperous nation and we’ve become completely blind to it. Vehicles, food, technology, freedom to associate with whom we choose. These things are so ingrained in our American way of life we don’t give them a second thought. We are so well off here in the United States that our poverty line begins 31 times above the global average. Thirty. One. Times. Virtually no one in the United States is considered poor by global standards. Yet, in a time where we can order a product off Amazon with one click and have it at our doorstep the next day, we are unappreciative, unsatisfied, and ungrateful.

 

Our unappreciation is evident as the popularity of socialist policies among my generation continues to grow. Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently said to Newsweek talking about the millennial generation, “An entire generation, which is now becoming one of the largest electorates in America, came of age and never saw American prosperity.”

 

Never saw American prosperity. Let that sink in. When I first read that statement, I thought to myself, that was quite literally the most entitled and factually illiterate thing I’ve ever heard in my 26 years on this earth. Now, I’m not attributing Miss Ocasio-Cortez’s words to outright dishonesty. I do think she whole-heartedly believes the words she said to be true. Many young people agree with her, which is entirely misguided. My generation is being indoctrinated by a mainstream narrative to actually believe we have never seen prosperity. I know this first hand, I went to college, let’s just say I didn’t have the popular opinion, but I digress.

 

Let me lay down some universal truths really quick. The United States of America has lifted more people out of abject poverty, spread more freedom and democracy, and has created more innovation in technology and medicine than any other nation in human history. Not only that but our citizenry continually breaks world records with charitable donations, the rags to riches story is not only possible in America but not uncommon, we have the strongest purchasing power on earth, and we encompass 25% of the world’s GDP. The list goes on. However, these universal truths don’t matter. We are told that income inequality is an existential crisis (even though this is not an indicator of prosperity, some of the poorest countries in the world have low-income inequality), we are told that we are oppressed by capitalism (even though it’s brought about more freedom and wealth to the most people than any other system in world history), we are told that the only way we will acquire the benefits of true prosperity is through socialism and centralization of federal power (even though history has proven time and again this only brings tyranny and suffering).

 

Why then, with all of the overwhelming evidence around us, evidence that I can even see sitting at a coffee shop, do we not view this as prosperity? We have people who are dying to get into our country. People around the world destitute and truly impoverished. Yet, we have a young generation convinced they’ve never seen prosperity, and as a result, elect politicians dead set on taking steps towards abolishing capitalism. Why? The answer is this, my generation has ONLY seen prosperity. We have no contrast. We didn’t live in the great depression, or live through two world wars, or see the rise and fall of socialism and communism. We don’t know what it’s like not to live without the internet, without cars, without smartphones. We don’t have a lack of prosperity problem. We have an entitlement problem, an ungratefulness problem, and it’s spreading like a plague.

 

With the current political climate giving rise to the misguided idea of a socialist utopia, will we see the light? Or will we have to lose it all to realize that what we have now is true prosperity? Destroying the free market will undo what millions of people have died to achieve.

 

My generation is becoming the largest voting bloc in the country. We have an opportunity to continue to propel us forward with the gifts capitalism and democracy has given us. The other option is that we can fall into the trap of entitlement and relapse into restrictive socialist destitution. The choice doesn’t seem too hard, does it?” Amen and Amen!

 

Alyssa Ahlgren

 

Table of Contents: https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/6813612681836200616/3382423676443906063?hl=en

A Good Day

 A Good Day

November 20, 2014

 

I met a young, black, truck driver in the parking lot of gas station in the tiny, cross-roads town of Roans Prairie, TX.   Our eyes met and he said, “How are you?”

 

“Good,” I replied. “How are you?”

 

“Very good,” he said.

 

I entered the store, found an experimental, feta cheese-spinach hot roll to snack on while driving toward Huntsville. There were a couple of guys in line in front of the cash register and I joined the line. A young, white guy came walking by from behind who was also ready to check out.   He looked at me and said “The girl at the other cash register is free.” OK, here was a fellow who could have simply gone to the other resister ahead of me and I would never have though much about it.  But he showed the kind of courtesy one often finds in small towns and offered for me go first.  I was in no big hurry, but I think that folks who do you a favor usually feel good about their act of kindness, so I chose not to deny him his pleasure. 

 

The lady at the second cash register had been calling to me to explain that she could check me out -- but I didn’t hear her.  So when I bellied up to her checkout counter, I explained that "I’m a slightly deaf fellow and didn’t hear you call.”

 

She smiled and said, “I understand.” Then she proceeded to pull a hearing aid out of her ear, and said “It drives me nuts when the microwave alarm goes off.” 

 

I hurried to finish the checkout because the courteous fellow was standing in line behind me and it did not seem right to keep him waiting any longer then necessary. I smiled at him as I passed and said “Thanks.”   He smiled back.

 

I followed a tall, handsome Mexican-looking fellow to the door and he held the door open for me.

 

So, in the spate of maybe 10 minutes, I experienced pleasant interactions with four different people. Knowing that there are plenty of unpleasant folks somewhere down the road, I cherish these simple acts of civilized people.  I try as best I can to reciprocate.  I realize that my advanced age has something to do with their behavior — but what the heck — that’s OK.

 

Pat found a preferred small, country road on the map so that we could leave the very busy, two-lane, Highway 30 that connects Bryan to Huntsville. Our new route took our little motorhome through the Sam Houston National Forest and we soon found a gravel side-road that led to a parking lot at the head of a forest walking trail. We understand that sitting for extended periods of time while driving is unhealthy, so we decided to take a walk. But first, a short nap was essential. I woke to the mellow sound of a breeze blowing through pine trees and all was well in the world -- especially after we cranked up the generator and microwaved a bag of hot, tasty popcorn.

 

We tried to walk reasonably fast so as to get some exercise, but we kept getting side-tracked. “Look at this tiny, pretty, white flower,” Pat said. 

 

Then “What is this tree with the leaf showing three lobes,” I asked.

 

“Let me think,” Pat replied. “Is it a Sassafras?”

 

“I think you got it. Good for you,” I said.

 

We wondered if we could grow this fern in our forest or if that shrub is a myrtle. It slowed our walk, but made it interesting. 

 

After walking and enjoying nature for maybe 30 minutes, we decided to return. “I’m gonna walk fast,” Pat said. I tried to keep up with her, but failed.

 

We drove a few miles further till we found a handsome, well maintained, country cemetery on the top of a hill. For us, a cemetery is like a kind of museum where interesting stories can be found. And, of course, they are a place where it is easy to imagine the incredible sorrow of families burying their dead. In this cemetery, the story that we found of most interest was that of Hezekiah Faris. He came to Texas in 1835, fought at the battle of San Jacinto, and for his service, received 640 acres of the land on which this cemetery is found. Many headstones in this cemetery are testament to the fact that the Faris family have lived continuously in this community ever since Hezekian cut down his first pine tree here.

 

Later, after eating some tasty pot roast at the Golden Corral in Huntsville, we checked into Huntsville State Park, had a long, one-sided, conversation with a fisherman about the 10-pound black bass that he almost caught there one time, the best state parks in Texas, the alligators that will eat your fish on your stringer, the demise of horned toads — and such. 

 

Finally, we retired to our cozy motorhome. 

 

It was a good day today. What new gentle adventures await tomorrow?

 

Table of Contents: https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/6813612681836200616/3382423676443906063?hl=en