So I’ve been thinking about this a lot….
UPFRONT DISCLOSURE: This is my blog, and my OPINION. Nothing I try to write here is intended to be construed as fact. The following is a grossly over-exaggerated stereo-type from my very own point of view. But I think it has some validity (maybe only a wee bit, and that is really only the amount of validity anyone’s opinion has anyways, right?).
I give that disclosure because it seems like most things others observe these days are put out their as “the truth” because they are observing a small portion of the population and then making conclusions about said portion, and applying it to ALL. Therefore creating new stereotypes…
Okay, enough rambling on about opinion vs. fact. ON TO MY THOUGHTS ON:
Ta Da….
My observations about those who don’t want to be taxed and do not wish to help anyone who is “lazy”—which seems to mean “ALL people living in poverty.”
1. They give their kids anything they want to keep them quiet.
Examples through a child’s lifetime:
- Toddler throws a fit in a store, they don’t want a scene or to be embarrassed so they buy the kid what they want.
- Elementary kid says they are the “only kid without an iPhone”, they don’t want their kid to be the outsider or loser, so they buy the iPhone.
- Teenager complains incessantly about not having a car, they get tired of fighting with their kid (and having to drive them around) so they buy them a car.
- College graduate cannot find a job so they move back into their parents’ home rent-free, with free food and laundry services.
2. They give their kids rewards for doing what they should do.
Examples through a child’s lifetime:
- Toddler says their first word, they buy him/her a new toy.
- Elementary kid starts in sports and wins every game and every kid gets a big trophy.
- Teenager gets paid for each “A” or “B” or “C” depending upon that family’s definition of “achievement”.
- College graduate receives new car for graduating.
They are teaching their OWN kids to stick their hand out for a free ride! These kids make it to age 21 and haven’t rightfully earned a thing in their life. Someday, these same kids may become part of the workforce (if the right strings are pulled by Daddy & Mommy) and expect their jobs to be easy and well-paying.
So I ask you, if these families are choosing to raise their kids by giving them handouts without requiring any effort or work on the child’s part, why are we listening to their warped view of how to treat the rest of humanity?? I think they are lazy parents, raising lazy kids who don’t know how hard it may be to pull yourself up out of a bad situation. They are too lazy to expand their view of others who may have just fallen on hard times b/c they want to lump all folks in poverty into the same “lazy” category.
Okay, discussion is now open, b/c I want to hear other views so that I can change my opinion if necessary to advance the good of society….but please be gentle (remember my disclosure?). also see: http://sheilasjumpinoff.blogspot.com/2011/09/closed-minds-are-making-me-crazy.html
10 comments:
Sheila, my only comment is that you seem bent on caricaturizing the views of others. Take, for example, this phrase: "...those who don’t want to be taxed and do not wish to help anyone who is 'lazy'—which seems to mean 'ALL people living in poverty.'" I can't imagine that describes more than a handful of people, yet you seem to want to cast many into that mold.
"...'lazy'—which seems to mean 'ALL people living in poverty.'"--I've never heard anyone say that all the poor are lazy. Some are, though. There is anecdotal evidence of people who want a job without work, or want public assistance but chafe at any requirements that come with it. There are also plenty of poor who have worked extra hard, been frugal, and have been able to rise above their circumstances. Finally, there are those who strive, but just cannot get themselves out of poverty. I don't know of anyone who disparages the poor man who tries without succeeding.
"...do not wish to help anyone who is 'lazy'..."--Conservatives, who generally want less public assistance, are statistically much more generous in their private giving. THAT's where the help should come from, not some government program. There's no virtue in being generous with tax money.
"...those who don't want to be taxed..."--Find one reasonable person of means who has said he shouldn't have to pay taxes.
Mark,
In response to: "I don't know of anyone who disparages the poor man who tries without succeeding. <-- you haven't been reading all the comments on my FB posts from some of my high school "friends", but alas, you don't "know" them! ;-)
Thanks for your comment(s)--even tho your first statement was "my only comment is....", and then you had other comments to add! ;-)
Everyone is "bent" on something. This seems to be ONE of my bents and I'm not apologizing for it.
Mark-
While i have your attention for a little while, did you see this post?
http://sheilasjumpinoff.blogspot.com/2011/09/good-bible-story.html
thanks!
sheila
C'mon, Sheila. That was one comment, with a three-part detailed example. :-) You well know that if I were making multiple comments it would go on for at least five pages!
I saw that other post when you linked it on FB, Sheila. I didn't feel any need to comment at the time. Anything you want to sound me out on?
For every "rich" person you say does not care, I have had those "poor" work for me. Many of the "poor" take no personal responsibility for their lot in life. Their life choices are many times terrible. But, as you state, all "rich" are greedy. I will state that all the poor could fix their problems by lookng in the mirror.
Ron Sattele
Mark-no, just thought you would appreciate that my lost soul is still wandering back to Church once in a while! LOL!
Hey Ron! Thanks for the response. However, I'm not sure where I stated that all rich are greedy. As a matter of fact I bent over backwards to say my opinions were stereotypical, and I also made sure I said "NOT ALL" a few times. Sorry that you didn't get that impression. And, yes, there are SOME (not all) poor who can help themselves, most definitely!!! I do agree on that point, but also must defend my own words when they are not interpreted the way I intended.
Oh, I was glad to see that you had come back to the Church for a moment, even if under duress. That's why I didn't comment--I didn't want to risk saying anything that might accidentally put you off.
Still...if you ever want to just talk, you know how to get hold of me.
A story of a rich and famous person, having fallen into poverty because of the war, gets rent free housing: Coming full circle in the 1920s, Méliès scratched out a living by doing magic shows at French casinos. His first wife died, and in 1925 he married one of his former actresses, Charlotte Stéphanie Faëes, and the two operated a small toy kiosk at the Montparnasse train station in Paris. His fall from prominence was interrupted when French film journalist Léon Druhot spotted Méliès working in the toy shop and wrote about him. A retrospective of Méliès films, with several new prints, was organized in 1929 by theater owner and experimental film advocate Jean-Paul Mauclair, and Méliès was given a rent-free apartment in a housing development devoted to cinema pioneers. He appeared in two advertising films in the mid-1930s and was inducted into the French Legion of Honor. Méliès died in Paris on January 21, 1938. Painters of the Surrealist movement have cited Méliès as an influence, and his style is plainly reflected in the work of contemporary Canadian filmmaker Guy Maddin.
Read more: Georges Méliès Biography - life, family, name, history, wife, school, young, son, born, movie, time, year, Constructed Marionette Shows, Filmed Space Shot, Online http://www.notablebiographies.com/supp/Supplement-Ka-M/M-li-s-Georges.html#ixzz1dJvApPWM
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