Friday, July 8, 2011

Finding a way forward

Many reach out to the government like they did their parents when they were little. But that isn't what I was taught as a young man growing up in the 1950s. I was taught self-reliance. I wish this were taught more today. Until the 1930s there was no social security or unemployment compensation at all. You either found a way to survive or you didn't and many people died whenever the breadwinner of a family got too ill to work. That was just the way it was from about 1620 when people first started colonizing the U.S. from Europe. So, understanding our history in this way makes all of us stronger. Before the 1930s people with infirmities of all kinds usually died young unless they had rich relatives to help support them. Only the very strongest survived. This was especially true in the Wild West of the 1800s. It is important not to forget who we once were and how we all survived despite any wars or problems that arose in our past as a nation. It appears we are entering a phase now that reminds one of life before the 1930s where only the strongest survive once again. Is this a good thing? Probably not. But if any of us want to survive we must recognize that this is reality at least for now.

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