Quote:
Originally Posted by piece-itpete
Anyone who thinks we DON'T have more spending cash is crazy! Look around - how much crap do you have? How much did we used to have?
Pete
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Priorities have changed, for one thing. Through the 1940s through the 1970s my father fed and raised a family of nine on a single blue collar income. Try that today, Pete. It just isn't going to happen. Most families are much smaller today and must bring in two incomes or more, to get by.
Raising large families was the "thing" back then. Our generation is more obsessed with material possessions. "Things" seem to have become more important to us than people. Though I am just as guilty as anyone, I believe this is our shame and the root of many of todays problems.
Ask yourself this;
"How many people do I know that struggle just to keep food in their bellies and a roof over their heads than did when I was a kid?"
For me, this represents a number I regard as far too high.
I am currently reading "Losing Our Way" by Bob Herbert. There is a line in the book that rings true from my experiences;
(Paraphrased)
"It seemed that so long as he worked hard and kept his nose clean, a young man could find rewarding work at a local factory and start a family, almost straight out of high school. Then, at some point a couple had to bring in a second income in order to maintain the same decent standard of living. Over the last 15 years or so, this has declined to a situation wherein millions of Americans work, many working multiple part time jobs and find themselves in need of public assistance anyways."
We may differ somewhat on our notions of how we arrived at this state, but neither of us can deny that we as a nation, have. And, I think we can both agree that it is, or at least should be, unacceptable.
When did we lose the belief that Americans could find a better way than this?
When did we resign ourselves to the idea that life, for so many people, is just going to suck and that's just how it is?
I don't know about you, my friend. Bu I have lost sleep wondering about this.
It really does make me that sad.
Dave