Hi Songster ~
I do not mean to discount, minimize, or invalidate the work ethic of immigrants, who preceded those I'm personally seeing. I know what you're saying is true about those, as well. People not born into "wealth" [even our poorest could be considered having a "silver spoon" when compared to some areas of the world] seem to, overall, have a greater appreciation of what resources can bring to a person's life. Some go hog-wild with it [the "Beverly Hillbillies" and the "new rich" phenomena], but overall, there seems to be a deeper appreciation.
I also agree with you about the Appalachian mountain people, and the resolve and tenacity that have come from out of those homes, and the dignity, honour, and class of those who have "made it" and not forgotten their roots. I also agree that poverty can bring about the worst in us. Yet, I also feel that the worst is more likely to surface, where expectations of what everyone "ought" to have is maximized by marketing and the societal status quo.
I'm not sure what you mean regarding my posts and general themes such as you mention. However, I don't see it as the particular areas of the world that make the difference, but the reactions/responses of those peoples to poverty that do. Oppression can create a kind of grace and acceptance that seems borne out of a necessity for survival. I'm thinking of the black people's reaction to slavery in the United States and how their deeply-spiritual roots evolved.
My mother was the daughter of two Polish immigrants, and my father was raised on a farm, and had to quit school in the 9th grade to help the family survive. He returned to high school at 19. I've seen the work ethic [often commonly referred to as the "Midwest work ethic"] up close and personal. That "the younger generations inevitably will become 'me-minded'," to me says much about our society. I've heard that some of these immigrant parents despair of what they see eroding in their own children. The adults [often young themselves, when they left their own country] had the original work ethic. My point in saying that is that, in their own country, the work ethic was still surging and they came here, bringing it with them.
Our country has been called the "melting pot" and "the greatest country in the world," yet our overriding materialism seems to be the fire, and our wealth and spending power the measure of "greatest." I often feel that there are many spiritually-bankrupt people here. We are a throwaway society, and that I don't see as a spiritual concept. We tend not to honour our commitments, from the bedroom to the world stage. Recycling only gradually takes hold with the refuse we create, from the food we eat, the items we buy. Our divorce rate is right at about 50%. One of the things I actively don't like, and that speaks to the bankruptcy, are the guilt-slogans on church marquees, trying to entice people to come inside. When I see them, I try to imagine seeing them outside a Zen or Buddhist temple, or a Muslim mosque. Fairly recently, a woman I know who travels often to Egypt recalled telling a Muslim friend, "I'll pray for you," to which he responded with confusion at such an idea. He explained to her that praying for him is not an event, but a multi-daily occurrence, that it's how they orient themselves, to themselves and the world around them, on an ongoing basis. Orient wasn't the exact word he used, but I can't recall what it was. That was the idea, however.
Even though I connected very strongly at one time with the Born-Again Christian movement and the "joyous noise unto the Lord," I still had a problem with the presumed necessity to yell ~ as well as the
expectation to proselytize, at all times, everywhere. If it's the truth, a whisper is sufficient. It's not necessary to yell something into another's consciousness. Likewise, living your faith, and gentle exchanges as they naturally occur, should be testimony enough.
I think with me that some areas of the world are given a kind of credit in a "default" kind of way. I've seen the American attitude here and in other countries. I'm glad to hear what Byron is saying, yet I see so much of it otherwise, right here. There's the saying about what dogs won't do in their own back yard. I see [otherwise fairly sensible] younger, college kids go "nuts" when they go on Spring Break to other states and cities. I've seen and heard about Americans abroad approaching others with a sense of entitlement, that English be the given language, that their needs be met first because they're gracing the shores of the other country,
from America. It's a kind of arrogance that doesn't bode well. I've seen visitors from other countries here who do so with a kind of humility and graciousness. Perhaps my views are somewhat skewed from all I've seen and heard. Yet, the things we do at the corporate/world politics level [and, as Byron has said, corporate greed is not restricted to a nationality or locale] seem to mirror what happens at the personal level, or vice versa.
Whose philosophy appears to be up whose alley? I couldn't tell which "his" went to which person. What is it that you know about Leonard's "latest 'guru' "? What better place to go into a discussion than here? It
is Leonard's
Forum.....and there's no rubber-stamping requirement on what he does.
"Lovesick puppies" ~ that phrase interests me. What do you mean when you say that? When I say that not everyone uses Leonard as a filter, I'm not saying that I consider Leonard an inadequate filter, either.
Just a note: When I used the word patina, I really should have used the word lustre. It connotes more what I mean, as patina is a genuine, time-worn process, whereas lustre tends to be more shallow, at least in the way I'm using it. Gloss would be an even better word [of course, the alliteration would be gone
], as it's more easily something externally applied.
~ Lizzytysh
Please, Songster, find some kind of way to listen to/read the transcript of the program Byron is directing people to. The details tell the story, and it's a compelling one. It's enough to justify a worldwide boycott of Coca-Cola products, when you hear in no uncertain terms how they are exploiting already-vastly-diminishing resources in other areas of the world. As Byron has already pointed out, they would
not be doing this here. Taking advantage of the poor is what it's all about, and the fertilizer issue is the unspeakable insult added to injury.
, as they are living some lessons that many of the "me"-minded would do well to learn. 