December 28, 2004
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topic: quick thoughts
1) the guy on CNN has a wicked English accent
2) How ridiculous is this tsunami…i still can’t fathom this being real. For the countried of India, Thailand, Malaysia, and all the areas most affected, the 23,000 dead, the thousands more missing, the loss felt, the destruction, this will be their 9/11. Life there will be looked at as, life after 12/27/04, their world will never be the same, and yet, I sense that in a week, we as a country will naturally return to US issues, and that disturbs me. Thailand was definately a country on my “must visit” list, and for at least a generation I would think, life there will be drastically different.
3) I began work at ESPN zone, got back at 1am, need to be up to work in the morning, not used to these quick turn-arounds. Job is ok, got to watch quite a bit of tv, learned a lot of what needed to be learned. Essentially…I’m trying to put a positive spin on the upcoming 2 months. This job is certainly one in which I will feel alienated from my labor. I hate the idea of restaurants in general, although I frequent them. There is so much food wasted, so much money wasted ($10 for a burger I could make for half and $5 beers that I could buy 6 of), plus, it’s my job to encourage people to spend more, even if they don’t need to spend more, and even if they don’t need to eat or drink more. Anyways…I obviously don’t think restaurants are all that bad, I don’t oppose them, and I don’t think me working or not working at one makes a difference. It just flies in the face of what I really value.
However, to spin it positively, it is humbling. It is humbling to do work that is not meaningful to me, but, is a means to money. It is humbling to do work with others who are not like me, who NEED this job for money, who cannot find work that is personally meaningful. It is humbling to me to know that for some people, this work is personally meaningful. It is humbling to me to know that my view of life is my view based on my life experiences and background, and humbling to know that others view life differently for perfeclty legitimate reasons.
My thoughts on this are not well thought out…but they’re thoughts that are there. I am privilaged to not have ever had to work to support myself for the most part. However, because of that priviliage, I feel that I have both the privilage, the ability, and mostly the responsibility to do something positive with it. Bringing people food is not part of the plan, I think, however, it’s a means to and end, whatever that end is. Ugh…I hate thinking, and overthinking everything, it’s really a curse, i’m going to bed.
Comments (5)
yes, yet catastrophes such as typhoons regularly rock india (about a year ago i remember 50,000 displaced), and hundreds die in Sudan, or in Ethiopia, seems we hear so little, and forget so easily.
i like your use of the word “privileged”
From your perspective, it would be best if some of those excess riches were used to help uplift the poor”
No, it would be best, as I said, if we stopped worrying about the wealth gap. It is true that the majority of people who are poor are poor through no “fault” of their own. However, by suggesting taking money from the rich, you are implying that the rich are somehow responsible, and they are not.
And wealth that goes towards helicopters and 800 room houses is a very good thing. It creates jobs for the less fortunate. This is like the infamous “yacht tax” in Florida, which was calculated to hit the poor almost three times as much as the rich. The rich simply spent their money elsewhere.
I am well aware what that Europeans/Americans are largely responsible for the killing/destruction of the Native Americans, thank you very much. In your indignation, however, you fail to explain how this makes a difference. I don’t know about you, but to me, a key ingredient to the existance of a successful culture is, you know, continuing to exist. If your culture is resistant to technological progress, well, that’s a pretty fatal flaw, isn’t it? If your people are weak, and easily susceptible to disease, again, you have a serious problem (A lot of Natives died en masse from European diseases, but there was hardly any reverse effect, Europeans dying from Native diseases).
Dan – I love reading about your growth. I can literally see your brain growing and encompassing new knowledges. It’s fascinating to watch.
I say we challenge thatliberalmedia to a brawl. If he’s strong enough to survive a beat down by poor people, I guess he’ll get to survive.
Why, after all, should laws protect economic strength more than physical strength? Seems to me if you believe “only the strong survive,” you’ll be willing to fight for your survival daily.
I know what you mean about “the curse,” but it’s a joy to read your thoughts. I’ve taken my overthinking private (for now), but I still enjoy reading that of others. It’s sad that too many people fail to think about life much at all.