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Living in such a rich country, it is easy for us to take things for granted. We can forget how blessed we are. In a recession economy, we can become discouraged, and neglect being grateful for the many things we DO have.
Many Americans are facing tough economic times right now. People have lost jobs and homes. Many have been forced to take lower-paying jobs, perhaps working two jobs to make ends meet. Some people have been forced to draw unemployment while they try to find a job.
Most of us have faced tough times before, and the traditional American way of dealing with them is simply to buckle down and work through them. When times are hard, you do whatever you have to do to make things work. It's not easy, it's not pretty, but that is life in the real world.
With the exception of facing health issues beyond their control, anyone in America who is willing to work, and is careful with their money, will find a way to take care of themselves. This is still a land of opportunity. No one can guarantee that you will be wealthy or have everything you desire, but no one in America has to live in poverty.
I had heard Walter Williams speaking on the radio recently, and he discussed his four rules for avoiding poverty. I thought he articulated a great, common-sense approach to avoiding the welfare trap that too many Americans find themselves in these days.
I found an article he had written on the Internet that laid out his four rules for avoiding poverty, and here is the essence of his essay:
"Avoiding long-term poverty is not rocket science. First, graduate from high school. Second, get married before you have children, and stay married. Third, work at any kind of job, even one that starts out paying the minimum wage. And, finally, avoid engaging in criminal behavior."
The more I read of Walter Williams' work, the more I love the guy. He deals straight up, lays his cards on the table, and gives you a look at life through the lens of reality.
So, if his prescription for economic health seems overly simplistic to you, I advise you to observe and take note of the people who end up on welfare. Everyone I've ever known in poverty has violated one or more of these simple principles. As my granddaughter so often tells me: "I'm just sayin'..."
To read Walter Williams' pithy essay in its entirety, go tohttp://www.capitalismmagazine.com/politics/poverty/4223-How-Not-Poor.html
Ah, the dog days of summer. The sun is high in the sky, baking the parched grass. The beach is warm and inviting as the waves lap against the shore. The aroma of coconut oil wafts across the pool at Garfield Park, and for some reason I cannot fathom: KIDS ARE STANDING AT THE CURB WAITING FOR THE SCHOOL BUS!
Whatever happened to summer?
This ever-earlier encroachment of the start of school on summer vacation has irked me for years, and the situation is only getting worse. There are elementary schools around here that started on August 2nd. My neighbor began his "fall" semester at Southport High School on August 10th.
Again I ask: whatever happened to summer?
Educators tell us that we need a longer school year to pump our students' heads up with more knowledge so they can compete in an increasingly high-tech world. Okay, I get that. But if you are going to add days to the school year, why not add them in June, when it is cooler and less humid. Why screw up the month of August, the best part of summer?
I have heard educators say that adding days in June is not productive, since kids are looking forward to the end of the school year, and they begin to lose focus on their studies.
Well, duh! The reason kids begin to lose their focus in April is because they know they are getting out of school in May. If we move the school calendar back, then students can begin to lose their focus in May because they know that school will end in June. I see no real problem here.
When you live in a place like Indiana (as I have for my entire life) summertime is a precious and fleeting season. If you enjoy outdoor activities like swimming, boating and camping, there is a narrow window of opportunity to indulge in these pleasures.
May is totally unpredictable, and the water in our lakes is too cold to allow most us to swim. June is almost as bad, with lots of rainy days and cool nights. In addition, in June many of the state park reservoirs are flooded from the spring rains, which closes the beaches, and sometimes the marinas.
For summer junkies like me, that leaves July, August and maybe the first half of September. A mere two and half months to enjoy our summertime, and then we face another long dreary wait through fall, another brutal midwestern winter, and a soggy cold spring before we can play out in the water again.
Life is short. In my opinion, we all work too much and play too little. There are too few pleasures as it is, and for our schools to steal away the best part of summer just doesn't make sense to me. Summertime activities are wonderful ways for families to spend time together and make memories.
As I write this, on Wednesday August 11, it is 88 degrees at 9:00 in the morning. The high today is forecast at 96 degrees. Days like this are created for people to relax, work on a tan, and play in the water.
But today, the beach at Eagle Creek Park is closed. The pools in the Indianapolis city parks are closed. It's hitting 96 degrees in the middle of August, and there is nowhere nearby to go swimming BECAUSE THE LIFE GUARDS HAD TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL!
Conversely, you could go to a city pool in early June and shoot off a cannon without hitting anything but a pigeon, since no one in their right mind wants to go swimming when it is 75 degrees and raining. But that's when our pools are open, because we don't have enough sense to schedule summer vacations during the time that it is actually summer!
It is ridiculous to lose our summers like this. We are all cheated out of one of the best parts of the year because we can't get the schools to schedule summer vacations during the summertime. If you want to help change this situation, join the Save Indiana Summers campaign.
(click on graphic to enlarge)
One of the most reasoned articles I've read concerning the "Ground Zero" Mosque in New York City was just published in the National Review. READ MORE
It's not for sex or romance. It's not for companionship. It's not for the cooking or the housekeeping. So why do men really get married? We need someone nearby to help us find our stuff.
We don't know where we put anything. We have no concept of filing. The typical male idea of organization is to drop something wherever it seems convenient, and then expect to remember later where that place was. That's all we know how to do. It's a genetic defect.
Comedian Jeff Allen tells the story of leaving his underwear in the middle of the bedroom floor. His wife was irritated by his sloppiness and asked him, "Is that your underwear on the floor?"
"It better be," he replied, "or I've got a few questions I want to ask you!"
It's a known scientific fact that women are more organized than men. Women can file and sort and store and compartmentalize and arrange and archive -- simultaneously! They are amazing creatures. Why shouldn't we of the hapless male persuasion take advantage of such naturally ingrained female talents?
When you're a kid, you've got mom around to find your stuff for you.
"Mom, where's my shoes? Mom, have you seen my skateboard? Mom, where is my cap? Mom, did I leave my belt in the living room?"
My sweet mom had four boys. I doubt the poor woman had a day in her adult life that she didn't spend an hour or more tracking down the possessions misplaced by her clueless sons.
I had two sisters. They were pretty good at finding stuff, too. Except part of the time they were mad at us for teasing them or whatever, and then they would withhold their intel. Even my sainted mother, with her seemingly boundless patience, would occasionally become exasperated with us and erupt with the spine-chilling phrase that every boy dreads hearing: "It's wherever you put it!"
Wherever I put it? If I knew where I put it, I wouldn't have asked you. (Readers take note: never say that out loud. Trust me on this.)
There are some mornings that I know I would never make it out the front door if Peggy wasn't scurrying around the house finding all my lost stuff. It amazes me how those things travel around. Sometimes I actually suspect that she moves them behind my back just to set me off.
If she leaves for work before I do, I'm in big trouble. Last week I spent 15 minutes -- 15 MINUTES! -- trying to find my keys. I looked in all the usual spots. I retraced every step I had made that morning. I scanned my memory and double-checked all the possible drop zones. I was getting so frustrated I almost said, "Poop!"
I had finally given up when I happened to look down on the bed. There were my keys laying next to my pillow. How did they get on the bed? I didn't remember putting them there. I couldn't help but wonder if Peggy was laughing all the way into town wondering how long it would take me to find them. Those kinds of crazy thoughts go through a man's mind when he can't find his stuff.
Personally, I am drowning in stuff. Like most Americans, I have way more stuff than I know what to do with. I have stuff I haven't seen for years. I know it's around here somewhere, and as soon as Peggy has some extra time, I'm going to ask her to find it for me.
After all, that's why I got married in the first place.
