O.T. Speaking of Bums! Rant, sorta long.

Ad Astra said:
Bill, I don't know what that pic is, but if I had to go in there to apply for a job, I probably would just continue to be unemployed...
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Probably the dentist.
 
munk said:
...hard work is slitting their fat throats while the Rich sleep. I assume you and all your Comrades are up to this...
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We would like to, but the Rich are protected by the ignorant masses who they have brainwashed into protecting them, doing their bidding, fighting their wars, and accepting the crumbs that trickle down from their well appointed banquets.

"Workers of the World, Arise! Throw off your chains! You have nothing to lose except your salary, your paid vacation, your medical benefits, your house in the suburbs, your two cars, your RV, and your boat."
 
Ad Astra said:
Bill, I don't know what that pic is, but if I had to go in there to apply for a job, I probably would just continue to be unemployed...

AA :confused:
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Sorry about the picture. My first picture post in a long time.

It is a huge sculpture in the Bomarc Gardens. Accidently posted instead of what I meant. Right picture is there now.

Just realized how easy posting pictures has become!
 
Bill Marsh said:
...Now I do carry a gun and I have a neat badge that looks exactly like a police badge...
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I don't get it. If you display a badge saying that you have a concealed weapon, doesn't that defeat the purpose of concealing the weapon?
 
There is a common misconception among the poor about the rich. Most people feel that they work hard, pray hard, take care of their families, tithe, live an honest life, love their neighbors, etc. --- yet they are not rich.

"Poor but honest."

So the rich must be dishonest. Must be. So they rich sit on their fat asses and the average Joe has to be satisfied with their "crumbs." And that the "system" is stacked against the average person, so grumble and accept their lot.

Movies portray the rich as giving $100 tips to doormen and waiters. They never wear anything but tuxedos and evening gowns. They ride in stretch limos. They drink expensive wines and eat caviar at every meal.

In America nothing could be farther from the truth. I strongly suggest reading "The Millionaire Next Door," by a guy I know, Tom Stanley.

The average self-made American millionaire lives in a three bedroom two bath house in the suburbs. He has never spent more than a hundred dollars for a watch, drives a ten year old Ford F-150 pickup, never spent more than $400 for his best suit, drinks Budwieser, he has been married to the same woman for at least 30 years. His neighbors have no idea of his worth.

I also suggest reading "Rich Dad, Poor Dad." This is one of the very best books on how investing works.

1. Poor people have expenses.

2. The majority of the middle class have liabilities that they consider assets. These include, among other things, Rolexes, Humvees, Mercedes, Armani clothes, Jewelry, huge homes, etc. these are NOT assets.

3. Assets are anything that brings you cash. Rental properties with tenants are assets. Vacant land is not an asset though it has potential, it only becomes an asset when you sell it. The rich understand this and their early years are spent builiding assets.

I went to a program recently where income properties were being presented. I asked to my wife to look around at who was rich? When questions were asked, a guy in an Armani suit with a flashing watch answered. But the people asking questions, the potential buyers were dressed casually. None were wearing ties. Most were not wearing suits or even blazers. At least half were wearing blue jeans.

And multi-million dollar properties were being presented. (I didn't buy anything, but I made some good contacts with other owners)

I started from a family in a four room house on a farm. We had an outhouse. A coal stove in the kitchen provided our only heat. My father gave me a a good education, a strong grounding in having my own business (I started at the age of ten with my first business) and the importance of living a Christian life.

I try. But folks it is hard when I have a tenant who can't pay the rent and I see a new satellite dish on the roof and a huge new TV in the living room. This happens more than you might expect.

Sometimes I have to make decisions that I don't want to make. Do I evict a family becasue Daddy spent the money on the TV and satelite? Do I evict a family because the father has deserted them? The reasons for not paying the rent are legion. Some valid, many are just bad financial planning. I do put them in touch with a variety of people who offer funding, but if that doesn't work, what do I do?

I have kept my agreement to provide clean quality housing. Housing that I will lose if the rent does not come in to make the mortgage and the taxes and the insurance and the maintenance. If they can't pay the rent this month, how are they going to pay next month and this month?

Every day I am faced with terrible decisions that must be made. Decsions that affect multiple people and their lives......

In the words of Tony Soprano, "You think you want to be a Boss? You don't, if you knew what was involved!"
 
Ben Arown-Awile said:
I don't get it. If you display a badge saying that you have a concealed weapon, doesn't that defeat the purpose of concealing the weapon?
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Good point. However most people only glance at the badge. It looks so much like a police badge that they bums quickly move away. They don't get down to my belt and read it, they just see a symbol that they want to run from. It is not easy to read the badge if I am moving.
 
Bill Marsh said:
...The average self-made American millionaire lives in a three bedroom two bath house in the suburbs...
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In contemporary America, a millioniare is not rich. He is upper middle class.

The "Rich" are a different breed. They may even be a different species.

An average guy, regardless of how much money he may have, will never be one of "The Rich".
 
Ben, I stopped blaming the Rich for our ills about the time I stopped believing in the Boogeyman. There are no convenient fall guys for what we do to each other. Not even Donald What's His Name deserves that.



munk
 
That's his best song; what do you wanna bet he never bought a town, and does not live where the neighbors yell?



munk
 
So Ed, ever been down on the Brazos? >>> Yvsa


Nope. I'm too old; I heard life was cheap down there and I aint going. I'd rather set on the front porch and watch the Sun go down.





Ed Know
 
munk said:
That's his best song; what do you wanna bet he never bought a town, and does not live where the neighbors yell?



munk
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I don't know he's from NJ ;) I really like that tune too, but there's another he does about cows, I heard once but don't have I really liked. I just found it.
Winter Cows" - by John Gorka 1987

The cows in the moo yard are making their plans

For the long winter nights and the cold winter hands

Some out in the fields are covered with snow

The black ones turn white and the white ones don't show


Big lamps in the sunset, between bovine dreams
Their icicled udders are waiting for spring

And up from the road comes the sound of the wheel
Just an old ice cream wagon, they say "I know how you feel"

Some dream of India, where their cousins are stars
But they don't like the crowds, so they stay where they are

And some dream of Florida, of roaming the beach
With metal detectors for gold they can reach

Well, what can you do? It's the ice or the flies
The temperature slowing, the tails going by

It's a dairy existence, and I must conclude...
Cold milk in a bottle still beats frozen foods
 
I saw him from the front row at McCabe's once. I even picked up his pick which fell out of his hand, to a small round of applause.

That's it for me. So much for fame.


munk
 
I don't think its wrong to give to someone begging for money. Yes it is likely going to pay for a drink or a hit or a lexus. Money passes out of my hands every day, even when I work it is passing out of my hands. I think a lot of that money does more harm in the world than the beggar's habit could. At least it is an act of kindness and faith. That is worth more than the few bucks we give them afterall, whether it makes a dent in the person's hardship or not.
 
munk said:
...I stopped believing in the Boogeyman...
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You don't believe in the Boogeyman? Then who the heck are you hiding from up there in Fort Munk?

I fear no man, no government, no God. But the Boogeyman scares the bejeesis out of me.
 
You're a fool if you fear no man, no Govt, no God. But the boogieman is you and me.



munk
 
munk said:
I saw him from the front row at McCabe's once. I even picked up his pick which fell out of his hand, to a small round of applause.

That's it for me. So much for fame.


munk
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His talking voice is totally different than his singing voice don't you think? Iris DeMent is like that too. :cool:
 
eleven said:
I don't think its wrong to give to someone begging for money. Yes it is likely going to pay for a drink or a hit or a lexus. Money passes out of my hands every day, even when I work it is passing out of my hands. I think a lot of that money does more harm in the world than the beggar's habit could. At least it is an act of kindness and faith. That is worth more than the few bucks we give them afterall, whether it makes a dent in the person's hardship or not.
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Is it possible that an act of kindness and faith can cause additional misery to others? This is the question I wrestled with as I saw the misery associated with beggary in India, where it was accepted and condoned, and viewed as virtuous to give to beggars. It was a stark contrast to other lands where the citizens seemed to take a more hard-hearted approach, but had no such institutionalized misery.

Giving to beggars may not be so much a question of making a dent in someone's hardship as creating additional misery for them on top of what they already have. Seen in that light, it is no longer an act of kindness.

Sometimes someone does need a hand up. A destitute child for instance, or someone who has been buffetted by the winds of fortune and needs a few moments to regroup and reorganize. There are others who choose to beg because it is easier than standing on their own.

The social impulses that drive us to help each other are beneficial to us both as individuals and as a society. An exploitation of that impulse to help, when it is not really needed is, in my opinion, harmful.

Then there is the problem of the mentally ill. Many of them have no where to go, and many are not employable. From association with the mentally ill, I think that for some their condition is a direct result of choices they have made, and for others the reasons for their illness are not obvious. These people pose a dillemma. I think an act of kindness or feeding of many of these individuals may be good.

I guess in the final analysis the wisdom of giving depends on the situation. Sometimes the possible positive or negative results will be pretty obvious, and other times the situation is quite unclear. Probably the inner voice is in the final analysis the best guide.
 
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