Re: I've About Had It!
Posted: Tue Jul 16, 2013 2:52 pm
When the crowds clamor for bread and circuses watch out for the barbarian hordes and be ready.
Life is much different now than it was when old Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels bought land from Juan de Veramendi and brought the German colonists in from Galveston to the banks of the Comal and Guadalupe. In those days, everyone had a common interest in survival. It took most of one's time and energy just to eak out a living, and that was perilous, risky and uncertain, with lots of misery and suffering along the way. Everyone had to contribute as they could, take care of their own families and help neighbors if possible. The weak and infirm didn't last long either. The lure was economic opportunity, in freedom, much different than what they knew in Europe of wherever they came from, and opportunity was not to be squandered. It had to be earned, not merely expected. Nobody was entitled.anygunanywhere wrote:The melting pot is not so silly.
Early on immigrants wanted to be Americans and assimmilate into our country. If you look here in Texas there are pronounced remnants of many cultures - German, Czech, Mexican, and many others. Even though they treasured their heritage and celebrated their ancestry they were still Americans and all worked to achieve "The American Dream".
Today the dream is an old tired cliche. No one coming here wants to share in any type of common quest for the freedom and opportunity that used to be the hallmark of this nation.
Anygunanywhere
Even 100 years ago, in my granddad's youth, it was still much the same. You had family, church, protective societies like SPJST, etc. If you want a good look into life in the Texas hill country back then, try the first volume of Caro's biography of Lyndon Johnson's boyhood. No "entitlements" back then. Life was hard for everyone, harder for some, of course.
The common aspiration of parents is a better life for their kids than they had. My generation, early baby-boomers, made such a huge leap in that direction that it is almost impossible to beat it. My kid's made some progress in that direction, but their kids probably will not, at least as I measure such things. It's not a matter of economics completely, but quality of life, freedom. In that respect, my life has been more free than my grandkids will ever know.
