A Sneak Peek

Next door to us, our neighbour has his house on the market for resale. Because of this, almost everyday I watch automobiles, trucks and SUVs move past our house, slow down and then either drive on or pull up to the house. Just now, a white Nissan crossover/SUV pulled into the driveway, backed up and drove back by our house.

For some reason, I do not feel like typing. Is it the driver who was just now peering in at me or my mood after finishing the book, "Tuesdays with Morrie," at lunch this afternoon? Perhaps being down a pint of blood platelets has affected my desire to write here right here. Maybe I scratched my writing itch in a couple of comments I posted on a newspaper website.

Before I completely lose interest in typing, I'll mention something that all of us know but rarely think about:

• Businesses provide employment for a lot of people. Businesses, consumers and employees pay the taxes that fund governments (bondholders of all types provide gov't funds, too). Businesses and governments are composed of people. You and I are people.
  

My brain is going into its late afternoon deep freeze, taking away whatever I planned to say. Here's what I said to a person who posted a letter to the editor, asking readers why stimulus funds appeared to go to some states/municipalities (and not others) and how the national government plans to "save" jobs next year:

Having voted for neither McCain nor Obama, I have no interest in whether the general news websites quote reliable statistics to support or refute the author's letter to the editor about national government policies. With that stated, I believe all of us will find that the world economy will continue to grow, showing the long-term effects of every country's investment in national infrastructure improvements, be it bank support, healthcare reform, school/road construction, etc.

It may appear that the stimulus funds went to targeted areas of the country but so what? Do you own a company that failed to receive funds or got laid off from a company that is cutting back due to a shift in resource allocation; in other words, what is your personal involvement in this? We can all be armchair political quarterbacks.

Instead of waiting to hear from political pundits, let's hear about changes we're making to improve the lives of others. For instance, I retired in 2007 but have taken a low-paying job teaching technology courses at ITT Tech in order to prepare students for future IT jobs, putting my own sweat and shoulders into stimulating the economy, regardless of what's going on in Washington, D.C, Nashville or other government locations.

Since you live in Church Hill, Mr. Lorenz, there's a couple who live off Goshen Valley Road, Jim and Anne Small, who share their enthusiasm with children during this economic downturn. What are you doing for your fellow citizens, other than posting comments and letters to the editor? I challenge you to get up off your bum and away from the computer and demonstrate social responsibility on the local level rather than complain.

Here's what I responded after the person said, "Who are you, besides apparently being morally superior, to challenge me on anything I choose as a free human being to do with my time on matters that are of interest to me? Such elitism certainly takes a lot of nerve. Do your remarks apply to every other author of postings in this newspaper or just me? Pretty arrogant. Your opinion of what is socially responsible and what is not smacks of elitism and reeks of arrogance.":

I thank you, Mr. Lorenz, and others like you, for sharing your opinions. I was like you one time - sitting at home contemplating the universe through the eyes of a citizen of one country. Then I traveled and worked in other countries around the world. I discovered that we better serve each other through work, paid or volunteer, than commenting about and waiting for government action.

By the way, moral superiority or inferiority have nothing to do with deciding to take action. Frankly, in my case I was bored with reading others' comments on the Internet and found something to do as a change of pace - teaching - which has enlightened me, entertained me and kept me busy. In a few minutes, after my comments here, I'll drive over to the local Red Cross office to donate blood platelets.

Yesterday, while taking a break from grading student papers, I happened to check the Times-News website to see what people were doing/saying in my former hometown and came upon this discussion of goverment policies.

Once again, thanks goes out to you and other folks in upper east Tennessee for sharing your opinions. I hope all of us learn that we should never wait for government decisions before making our own. At some time in our lives, we should all get involved in local activities, including government, to see how influence peddling works. Reaching consensus about how money and other resources are distributed is not as easy as it looks. There's no cut-and-dry solution, no book of answers that tell what's right or wrong in who gets government support. Many times it's a matter of degrees of what looks right at the time, which changes at the whims of public opinion. Local politics is both fun and frustrating and gives you an appreciation for what being a citizen means, no matter whether you're a business owner/worker, a government employee, a student, a retiree or unemployed.

Mr. Lorenz, don't wait for answers. Be proactive and help create solutions. As a business owner and teacher, I tell my students that one can be a victim or one can own one's life and take control. The decision is yours. It begins with recognizing that we're all human and fallible, living on this planet together, and truly depend on each other to make this world better, no matter who we are or where we came from. I look forward to hearing about the wonderful changes you're going to make in others' lives, including mine. For starters, your letter to the editor that started this discussion has shown me that we need better access to government information, especially in a location where all of us would agree is politically-neutral. Does your list of comments mean there's a website called MSM that fits the description for politically-neutral? If so, let me know so I can contact my friends in government and see what we can do to get you the information you want.

Am I elitist? Yes. Am I arrogant? Absolutely. Am I morally superior? Are you kidding me? if anything, I am morally absent, living here and now, having no need for the past and no plans for the future.

I live because I have no choice, my self and my cells desiring to live every moment they can, regardless of their impermanence. With no choice but to live, I choose to live in happiness and mirth.

I close this blog entry and see the economy greatly improving as we move into 2010, beginning with people forming new and exciting small/medium businesses all around the world. Government taxes will increase proportionally and give another shot in the arm of the corporate body electric, igniting speedy growth in 2011. As the world population ages, though, we need to figure out how to grow without milking our elderly completely dry, giving our senior citizens the opportunity to contribute to society in ways unimagined, aided by technology that makes infirm or disabled bodies an unnecessary concern for corporate citizenship. I know you know what I'm talking about. Will you beat me to market with these new ideas and inventions? Are you going to join me to push to raise the mandatory retirement age?