Not savage

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

When boys really did get marooned on an island, it was 1965 and the boys were somewhat older. Six teenagers ditched school one day, took someone's boat, and went to sea for a joyride. A storm left them drifting for eight days without food or water before they found the island.

An Australian fisherman discovered them surviving after 15 months. "There was no chaos or anarchy." As teams, they managed rainwater, chickens, a garden, disagreements, and even found a way to make music. 

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A different author who published this story is more optimistic than the author of The Lord of the Flies. He thinks people are basically good, and that this explains these boys' good results.

The boys were students from St. Andrew's, a Catholic boarding school. Maybe Ayaan Hirsi Ali (yesterday's post) would credit their Christian training for the good results that were so in contrast to the darkness of The Lord of the Flies.

from Mamamia

Savage

Lord of the Flies was published in London by a schoolteacher in 1954. A group of boys are marooned alone on an ocean island. Without protection or supervision, they organize themselves to survive but eventually descend into fear and savagery.

Darkness in the human heart is said to be the author's theme, horrifying evil that's normally held back only by the imposition of civilization. He's not wrong (and the Bible agrees).

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While we can't deny that people of all ages are capable of evil, we don't live with horror every day. Why is that? 

This scenario of kids, lost and alone and marooned, actually happened in reality. How did that turn out? . . in tomorrow's post.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Dig into stuff

"According to a study published in Current Biology in 2015, children raised without religion tend to be kinder than children brought up in very religious households."

Seven universities cooperated in the study of 1200 children coming from Christian homes (24%), Muslim homes (47%), and non-religious homes (27%).

But according to this professor, the study's conclusion is out of sync with a "century of scholarly writing" and more recent studies.

Another study was published last February which tells this very different story: "religious adherents of all sorts are, in fact, far more connected and generous than their non-religious counterparts."

What should we believe? Can we believe everything we hear?

No. Pick some issue that's important or shocking to you, and look into it (at least read the links). Does the claim or the study make sense? Don't just believe it because media reported it. 

Today, maybe more than ever, you're going to have to think for yourself. Try to think things through.

Today's dream 2

(cont'd from last Friday's post)

"I am pleased to report that the American dream is alive and well for an overwhelming majority of Americans." So says this author reporting on the results of research by the University of Chicago into Americans' attitudes.

That will surprise some who say that wealth is harder to earn these days. "But Americans, it turns out, have something else in mind when they talk about the American dream. And they believe that they are living it."

"Only 16 percent said that . . it was essential to “become wealthy,” only 45 percent said it was essential “to have a better quality of life than your parents . ."

Most said that “to have freedom of choice in how to live was essential to achieving the American dream. In addition, 83 percent indicated that “a good family life” was essential."

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90% poverty

"Be the kind neighbor & generous friend you wish you had," that's the goal yesterday's author hopes to accomplish in his new home.

In Venezuela, priest Fr. Miguel Romero is taking that challenge on an institutional level. Because the Venezuelan people are desperate for the basics of life, including food.

He says, "When we tell the story of our country, most people don’t believe what is happening. Venezuela has a lot of rich resources and oil. But in the 20 years since this complex political process began, it has destroyed the country — especially institutions and relationships between people."

Last August inflation had reached over 82,000%, and the International Monetary Fund thinks it could be a million percent by the end of this year. It's "hyperinflation" and it looked like this four months ago: somebody "quite literally would have needed a wheelbarrow full of cash to buy some meat and vegetables at the supermarket."

"[A] recent survey [found] that 90 percent of the country's population now live in poverty . . ." So many are leaving their country. The BBC video below explains where they go.




(cont'd tomorrow)

Loneliness #3

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

It's easy to be around old friends. They have survived learning about your strengths and weaknesses. Since they know your story, you don't have to explain yourself to them.

But many of us are not surrounded with old friends. We are in job after job, location after location, and spending time with old friends isn't part of our lives. Loneliness sets in.

Last Friday's post told the story of an immigrant to the U.S. who, though she sometimes struggled in a new country, said "yes" to invitations to an American holiday every year. She did the right thing by saying "yes." As did this introvert in a new home.

Arthur and his wife fear lonely isolation when they go to their new home too. But this book has given them a strategy to overcome it:

"It isn’t about how I feel about any place I have lived, nor about my fear of isolation in a new city. It is about the neighbor I choose to be in the community I wind up calling my home.

"And there lies the challenge to each of us in a country suffering from loneliness and ripped apart by political opportunists seeking to capitalize on that isolation. Each of us can be happier, and America will start to heal, when we become the kind neighbors and generous friends we wish we had."

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Loneliness #2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

"Steady work" used to be commonplace among Americans, but the nature of work has changed to a sequence of jobs that are not held long enough for relationships to mature. So one source of "people who know me very well" is gone.

A sense of belonging to a certain place - a sense of hometown - used to be commonplace among Americans, the feeling some still get at the "hometown gym on a Friday night," a love for neighbors and community. But how mobile are Americans today.

Author Arthur Brooks says, "I asked myself where I might get that hometown-gym feeling, where I have natural roots . . No specific place came to mind . . not even Seattle, my hometown, which is a perfectly nice place, but one I unsentimentally left behind 35 years ago."

Jobs and homes are often short-lived. Social media "friendships" are shallow. Americans need to be more intentional about building relationships and overcoming loneliness. 

(cont'd tomorrow)

Loneliness #1

According to a big study done by a major health care provider, "Nearly half [of Americans] say they sometimes or always feel alone or “left out.” Thirteen percent of Americans say that zero people know them well."

In one way, I wonder, "Is that all?" Because most (or maybe all) of us feel alone sometimes. But it shouldn't be "always." 

Manipulators have an opportunity in the lonely void. The “outrage industrial complex” provides a sense of community with polarized political tribes. "Essentially, people locate their sense of “us” through the contempt peddled about “them” on the other side of the political spectrum."

(cont'd tomorrow)

China's cameras

The "Social Credit Score" was the subject of my posts dated Sept. 13,14,17,18. To citizens of freer countries, it's repulsive that China's government would monitor the details of its citizens' daily lives, judge each one, keep score, and punish or reward based on that score

"China's growing network of surveillance cameras makes all of this possible. The country already has an estimated 176 million cameras. It plans to have more than 600 million installed by 2020."

Unapproved activities may include not paying fines on time, fraud, jaywalking, smoking in non-smoking areas, tax evasion, things we agree on. 

But if "Big Brother" is always watching . . we in the West are definitely uncomfortable with that.

photo: cbsnews

Who do you think would give the system their high approval? A study has answered that question, though the system is not completely rolled out yet. And yes . . many approve . . so far. 

Try to guess who approves of the Social Credit Score - the topic of tomorrow's post.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Misconception

You might remember Hans Rosling, the wonderful Swedish statistician who started Gapminder with his son and daughter in law. He died a while back, but his son Ola continues the effort to educate people about the "global facts."

 He runs surveys all over the world regarding global conditions. He finds that people are hugely unaware of key facts about the world. They would have answered more correctly if they had closed their eyes and didn't read the question 😕

See if you are better informed than educated people all around the world!



(Disclaimer: I don't agree that we need more birth control)

1st servant

Vishal Mangalwadi says that another way the Reformation changed society was that it made democratic government workable.

Ancient Rome and Greece had examples of democracy, but they resulted over time in mob rule and tyrants. In contrast, Indian Prime Minister Nehru in 1947 called himself the "First Servant" of the Indian people, "pledged to their service and their betterment." It was the result of studying the Bible's
political thought in Britain.

"Tyrants had good reasons to fear the Bible for it presented a God who delivered the Hebrews from the slavery of pharaoh." Jesus taught that "The Son of Man [himself] came not to be served, but to serve."

Progress

Your country - and your world - has changed since you were born.

Go to yourlifeinnumbers.org, enter your country and the year you were born to find out how much it has changed in your own lifetime. You'll see differences in food supply per person, how much schooling the average person had, average income, and more.

There's been a lot of improvement in most countries. Check out your parents' birth years to see how much improvement there's been since they were born.

Progress

Yesterday one of the links went to HumanProgress.org, "a data-driven educational website devoted to improving the public’s understanding of the state of the world. All of our statistics come from reputable sources."

One of their pages is entitled "Your Life in Numbers - Explore how much the world has changed since you were born." The categories are average life expectancy, babies surviving the first year, income per person, average food supply, average number of years of school, level of democracy.

Enter your country and the year of your birth and you will find out how much your country has changed. Or, check another country that you're interested in.

Economic freedom

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

It's good for women to be free to make their own choices - because it's just, and also because society prospers from the free choices of its people, both women and men. Economic freedom is a good thing.

Consider China's history. Under the rule of communist Mao Tse Tung, the government imposed coercive control on agriculture and all production. But around 1978, after his death, the country began to change.

Agriculture was de-collectivized, permission was given to start businesses, foreign investment was permitted. Later reforms allowed people to actually own their own businesses.

With more economic freedoms, people created wealth. China's economy grew 31x from 1978 to 2016. Growing prosperity meant additional freedom, like freedom from many hours of laundry. Only 10% of Chinese urban households had washing machines in 1981 - but 97% did by 2011. 

Economic freedom is a good thing. Remember how Hans Rosling's mother's life was changed by a washing machine. Good things result from growing economies.

photo: kenkoskela.com

Law protects

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

The rule of law helps obtain justice for the poor and powerless. Just outside Buenos Aires, Argentina, the area of La Cava lacks the protection of the rule of law.

Without clear property title, it's hard to prove your property belongs to you. Without lawful enforcing of contracts, it's hard to go after the compensation you negotiated. Without access to courts, it's hard to pursue your "just reward."

Rule of law

Two-thirds of the world's countries operate under the "rule of man," which means that men and women with power can reward their friends, punish their enemies, and ignore the insignificant. They are largely free to govern as they like.

One-third of the world's countries operate under "rule of law," which means there are stable, reasonable laws that apply to everyone.

It should be obvious which system enables more people to live and create.



(cont'd tomorrow)

Not looking

America's un-employment figures are based on the number of people looking for work but unable to find jobs. According to some, we in the U.S. now have low un-employment, maybe even a situation of "near-full employment."

But you could say that one group is in worse shape than ever. It's 25-54-year-old men in their prime working years who - what? - are not even looking for work, 7 million of them.

Just ten percent of these men are students. What are the rest of them doing? "Socializing, relaxing, and leisure."

"Time-use surveys suggest they are almost entirely idle—helping out around the house less than unemployed men; caring for others less than employed women; volunteering and engaging in religious activities less than working men and women or unemployed men."

Their families need them. Society needs . . "to bring these detached men back—into the workplace, into their families, into civil society."

Rescuers

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Maybe neighborly volunteers are not being completely ignored by media, as the author in yesterday's post claimed. Here's an article about the "Cajun navy" who have answered the call to help flood victims.

They're civilians who launch their own boat or even canoe to go down the flooded streets looking for ways to help people (and animals).

Troy went to the National Guard staging area, said "I'm here to help. Where do you need me?" He spent two days in his boat pulling folks out of their houses.

Terry saw flood water rising fast, so he jumped in his car and drove down the street laying on his horn to wake people out of their sleep.

David rescued a woman and her dog from a car that plunged under water.

As the flood recedes, urgent rescues give way to the problems of cleaning up the mud and new breeding of mosquitoes.

(from CNN)

Neighborly

Must it be that only bad news makes headlines and gets on tv nightly news? A case could be made for that conclusion (because "bad news sells") since - as we know - news networks are in the business of selling their version of events.

This author makes that point but also tries to correct coverage of the Louisiana floods by reporting on ordinary neighborly efforts to help.

"In order to be worthy of attention . . news media requires scenes that resemble a zombie apocalypse, not scores of hometown heroes trying their best to rescue one another" by:

*organizing care packages
*allowing people to sleep in their homes
*fishermen running rescues

(cont'd tomorrow)

Retirees

Compared to the rest of the West, retired people in the U.S. are in the top three highest incomes per person with just Luxembourg and Norway ranking higher.

But money and happiness don't always go hand-in-hand. When American and European retirees rank their own happiness, it's Denmark and Sweden which are 1 & 2 with American retirees coming next.