[Rhodes22-list] spread the wealth

[Herb Parsons]

We will always have poverty. Jesus said that, and pretty much knew what 
He was talking about.

When my oldest daughter was 14 (she's now 29, so it was 15 years ago), 
she went on a mission trip to a small town near Monterey Mexico with our 
church. We lived in the house we live in now. A modest house, was about 
14 years old then, about 30 years old now. 3 bedroom house, about 2000 
square feet, two car garage deliberately converted to a one car garage 
with a 4th bedroom, now inadvertently converted to a storage room. 
Pretty much your standard middle-class family.

Except, my daughters had friends that had houses much larger, with new 
pools. My boss has a beautiful home that could be in Homes and Gardens, 
with a disappearing horizon pool (I don't remember for sure if the pool 
was redesigned later, but you get the point) and a 6 car garage that I 
could almost get my house inside.

So, my daughters (the one I'm talking about and her 3 younger sisters) 
would occasionally refer to our house as a "ghetto house". That's 
because in "their world", it probably was, or possibly close to it. Not 
new, smaller than many, and even though it had a pool, it was an old design.

Then Kim went to Mexico. It was a life-changing eye-opening experience 
for her. She came back and said "Dad, there were families there that 
lived in cardboard boxes". I know sweetheart. "No, Dad, I mean it, 
entire families". Yeah kiddo, I understand. I'm glad you do now too.

My point is that "poverty" is relative. In this country, most of our 
"poor" eat daily, have multiple television sets and cell phones, and 
don't work.

I don't want my middle class wealth redistributed by the government.

I would much rather take my dollars, and decide to send them to Mexico, 
where the families are living in boxes, but still rise every day to go 
to the garbage dump and work all day sorting salvageable trash that they 
can sell for pennies to try to feed their families.

And note, I'm using Mexico as an example, truth is that my 
"redistributed wealth", that I CHOOSE to redistribute goes lots of 
different places, some of it even in this country. I'd hate to count the 
dollars I threw at NO LA.

That's the way it should be done, in my never to be called humble opinion.


JbTek wrote:
> why can't it just run in the middle?
> Greed is not good. Poverty is devestating.
> We should have niether.
> Jb
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "stan" <stan at rhodes22.com>
> To: "The Rhodes 22 Email List" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 8:41 AM
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] spread the wealth
>
>
>   
>> why do I have such a problem understanding this noise about"redistribution
>> of wealth" - we have been doing it for the past 8 years and as you can
>>     
> see,
>   
>> it is killing us.   You just have to do it in the right direction.   I
>>     
> have
>   
>> lived through the trickle down direction at least 3 times and it has never
>> worked.  I have lived through trickle up once and the country bloomed.
>>
>> ss
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>> From: "JbTek" <j.bulfer at jbtek.com>
>> To: "Rhodes List" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
>> Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2008 5:11 PM
>> Subject: [Rhodes22-list] spread the wealth
>>
>>
>>     
>>> This is a great analogy,
>>> Jb
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Today on my way to lunch I passed a homeless guy with a sign that read
>>> "Vote Obama, I need the money." I laughed.
>>>
>>> Once in the restaurant my server had on a "Obama 08" tie, again I
>>>       
> laughed
>   
>>> as he had given away his political preference--just imagine the
>>> coincidence.
>>>
>>> When the bill came I decided not to tip the server and explained to him
>>> that I was exploring the Obama redistribution of wealth concept. He
>>>       
> stood
>   
>>> there in disbelief while I told him that I was going to redistribute his
>>> tip to someone who I deemed more in need--the homeless guy outside. The
>>> server angrily stormed from my sight.
>>>
>>> I went outside, gave the homeless guy $10 and told him to thank the
>>>       
> server
>   
>>> inside as I've decided he could use the money more. The homeless guy was
>>> grateful.
>>>
>>> At the end of my rather unscientific redistribution experiment I
>>>       
> realized
>   
>>> the homeless guy was grateful for the money he did not earn, but the
>>> waiter was pretty angry that I gave away the money he did earn even
>>>       
> though
>   
>>> the actual recipient deserved money more.
>>>
>>> I guess redistribution of wealth is an easier thing to swallow in
>>>       
> concept
>   
>>> than in practical application.
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