OT: The problem in my opinion is not with demonizing the mentally ill. The problem lies in people expecting others to feel obligated to take care of them when they are perfectly able to take of themselves were it not for their self-destructive behavior (drugs, AIDS, and any other multitude of sins).
We wouldn't expect our neighbors to take care of us because we went out and got strung out on drugs. But they expect their neighbors proxy, the government by way of paying taxes, to do so. And they usually feel little guilt about feeling the government is obligated to provide for them.
Listen.. I have a relative (who will go unrevealed).. He constantly would tell his parents that the world owed him because he didn't ask to be brought into this world. Now this relative IS HIGHLY SKILLED as his father taught him a very viable trade in hanging sheetrock and other construction related skills.
Yet this relative decided to spend his early life getting drunk, getting stoned, and raising general hell, and finally ended up in county jail as a result of multiple DUI, and violation of probation (drinking in public).... He was supposed to get out after one year, and when he went before the judge to be released (since he was a long-term repeat offender), the judge mandated that he attend drug/alcohol rehab at a personal expense of $3,000.
Well, this being all the money my relative possessed, he told the judge hell no, he wouldn't pay on the basis that he'd been clean for the entire year he'd been in jail. The judge slammed his gavel on the desk and stated "I hear-by sentence you to 5 years in the State Penitentiary!".
My relative served all 5 years.
So what's my point here? Well the state had to take control of 3 kids he and his common law wife bore (she was unfit), and they had to house him for 5 years at government expense... All because he possessed a self-destructive behavior that was not the result of poverty, ill-treatment, or down-trodden past.
What it comes down to are choices that we make. I could have easily found myself running around in the same circles as this relative, but I deliberately chose not to. I could have opted to claim "the world owes me a living", but I haven't.
Were I he, I could claim that society is responsible for my failure to succeed in life. But he couldn't because his father provided him a lucrative trade, at which he was admittedly very good at, when he applied himself (or showed up for work).
What I think Liberalism has done is create a false sense of expectations that people seem to have of our society. And these perceptions seem to justify their exploiting the generosity of the rest of us who work hard and don't want anyone to starve.
But like this relative... some people might just need to feal the bite of hunger, and a swift kick in the rear, to get them motivated and contributing, rather than detracting, from society.
Btw, my father came from a family of 15 people, literally dirt poor... But he never took a penny in assistance from the government. He went and did a stint in the Navy, got out and made something of his life.
Now since this avenue is available to every able bodied person who falls under the classification of "poor", I'm less inclined to feel much sympathy.
Btw... that relative?? He's my brother... And he seems to be getting alone very well now and had no desire to go back to jail.
Regards,
Ron |
