Hi Haim.
Thanks for the reply. Interesting that you are from Romania. A very good friend of mine was born in Israel, schooled in both Israel and Boston, and now lives in Canada. His grandparents on both his mother's and father's side are both from Romania, and he has absolutely fascinating, though some extremely tragic, stories to tell. His grandfather on his father's side saw his whole family perish when the Nazi's burnt his village to the ground. He escaped by hiding in a nearby field, and then headed eastward, only to be captured by the Red Army. He then was sent to a forced labor camp, and befriended a camp guard.
One night, the camp guard warned that the laborers at the camp would soon be transferred to Siberia. This was almost certainly to be a "one way" trip. So without guaranteeing his grandfather safety, he said that there would be a window of opportunity to escape at such-and-such a time, and that it would be best to make a break for it. So my friend's grandfather escaped again, only to wind up captured by some other army.
Anyway, it gave me enormous respect for his grandfather, and the suffering of my friend's people, which were in this case Jewish.
Regarding your tale of Joe and Mike, I think I understand your point that people are not born in equal circumstances, and they differ in both talents and opportunities. Perhaps because I have always lived in a culture and environment that rewarded personal initiative, I lack an appreciation for not being able to succeed based on one's own merits and initiative.
What I think bothers me Haim is when the virtues of a free-market economy and society are used to justify actions that have as their ultimate motivation greed and power, and the infliction of suffering on other peoples. Capital seems to be such a powerful form of social organization, that there is a corresponding need to have checks and balances that moderate its affect. And too often, when powerful interests fight for virtues such as "freedom", "democracy", and "our way of life", what they really are fighting for is "power", "profits", "cheap access to labor or raw materials", or "enforced access to foreign markets". And particularly when I here a conflict portrayed as a battle between good and evil, or good guys and bad guys, I suspect propaganda, disinformation, and an absence of proper historical context ... from ALL sides.
Just IMHO. :)
Best wishes,
Glenn |
