Japan

My thoughts are with those who are suffering in Japan.

The world is so much smaller than I used to think. I was looking at a map today of the Pacific Ocean, and though the island of Japan, the islands of Hawaii, the continents of Australia, North America, and South America seem to be so far away, they're really just a series of waves between each other. I am in awe of our differences and I'm in awe our ability to come together as humans, to help and to feel someone else's pain.

I know there are exceptions. I recently debated someone who has very little regard for suffering, though he is a Baptist preacher. I can't help but shake my head in sadness when I am re-awakened to the fact that there are people in the world who think it's not our duty as humans to help other human beings.

In America, I see people who suffer for medical reasons, who are, at the same time, fully insured. There is no reason for that. There is no reason, in fact, to suffer for medical reasons, insured or not, nor should there be suffering for want of food when so much is simply thrown away every day.

Some people think it's not the Government's place to help those who are in need. I say they're not thinking or worse, not caring. What is a government, after all, but the system in place to protect those whom it serves, and to organize a system for living in order to prevent chaos from prevailing. If the system is broken and it allows those citizens within it's borders to suffer needlessly, it needs to be fixed. While the government can't take away all suffering, when it becomes obvious that people who should be helped are no longer getting that help, then a change needs to occur. We pay taxes for order and civilization. To have clean air, safe roads and railways, to have protection from fire and from criminals bent to destroy and harm someone else. If such a large portion of the tax money goes to the top classes, then what's left for those below? I hear arguments that those people are lazy, or don't deserve Government money, but it is simply not the case that 97% of Americans who don't see the same kind of benefits are lazy, or undeserving. Any implication of such is absurd. I guess I'll never understand when those who are being hurt by the new way of wealth redistribution to the upper classes, are the same people who defend it. People are fighting any kind of wealth distribution to the lower classes. Well, hello people, wealth distribution is already happening, but it's going to those who need it the very least. You can't tell me that they deserve it more. Think about that. It has nothing to do with being deserving. Just because they make more, doesn't mean they are more valuable. We are all human beings. We all have something to say, and feel, and do. We are all priceless.

But I digress. Though I was discouraged by this Baptist preacher's inhumanity and lack of concern for individual suffering in favor of smaller government, I can be happy that I was raised by a family with higher moral values. I am happy that I am someone who is concerned for others and always will be, no matter the cost. That is what I believe in my heart matters most on this planet and in this lifetime. If there really is a journey of discovery, then to me, I'm on the right path.

There are so many "ism's" in the world. So many choices for how to behave regarding each other. Whether or not one wants to look at a system of government as "regarding each other," it's actually what it means. People are so afraid of Communism. Okay, I get that, I don't want such a tight communal type life that my freedoms are taken away. The other two systems of significance are Socialism and Capitalism. Well, if you think of an "ism" as it is, representing a system of government, then I'll take Socialism any day of the week. Though you pay more taxes, I don't see an argument anywhere valid enough to me that would change my mind. I'd rather live in a community where we care for each other, accept that how we make our money is dependent upon many types of communities and not just ourselves, and also knowing that the planet we inhabit is not owned by humans, but merely borrowed for the time being, then caring for each other and how we live, and how we flourish or suffer, is also dependent upon that same point of view. I choose a "Social" forward viewpoint that cares for social values, meaning one another, including Moms and Dads, Grandmas and Grandpas, Brothers, Sisters, Cousins, Neighbors and strangers one and all over a "Capital" worshiping system where dollars are held closer to the heart.

Unfortunately, since our early childhood we've been taught in schools the values of capitalism equal freedom for one and all. To me, liberty means knowing that my loved ones are being cared for as well as I, and freedom means being free from what big corporations tell us is how to live properly. To me, we are restricted by market, by wealthy uninterested parties who lobby our elected officials and who have more power than is healthy for any human. Maybe we should rethink what kind of "ism" it is we really believe in, in our hearts. If, like the preacher, you feel that those who are poorer deserve to stay that way or die, decreasing the surplus population, then I can't change your mind and you probably don't like what I have to say.

But let me just say that in survey after survey, the happiest people on the planet have continually come from those countries who choose an "ism" more people friendly. Who pay higher taxes to help their fellow man, and who also have the freedom to be business owners, go to college, love their families and grow to be whatever they want to be. There's the rub. Socialist countries are not communist countries. They are free. Just like you and I. And the amount of taxes they pay costs less to them than what most corporate insurance companies charge for mediocre medical care in this country. To me, it makes perfect sense. But because it is different, it is change, and it seems "extreme" to change the paradigm of an entire country it doesn't make sense and it might even pose a threat to those who aren't open to the idea. I understand that. I really do. I, however, am not afraid.

By saying this do not misunderstand me. I have nothing against the wealthy in this country, just the same as I have nothing against the poor. I do not think that wealthy people are extremely hard workers, nor do I feel that the poor are lazy. I feel there are too many circumstances to attribute to the outcomes of wealth and poverty, and therefore, we should all be given opportunity to live without suffering. It's that simple. We should all be given the opportunity to live without suffering.

I not only think it's our duty to help each other on this planet, but I also think it's the right thing. My heart goes out to those in Japan who are suffering. To those in New Zealand before them, and to those in Haiti, and New Orleans, and to those who lie down in our back alleys every night in America, dreaming of bread.