Old Hippie?? Probably...
I will always be a hippie. It is not a changeable condition -- anonymous
I guess it could be said that I'm just an old Hippie at heart (so I've been told, by those that should know), and I can certainly think of a whole lot worse things to be called....
My kids (born '69 and '70. A boy and a girl, both quite conservative. I don't know where we went wrong!!) have asked, "What happened to you guys?? You had the right ideals, but most of you joined the "system" you were so vehemently against. A whole generation of 'enlightened' people that sold out. Hippies into yuppies. Driving around in BMW's with your noses in the air, like a bunch of total assholes....What happened??"
Thankfully they didn't include me in that overall description ( Hey, I asked..... One can't be too sure when dealing with kids ).
I was told that I didn't fit into that generality.
"Come on Goose, Look what you're driving (at the time it was a '85 Toyota pickup with 200k+ miles and a lot of wear and tear), and look at where you live (a fairly small shack in the mountains above Santa Cruz California)".
I have hopefully retained a little of my base conservative philosopy, and through the bullshit of war and seeing other people who are really on the edge of personal disaster, many through no fault of their own, I have tempered that selfish, egocentral conservatism with some conscience.
I deeply feel for the plight of my fellow human. There are too many havenots in this world and the haves prime goal is keeping the havenots down. This has got to change!!!!
I certainly wouldn't be caught dead in a BMW, or any of the so called yuppie luxury cars -- go ahead fool, pay $50K+ for a car. I can certainly afford it, but I have better things to do with my money.
(And this is one dichotomy that the conscience provides......)
I have a real problem with the "Welfare" system that provides no incentive to work. Why should someone go to work at McDonalds for $5.50 an hour and make $800 a month when they can make $1200+ on welfare. Where's the incentive to get off the dole???
I am a firm believer in "workfare". Everyone can work at something.
What do you do with the whining welfare mother that has 4 kids and says, "I cant work because I can't afford child care". Ok great. While some other person that has 2 or 3 kids goes to work, person number 1 watches the others kids....Hey what a concept. A built in Child care system provided by the system to get people off to work. (granted -- a simplistic description. Safety and health of the children would have to be of paramount importance, but it is doable!!!) But that brings up the other "excuse". Where are the jobs?? Perhaps people should lower their expectations a little, and take what's there until something better comes along....What a concept!!!!
But we "Americans" are basically lazy. They want life served up on a silver platter.
The real problem I have is with the freeloaders. You know the type. The ones that sit around and watch soap operas all day because they have no self-esteem. Why don't they have self-esteem??? What in the present system provides the participants with a positive image of themselves?? It's a dead end and they know it so why bother trying. But you can't cut off the people who are in real need just to get at the freeloaders.
But the conservatives can, because they don't give a damn about anyone but themselves....they could care less about the hungry and the homeless. Remember what president Ronnie Ray-gunz said....."There are no homless people on the streets in the United States that don't want to be there........". Yea Right.
Typical staunch conservative attitude -- But Ronnie was a flaming fiscal liberal despite what conservatives will try to tell you. Just look at his spending record. The conservatives will blame it on the congress, but congress doesn't sign legislation into law, the president does....The buck stops at that desk and so does the responsibility -- Congress can be blamed for enough of their own screw jobs. History books will show that Reagan bankrupt this country with his liberal spending policies to an extent that those reading the history books generations later will still be paying off his debts (cut off funding for education, useful public services, but keep the usless ones because your rich buddies have financial intersts in them.....we need to build more bombs).
I've told my extremely conservative parents on numerous occasions that I could have been a very good conservative, but they had raised me with a severe character flaw.
I have a conscience.
I tend to care about the plight of other people, not just myself. So I get the label of the family liberal. But in thinking about it, I'd certainly rather have that label than the reverse.
But I am also a realist, and have to earn a living, prostituting myself to someone. Paying the rent so to speak.
Perhaps Kenny Loggins said it best at the Concert in the Redwoods....I'll paraphrase as I don't recall the exact text of the quote.....
"We had our ideas for a better lifestyle, a more peaceful existance, but the "powers that be" poo-poo'd us. Told us to "grow up". Face reality.
So we ended up becomming part of your society and it wasn't bad for awhile. We got our yuppie jobs and went to work 8-5, drove around in our BMW's, stuck our noses in the air, lived in the 'proper' neighborhoods, learned to be obnoxiously judgmental regarding the shallowest of petty issues (like - "look how she does her hair". Ohmigod. He's wearing an earring).
We've played the game.
But there's always been something missing.
There is something to this existance besides "stuff".
And you know what.........
We're baaaack!!! And this time we have the bucks!!!!"
Perhaps this time we can make a difference -- even amongst the pinheads!!
But the mindset needs to revert back to where it was 30 years ago!!! There was nothing wrong with "our reality" then, but we were goaded into changing our outlook. To conform. But we really were not as ignorant and naive as as we were made out to be.
So why do we accept 'reality' as it is?? Is it not our duty to change it!!!
We can make a difference!!!!! Will we??
Think about it..........
Return to The New Goose Flight
Updated 22 Aug., 1997