ThatJimGuy's Blog

No one on this earth is responsible for ourselves, except ourselves. Life owes us absolutely nothing. The government owes us nothing. No one is going to come riding to the rescue when one is down and out. One simply cannot sit back and wait for what will never come. We all must realize that we have the ability, no matter what set of circumstances, to save ourselves. We at the very least have the choice to at least TRY. This is what gets lost.

I say try, or die trying. I don’t see any other healthy way of living life. Never ever give up, but realize that we have choices, even if the only choice we do have is our attitude.

I don’t agree that we are “owed” anything. Yes, we pay taxes, and yes, we expect those taxes to go towards what our elected officials “said” or even actually originally intended them too. However, at least in the US and in most democracies (although the US is actually a Republic, not a pure Democracy), things like greed, politics, special interests and such get in the way of this.

I never saw on my tax form any mention of any PROMISE(S) of what my taxes would be used for. Taxation is a law, used by the government to pay for some of the things you mentioned as well as others. However, I have yet to find any written PROMISE from the government that any taxes will actually BE used for such things.

So my point is the same. The government does not owe us anything, for they have not promised anything, except in the Constitution. I consider my taxes to be my contribution to a country in which I am lucky enough to have been born into which “guarantees” us certain rights. And no, I don’t care to get sidetracked into a discussion on whether we all actually have those guaranteed rights nor how difficult it has been historically and continues to this day to be to fight for and achieve those rights and guarantees. That is not my point at all, and also has nothing to do with taxes.

And I am not at all disputing the idea of what our taxes “should” be paying for.

I am merely saying that we, as individuals and groups of individuals all have the choice of our attitudes. There is no guarantee or promise from the government that we will all have a roof over every head and a chicken in every pot (although, historically, *politicians* have promised this). Do not mistake the promise of politicians for those of the government.

The social programs of any country’s government are chosen by the government. How they pay for them is an entirely different issue. How they choose them depends on the type of government as well as the capacity of elected or appointed officials to submit to the will of the People (or at least the majority). But again, this is not a promise by government, but that of individual politicians.

And when it comes down to it, the other point I was trying to make is that we can chose to live on other people’s promises, or we can choose to adapt to broken ones. Again, it is our attitudes and actions in the face of adversity which makes us what we are. And that is something that can never be taken from us. Our choice of attitude.

I have found peace in the acceptance of many things. I will always fight for what is morally right, but I no longer EXPECT things to always work out the way I want them to or feel that they should. I could complain about all sorts of things, and often have to catch myself, because I still do. But at least I recognize it now, and am able to live a happy life, no matter what the circumstances.