“Nothing so needs reforming as other people’s habits.” ~ Mark Twain
For all that normally read my words, many know that I hold appreciation for the subtle, and have a respect for all opinion and thought from anyone, no matter his beliefs. Today, I am saddened at what I see and read regarding the ill state of mind that so many have come to honor.
I rarely delve into the political sphere. Far too much wasteful rhetoric and empty platitude encircles the political stage. However, today I cannot sit idly by without expressing a truth that so many seem to have forgotten. In our biased political stage here in the U.S. we have two indistinguishable sets of values, one of which is not even close to being a human quality of harmony, and I’ll get to that in a moment.
Personally, I am an independent. I am of the conservative mind when it comes to many things, particularly with the size and use of government. I enjoy having little government involved in my affairs, and dislike the idea of amending constitutions to suit the smaller ideology of progressive political agendas. I am also a traveler of the middle road. I have both conservative and liberal ideals, one ideal in particular which is not in my mind politically related whatsoever, but only relates to being human, to having a soul; knowing how to love.
I believe we as human beings are born with the duty and inclination to help those around us that are in dire need of help. To deny this to any human is selfish, it is not of love, it is not of harmony. With that, I must say that the rhetoric of the ultra-conservative regarding welfare systems is embarrassing. But this cold mindset is not limited to one political philosophy, it certainly exists among the masses, alive and well on both the left and the right.
I’m quite tired of hearing and reading the same old cliche platform of “I got mine, now you get yours.” Or “Why should I help someone who can’t work, or can’t find a job.” Otherwise known as “Every man for himself, if you fail to produce… tough… You get no help from me.” This is disgraceful of human beings to live in this mindset, to ignore or have no empathy for those who indeed need help.
I read this statement today:
“I don’t know about all you Facebook folks but I am sick and tired of Working so that others can sit on their Ass and play video games while collecting Welfare and Foodstamps. Let them FAIL. If they get Hungry enough they will get off their Asses and get to work.”
In a country where ideas and ideals vary so widely, it is impossible to agree on how things should actually work, especially in the political world. But this above statement shows the spiritual deadening of the heart and soul. To me it is blatant ignorance and self-righteousness. It illustrates the hardening of hearts in a biased world of ideals and values. It saddens my heart to think that so many men think of themselves before they care to glance at their neighbor who suffers in plain sight. Even more saddening, many with this view hide behind the pulpit of biblical scripture, and claim that they are standup citizens with good Christian values. This ideal is far from anything Christ-like. It is, in fact, the opposite of what Christ teaches.
If you wish for anyone to fail, then you have already failed. If you care little for those who are hungry, I dare think you know what hunger is. We all must realize that to prosper as a nation or as a people this must be done with “WE” in mind, not with “I.”
When one falls, if another loses the kindness and compassion to stop and pick him up, then this is the death of the soul, the precipice of eternal destruction. We must remember, that WE are all contained in this world and affect each other with every thought, every word and every action. Be the one who helps his brother, and you will become a beacon of hope for all. 
HeartSphere 
I agree with you. I don’t think any of us should judge others who are out of work, it is difficult to find a job in good times it is that much more difficult in hard times, which we are now facing. I have actually heard that sort of comment from both conservatives and liberals.
I don’t think, if we truly have humanity and love within us that we should hear it from anyone. If we were truly a community and a loving people. There would not be such disdain for those in need but an outpouring of help and sharing our excess and even our necessity with others. “There but for the grace of God go I.” I try never to forget that simple phrase.
Indeed, liberal or conservative it is sadly becoming the mindset of America. Nations have failed before with this ideology and I only hope that ours does not meet the same fate.
We must not lose hope, and we must not lose our ideals and our emphathy-because with this there will always be hope. I hope the pendulum starts swinging the other way soon to where our neighbor’s concerns are our own.
Nicely put! I love to hear a fellow voice of reason when it comes to politics. Everyone becomes so polarized and extreme that working together becomes a non-option.
Thank you.. and so very true. Working together for the good and prosperity of all is the ideal that so many have forgotten. If we could rekindle that value, then we just might once again turn toward progress.
I feel like our generation has adopted more of a moderate view of politics, which is encouraging 🙂
Encouraging yes.. but as we know the political reigns are still in the hands of a very biased group of people. Hopefully this will change in time.
Fabulous – couldnt have said it better. May I repost?
Thank you! And please do share 🙂
It is only our shared humanity, our shared responsibility that will save us…that is what I believe. I too am saddened with what I see so much of the time these days. I too see those same types of posts on FB and I’m honestly shocked at the ignorance and lack of compassion of so many people. We are brothers and sisters on this earth, and it is only when we begin to help each other that this world will begin the process of healing.
We share the same views my friend. I am also sad with the current state of our being.
Beautifully stated–thank you!
I tend to lean Democratic, intend to vote for Obama this year, and hope that he will win; however, knowing many who lean Republican I feel that for the sake of fairness I should mention that most of them that I know are not actually calloused toward those who are struggling, but instead feel that it should be individuals and charities helping them, rather than the government. Indeed, there are some (perhaps too many) who don’t share this private sentiment, but their number is large enough that it should be mentioned.
Of course.. I must say that I am not at all grouping or stereotyping anybody. I also know plenty of democrats who hate the idea of government welfare systems, and many republicans who are more than willing to donate and help. Not all are entirely selfish, but this ideology is growing as a main gripe for both sides of the political stage.. It simply comes down to the fact that far, far too many have little compassion or willingness to lend help. Being selfish is no way to move forward.
I subscribe to your posts and appreciate your thoughts; also agree with most of your positions. For the most part, I agree with your sentiment in this post as well. But I think I understand what many people (like the author of the quote above) are disagreeing with. I would proffer that the author does not suffer from a lack of desire to help those who truly need help but, rather, from lack of desire to help those who are exploiting the system while living irresponsible lifestyles. View this segment filmed by Alexandra Pelosi (Nancy Pelosi’s daughter): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arOGHY27JwI. It speaks VOLUMES about the mindset of those who are exploiting the forced generosity of the taxpayer.
This should turn the stomach of anyone who believes in helping others in need. These folks are not in need. They are in “want” but aren’t willing to strive and struggle in the midst of their situation. These folks are incentivized to “take what they can get” and never become a contributor (i.e. someone involved in the solution rather than the problem). THAT is what people like the author of the comment above disagree with. The person who made that comment likely gives 10% or more to their church and more to charity.
The government cannot dole out charity in a godly fashion. There’s no call to responsibility. There’s no end in mind other than throwing money at a problem and expecting it will involve into a remedy. This is the critical argument against government solutions to complex issues. They never work as expected. And virtually no one ends up better off than they were before they received help.
Jesus instructed ME to be charitable (not to set up an amoral, godless government institution to carry out the task). Here’s a critical point: he also instructed me to be a good steward of resources. Government simply squanders valuable resources and, since the 1960’s, has only increase dependency on government without providing any real, tangible results for those in need. How can delight in that? True conservatives are willing to help but expect results from their effort. We want to see healing and progress. If that’s not happening, then what has been provided has nothing to do with love. What does it prosper a man to gain the whole world if he loses his soul? Love involves bringing people OUT of their situation…not tossing them a quarter as they sit by the side of the road.
While what you say is indeed true, and there do exist many that exploit this system, but far more exist who do indeed need help and struggle everyday to survive. And, the point here is the mindset of those who look to help themselves first and not even concede to helping others, the mindset that casts our neighbors into the ditches, without a hand to reach for. In this sense it is not a political issue, but a moral issue… Government welfare or not, we should never as a people wish others to fail, or to care less if they go hungry. That is my main emphasis It is sadly the growing mindset of many western minds, democrat or republican, conservative or liberal. And also, the post I quoted and that you referred to is from none other than my own uncle, my mother’s brother. He lives below the poverty line in south mississippi and has been on welfare and food-stamps before, as my family has before.. He doesn’t go to church, nor does he even consider donating to charity. His mindset is “get what I can and forget everyone else,” I know this personally. So in essence, he is quite the hypocrite and he heard all about it today from various family members..
No, I hear you. As stated, if Christians spent more time meeting the needs of those in need they’d put the government out of business. But, from my perspective, there must be a level of accountability anticipated from those who are helped.
I firmly supporting Benjamin Franklin’s stand on poverty:
“I am for doing good to the poor, but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they did for themselves, and became richer.”
That statement completely sums up my view on the issue. Actively leading those in poverty to a better life rather than letting them rot in it. Refuse to allow them comfort in it to the point where there’s no incentive to move beyond.
Well agreed my friend.. The entire issue is very touchy for so many, and I believe more if not most Americans would agree that the current system of welfare is far too exploited and broken in many ways, on both the recipient side and the giving side. Values, morals of kindness and policies of good conscience are what we need to lift those up from the bottom. Empowerment instead of giving fuel to complacency is key. It is just disheartening to hear a cold-hearted statement being sputtered all so often by the general masses regarding the less-fortunate.
Agreed. For many (perhaps not your relative), statements like that often come from a place of frustration. Doesn’t make it right. But we’re all human. My father had one of the toughest lives of anyone I’ve even known yet he refused to settle for less than his full potential. He instilled strong moral values in me and my two brothers – integrity, a good work ethic, etc. From my perspective, the biggest failure is in the disintegration of the American family unit. And, quite frankly, that’s one of the three pillars of society that Communists attack in order to seize control of a nation – God, morality and the family unit. All three have been under constant assault since at least the 1950’s.
We will lose all hope when those three pillars are erased from consciousness. But there is always hope. I’m praying for revival…whatever the cost. And I believe it will happen sooner than later!
Absolutely! Well said.
Love it great post..
I almost didn’t read this when I saw the word “political”
But I’m glad I did read it. Well written. Great points. Title says it all. Thanks for being a voice of compassion AND reason.
Thank you.. I normally avoid the subject but today was a bit disheartening.
Thanks for such a timely post-I couldn’t have said it better myself.
I’ve been aware of this deadening and it has been on my mind for quite some time. Your articulation is spot on here. Much like you, I shy away from political rhetoric, but I enjoyed reading this because it truly echoed my sentiments and I suspect that of many. Brilliant.
Couldn’t have said it better myself! Thanks. I will reblog on my site.
Outstanding my brother! I could not have said it any better!
I always enjoy reading what you have to say. I love this post and agree wholeheartedly. However, to those that feel that helping anyone in need is wrong will soon reap what they have sown. It’s not up to us to judge what that NEED may be, but it is up to us to help. We could ALL use a helping hand from time to time especially if we were not born into RICHES. I know I wasn’t and still struggle daily, but I don’t fail to help others in their need. When we help others WE are really helping ourselves. You just never know what day to day challenges may bring and find yourself in the unemployment line, welfare line, shelter lines, and then what???? Great job and I’m so thankful to know someone in the world cares about the livelihood of others. Much love 2 ya always!!!
Excellent post! Thank you! Love the cartoon! The divisions in this country are much more serious than we understand.
I share your position and add that an individual should not wait for the collective to act in order to remedy another person’s needs. Just stand up and act, dealing with another individual with the respect you hold for yourself. Jesus said do these things in secret instead of shouting from the hilltop like the hypocrites. I believe most Americans are honorable and will follow this advice when confronted by situations they can impact. Only the political animals need the public acclaim for their actions.
Excellent post, and certainly attracted a good response. It is undeniably a lot easier to complain about the people that use up the resources that are made available, than acknowledge the fact that there are still so many areas under-resourced/funded and perhaps we all should be giving more. These comments are reflective of a very common priority ranking of self first, others second. As much as we all try and give I would bet many are guilty of meeting their own needs before the needs of others. (I know I am an offender!) Talking about it, acknowledging it and constantly striving to live in a way that is not overly self indulgent and more community focused seems to be the way to go, and blogs like yours get the conversation started and hopefully get us changing the little things!
Spot on post. Thanks for the observation without getting into the politics of things. I have spoken to many of my friends and coworkers who don’t identify with the extremes that so many portray during this election year. They, like me, are disenchanted with the hatred, bigotry, and polarization that is coming from both sides the the aisle. Everyone is looking for blame and reasons, but the spirituality is missing. Thanks.
it is sad that so many people have that kind of attitude towards others. but i am also glad for the people who DONT feel that way and will do what they can to help those in a hard situation. great write.