The Large vs the Small
While its probably overly simplistic and there is a lot more issues at hand, I often find that the difference between Liberals and Conservatives (at least in my circles) can be summed up as Liberals believe that charity must come from the government through programs to help those in need, whereas Conservatives feel that those in need should be voluntarily helped by the individual. Now this obviously doesn't account for every difference of opinion, but at the core of many issues I think it does. Liberal = government/program vs Conservative = individual. This applies to topics from schooling to the poor to healthcare. I don't want to get bogged down in specific policy debates or who has a worse candidate for president, that's not really what this is about.
I think it stems from a bigger difference of opinion on how its possible to make a change. We all love movies of the little guy going on a big quest (this is like the 4th post in a row I've referenced this in, clearly its a subconscious theme for me), and on this quest they unlock some thing that saves everyone back home. Yay! They're all saved!! But the reality is, most of us never go on big quests. Most of us never have huge epic things to save a bunch of people from. What we all have the opportunity to do is to help the individuals around us, but how to do that, is so often where the issue comes up.
There is a comfort in knowing that there is some big safety net out there, that if we need it there is a guarantee that something will catch us. If we lose a job, its comforting to know that we won't be destitute and our kids making due with rags tied around their feet instead of shoes. Its embarrassing to tell friends and neighbors that we need help, that something didn't go right, our spouse has lost their mind and we need help keeping the lights on. Its humbling to be in that situation, but its humbling too to be the person helping in those situations. When you are faced with dark times in those around you, it build up a part of your soul you didn't know existed. Those times of darkness in ourselves or others, are painful and transformative, but never in ways that we expect.
I said previously how the last few months have been insane. I'm not exactly even sure what all has happened or how we got to Oz, but here we are and the munchkins have finished up their song. Or maybe we're in the part with the flying monkeys? That might be more accurate. Okay so we're getting to realizing that we had the power to go home all along, but perhaps where we are now is better. Maybe all the plans we had weren't really anything compared to the plans we were given. Or not even plans, but immediate orders for deployment.
As much as we all claim to want to be masters of our own destinies, it is so much easier to push off the responsibility to others. To let some program catch us or those around us, to stay focused on the small path in front, rather than view the large scary world around us. As with anything, there is a time and a place for everything. A time for people, a time for governments, and a time to realize we'll never heal all that is broken and wrong in this world. Most of us will never throw the ring into volcano and save all of middle earth, but perhaps we don't need to be. Maybe the biggest impact we can have is not by focusing on the huge, but the people who are right next to us.
I think it stems from a bigger difference of opinion on how its possible to make a change. We all love movies of the little guy going on a big quest (this is like the 4th post in a row I've referenced this in, clearly its a subconscious theme for me), and on this quest they unlock some thing that saves everyone back home. Yay! They're all saved!! But the reality is, most of us never go on big quests. Most of us never have huge epic things to save a bunch of people from. What we all have the opportunity to do is to help the individuals around us, but how to do that, is so often where the issue comes up.
There is a comfort in knowing that there is some big safety net out there, that if we need it there is a guarantee that something will catch us. If we lose a job, its comforting to know that we won't be destitute and our kids making due with rags tied around their feet instead of shoes. Its embarrassing to tell friends and neighbors that we need help, that something didn't go right, our spouse has lost their mind and we need help keeping the lights on. Its humbling to be in that situation, but its humbling too to be the person helping in those situations. When you are faced with dark times in those around you, it build up a part of your soul you didn't know existed. Those times of darkness in ourselves or others, are painful and transformative, but never in ways that we expect.
I said previously how the last few months have been insane. I'm not exactly even sure what all has happened or how we got to Oz, but here we are and the munchkins have finished up their song. Or maybe we're in the part with the flying monkeys? That might be more accurate. Okay so we're getting to realizing that we had the power to go home all along, but perhaps where we are now is better. Maybe all the plans we had weren't really anything compared to the plans we were given. Or not even plans, but immediate orders for deployment.
As much as we all claim to want to be masters of our own destinies, it is so much easier to push off the responsibility to others. To let some program catch us or those around us, to stay focused on the small path in front, rather than view the large scary world around us. As with anything, there is a time and a place for everything. A time for people, a time for governments, and a time to realize we'll never heal all that is broken and wrong in this world. Most of us will never throw the ring into volcano and save all of middle earth, but perhaps we don't need to be. Maybe the biggest impact we can have is not by focusing on the huge, but the people who are right next to us.
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