From: E. Shaun Russell (e_shaun@extropy.org)
Date: Thu Jun 13 2002 - 07:44:40 MDT
Alex Ramonsky wrote:
> Rich fat westerners with blisters on their asses have not the scars of
> those who've lived the other way; scars physical, mental and emotional.
>Now you know why I'm such a bad-tempered, paranoid old fart. : )
>Ramonsky
I might concede you the point that many (by no means all) Westerners have
had it easy compared to other countries, but without sounding overly rude,
I have to ask: "so what?" I will agree that I am fortunate to live in
North America, and I don't really take it for granted; I may complain
occasionally about Canadian politics, but faced with the option of having
to live in Tunisia or Uganda, I certainly prefer my relatively "rich" and
"fat" Western life.
What I *don't* feel is guilty. It is true that in many other countries of
the world the hardships are exponentially higher than in North America and
Western Europe. But isn't that largely the "luck of the draw" when it
comes to where one is born? I really had no choice in where I was born --I
would have chosen ten miles to the south of where I actually was so that I
could be an American. But this Robin Hood mentality puts me off somewhat:
am I a bad person because I haven't suffered as many hardships as a middle
African or Eastern European? Should I feel an everlasting guilt for where
I happened to be born? Should I not strive for success when I know that my
"brothers" in less fortunate countries would have a much lesser view of
what success is?
Uh uh. I'm happy enough to be a Canadian, fortunate to not have as many
scars as other nationalities, and I'm still driven to the pinnacle of
success. And I don't feel guilty.
________________________________________________________
E. Shaun Russell<---------------->Operations Officer, Extropy Institute
e_shaun@extropy.org<--------->http://www.extropy.org
Music Production Student<--->Trebas Institute
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Hear my music at: http://www.mp3.com/eshaunrussell
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