Lot's of people would call me an old fashion guy. I like the way it was done back in the day and I love old sayings. But, every now and again I come across a situation that changes my look on things. When growing up I often heard the expression, "to whom much is given, much is expected". It's a simple concept. Basically, it means that the more you are given in life, the more you are expected to do. This comes from a time when not everyone had an equal opportunity in life. There was a time when only the privileged were schooled. So not everyone had a chance to be educated and thus improve themselves. Few people qualified for loans to start a business. So if you did you made the most of that opportunity and worked endlessly to succeed.
Apparently in this ultra modern twenty first century world, that concept is now obsolete. Everyone, in this country at least, is given an equal shot at education. Yes I know there are failing schools out there, but there is an opportunity for everyone to get an education. So do we use all this available education to do the most we can with it? In the advanced year of 2013 it is more popular to speak improper English than read Shakespeare despite the billions of dollars spent annually on education. Our modern world publishes more books than ever. Yet the reading of books has declined roughly 15 percent in the last ten years. (that's both traditional and e-books) Just about every home in America has a computer that's hooked up to the Internet. With unlimited resources at the touch of a button we most often sit and watch YouTube videos or play a game, what a waste. Speaking of computers, your I phone has 16 Gigabytes of memory. The original IBM personal computer in 1981 had 256 Kilobytes. The weak IBM computer streamlined and revolutionized the business world. What do we do with our ultra powerful I phones We launch imaginary birds at little green pigs. Then there's the whole, "there's an app for that" thing. Usually when some one says, "I have an app for that" it means they are absolved from having to do that chore anymore. I can't wait for the breathing app to come out.
You see, today having more means doing less. The embarrassing amount of resources at our disposal is being squandered by our apathy. The advancement of our world depends on people who are interested in actually advancing themselves. If we all just fall back on the apps given to us, what happens when the apps need to be fixed? Take the time to learn things for yourself. It's so easy to fall in love with all our modern gadgets, but if you know how things work you will be the master of your own world. Those that depend on all the conveniences with out the know how are at the mercy of those handing out the short cuts. So at the end of the day, do you want to be more or less in command of your own destiny?
Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Not something to wish for, but to attain.
~ William Jennings Bryan
Apparently in this ultra modern twenty first century world, that concept is now obsolete. Everyone, in this country at least, is given an equal shot at education. Yes I know there are failing schools out there, but there is an opportunity for everyone to get an education. So do we use all this available education to do the most we can with it? In the advanced year of 2013 it is more popular to speak improper English than read Shakespeare despite the billions of dollars spent annually on education. Our modern world publishes more books than ever. Yet the reading of books has declined roughly 15 percent in the last ten years. (that's both traditional and e-books) Just about every home in America has a computer that's hooked up to the Internet. With unlimited resources at the touch of a button we most often sit and watch YouTube videos or play a game, what a waste. Speaking of computers, your I phone has 16 Gigabytes of memory. The original IBM personal computer in 1981 had 256 Kilobytes. The weak IBM computer streamlined and revolutionized the business world. What do we do with our ultra powerful I phones We launch imaginary birds at little green pigs. Then there's the whole, "there's an app for that" thing. Usually when some one says, "I have an app for that" it means they are absolved from having to do that chore anymore. I can't wait for the breathing app to come out.
You see, today having more means doing less. The embarrassing amount of resources at our disposal is being squandered by our apathy. The advancement of our world depends on people who are interested in actually advancing themselves. If we all just fall back on the apps given to us, what happens when the apps need to be fixed? Take the time to learn things for yourself. It's so easy to fall in love with all our modern gadgets, but if you know how things work you will be the master of your own world. Those that depend on all the conveniences with out the know how are at the mercy of those handing out the short cuts. So at the end of the day, do you want to be more or less in command of your own destiny?
Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Not something to wish for, but to attain.
~ William Jennings Bryan
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