“A great disaster had befallen Russia: Men have forgotten God;
that’s why all this has happened.”
Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn
We’ve recently taken to exploring some of the highways and byways in
this new area of the state that we now call home.
Since I actually spent about 5 years of my life in this area,
nearly some 40 odd years back, a few of these roads are vaguely familiar…
yet many more are not.
There are many more roads…
I think they call that progress.
I call it confusion.
On this side of the state, we are closer to the North Georgia mountains
then we were at our previous home.
And one thing I can say is that the ins and outs to those mountains have all
pretty much remained the same since my youth…paved, yet narrow
and curvy.
So as we traversed our way northward, we were met in all the tiny,
medium and larger towns and cities with the sign of the times…
HELP WANTED…
NOW HIRING.
And many of those signs were offering hiring bonuses.
Factories, restaurants–both fast food and fine dining, gas stations,
convenient stores, medical facilities and even farms…
places both urban and rural were each asking for one thing…
employees.
Why you ask?
Well, firstly, we had a pandemic.
It put a kink in our way of life.
It hit our job force—it hit the way we worked and our ability to
provide services… and it fired a direct hit at our economy.
And so in turn, our national level leadership decided
to offer some quick help by sending out stimulus money
in order to tide folks over.
Tiding over until we could get back to business as usual.
The Big Government with a Big G, was expected to bail us
regular folks out.
Who would pay the rent, the utility bills, the insurance when
businesses were shuttered or our income was cut??
All eyes turned to Washington.
Well, we are now basically thankfully reopened.
We are trying to get back to “normal”—whatever that might now be.
But here’s the thing, folks are not going back to work…
They are not going, in part, because the government money is better than a
pay check–it beats having to go to a job. Home beats work right?
So if that money keeps coming, what would be the impetus to get
folks back to work?
There wouldn’t be one.
Because who cares if an economy tanks…just as long as a Big G
government continues sending free cash.
Oh but wait…if an economy tanks can a Big G government keep sending out
free money??
Well folks like Bernie and AOC and Joe and Kamala seem to think so.
Hummmm…
I think this notion of Big G taking care of its people,
and in turn keeping the people on the hooks for the desires of the Big G,
rings of an insidious past…and in turn,
the need for a small history lesson.
Names like Trotsky, Lenin, Marx, Mao, Ho Chi Minh all come to mind…
men who believed Big G knew what was best for the people.
Level all playing fields.
Work for the whole…no personal gain…no one having more than another.
The people are the ants, the leaders are the ones, like the grasshoppers,
who gather the fruits of the labor.
They have the dachas…and we the people are to fall into place and do
our part.
Big G then becomes the god of the people.
And in turn, a perfect utopia…
Well, if you know your history, which nowadays most folks don’t, well none
of that had a very happy ending…just saying…
“If only it were all so simple!
If only there were evil people somewhere
insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary
only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them.
But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of
every human being.
And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?”
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago 1918–1956
cookiecrumbstoliveby 
“Houston…We have a problem”
Don’t we???!!!
The pandemic has uncovered the ugly, raw truth about government in that it will always seek to enlarge and empower itself over individual citizens and think nothing of exploiting “tragedy” to advance their motives. This paying people to stay home is just part of it as you’ve outlined. As Americans I’d say we deserve better but people keep voting for this nonsense so….
Yes it has Tricia— and I think it’s high time us average voters sit up and take notice!!
This is a complicated issue because the gov response to covid (and rioting) caused the problem. People are falsly believing if everyone would just go back to work, things would be ‘normal’ again. But that’s a bit like telling a crime viictim to “just get over it.” No, many of us have been robbed, lied to, lockdown, and traumatized. Just suck it up, put a mask on, and go flip burgers in the summer heat while living in your car so people can feel ‘normal ‘ again just ain’t going to work.
Also, it depends where you live, but its just not safe, there’s very little law and order.
I think you’re right IB in that it’s a matter of where you live.
We are pretty much mask free and have been as well as “open” for some time now …and whereas I don’t feel exactly safe to go in to eat in Atlanta night or day, I do feel safe in the outer counties and cities—but again, being wise in certain spots for day time excursions—
So here, seeing so many ‘need help’ or ‘now hiring’ signs when we are pretty much moving in a forward direction is not frustrating— we have been fortunate for the most part in our state—
Plus we are hot but not abnormally hot as you all are— so now factor in your devastating heat and you do have a dire situation
And that should read now frustrating rather than not
If you go to a sit-down restaurant, you will have a long wait to get poor quality food. They cannot get waiters or cooks or both. The Dems have stimulated into the apathy they need to totally take over. Thanks for the post, but when visiting Ole Miss, I am lost until I get near the engineering building and the Lyceum. They have not messed with that circle since adding the engineering building (out of place with its modern look on the original circle of ancient buildings.
You’re right— and now we hear of owners who have no choice but to race prices due to shortages in the supply chains and a lack of help— it’s a vicious cycle that catches the consumer in the middle and soon the consumer will no longer be able to consume and in turn more doors will shut— its like a death knell tolling and I hope to heavens we can stop the blasted tolling before it’s all too late!!!
Or we can go home to Jesus before someone removes the bell’s clappers to melt it down for cash.
🤣😇
Raise prices, not race—- ode to a thumb pecking on a phone 🙄
That may be better than voice recognition. I had a chat with a doctor on Sunday and he was laughing about what his phone thought he was saying – definitely a phone that never heard of medical terms, and what the phone came up with was not repeatable in polite company. I told him that a few prayer requests were that bad also. When you get over the shock of what they sent, then you sound it out and think of the disease that they are fighting – once you stop laughing.
My phone has replaced the word shirt with, well you know, 🤨
LOL, and I am sure you enunciated carefully. I have a voice remote for the cable provider that is creative. I am glad that I have no channels or television programs with “shirt” in them.
I’m curious. Has anyone ever received a Joe Biden stimulus check? You know the one he used as a promise – a bribe? I’m pretty sure the Treasury Dept printed the money. Where did it go?
Well said. Everything who thinks socialism is a good thing should read Solzhenitsyn’s “The Gulag Archipelago.” It’s a brutal account of where socialism eventually leads us.
Amen— he tried to warn us—but I don’t know if anyone took him seriously — maybe Reagan
We’ll either learn now (by seeing what’s happening to California and NYC) or learn the hard way. Academia and the radical left do NOT want people reading Solzhenitsyn or Orwell.
Maybe I need to revisit a few of my previous Solzhenitsyn posts!!!
Mel, I thought I’d offered a comment to your wonderful post today but I only see IB’s comment.
I might be in spam or simply lost—but I loved your post—and will offer a link to it in my post tomorrow.
I commented on your look into Mary and Jesus’ response to her falling back.
I offered a youtube link to Jars of Clay, Love Song for a Savior
Your other comment did end up in spam for some unknown reason. Unspammed it! 😊
Thanks Mel ☺️
I live in a tourist area. Service is suffering. No one wants to work. At one point last week we had the highest rate of COVID-19 (National) in our small Springfield, Missouri. Why would others want to work if they make more not? We all understand. I do have empathy and sympathy for those in which tragedies have tripped up employment. History does repeat itself when lessons aren’t learned.
It is a difficult thing as there have been real tough impacts for many—- but over all— our work force has suffered and yet has to rally thus in turn the consumer suffers —-it’s a vicious trickle effect
Was thinking today when we ate dinner outside of how many signs there were that said “help wanted” and “closed”…