My kid's school asked me to donate supplies.
Paper. Pencils. Hand sanitizer. Tissues.
I pay property taxes.
My state has a $4 billion surplus.
The federal education budget is $238 billion.
And the teacher is buying pencils out of her own paycheck.
And I'm sending in Ziploc bags.
We fund stadiums for billionaires with public money.
We fund schools with bake sales.
And then blame teachers when test scores drop.
@Goyanks_28@mike_dimitroff@_MikeVA Glassnow is gonna miss 6 weeks with back spasms so we shall see what happens I guess. He’s been quite bad in May anyway so maybe this will be a good reset for him.
@txgermanbre And apologies if I rambled a bit there or repeated myself. Just wanted to share my thoughts and experiences because I’ve felt this persons sentiment and have thought about it a lot throughout life.
Interesting. I definitely understand where he’s coming from and have felt it myself at times. I’ve lived outside of 4 major cities and the sprawl and endless convenience, housing, and capitalism is all we are in many cases. There is no soul, character, or inspiration and that way of life really starts to change and rewire the people.
However, I think one of the greatest things about our country is our diversity, and that we really do have opportunities to build the life we want. What I described above is not the case everywhere. Before you move half way around the world, I suggest maybe staying in some other places in the country, and not just cities. Maybe a smaller mountain town or beach town, maybe in the Northeast, Northwest. There are still plenty of areas where you can find happiness and a fulfilling life. I just think you need to look beneath the surface a little bit more. Change your approach. Maybe look into giving back to the community and see where that leads. In many respects, you can create the life you want here and that is what makes this country great. At the same time, the country in general really does need to shift its direction to a more sustainable and meaningful way of life.
Side note, I think contributing to the community is a lost art. You see the people around you and it feels like they’re truly strangers, but in many cases they really are your neighbors, your local mailman, policeman, store clerk, teacher etc. We need to do a much better job of caring for and respecting those around us and restoring a sense of community.