Re: Friedman's Folly

<retrogrouch@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
news:76nr24pve2icfvukfgamoqfsbbn25s9dtl@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> On Sat, 17 May 2008 00:33:29 +0530, "John Galt"
> <whoisjohngalt@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
>><retrogrouch@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>>news:atlr24t6tj9j6dme6t53j4ku29cgpbnuj3@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>>> On Fri, 16 May 2008 21:39:06 +0530, "John Galt"
>>> <whoisjohngalt@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>That said, I bemoan the loss of the front-****ch patio style of
builidng
>>>>homes. Why don't people (of any income bracket) want those anymore?
>>>
>>>
>>> Now we cacoon. Our homes are self sufficient little feifdoms. All our
>>> entertainment is ****pped in via cable and net flicks.
>>
>>Sad.
>
>
> I've come to believe building community is the most im****tant thing we
> can do to save the better things and improve things. I hold an open
> house every month for my neighbors and friends just so we stay in
> touch and get to know each other. New people are almost forcefully
> dragged to the event. Every organization I belong to I push beer or
> coffee or potluck get togehters after the business is concluded so our
> relation****ps are about more than the "work".

I think you're on to something, actually. The only communities that seem
to 
do things like this are those that either (1) have some sort of
s****ts-teams 
for their kids, and (2) those that have some concern with crime, and form 
neighborhood watch groups.
>
> I was a rugged individualist for 45 years, making it on my own. I'm
> sad it took me so long to find that people and community are where the
> joy is. But at least I found out.
>
> We have political pollsters working at finding wedge issues to divide
> us, interest groups looking for ways to inflame our biases, and
> advertisers working on making us feel superior or inferior to others
> (depending on their product). That's billions being spent to make us
> fraction and faction. This is the real problem in America I think.

I concur.

JG


> (It's also why Obama's message is working. - But that's a different
> story.)