Shouts From Down Under

Power to change the world. Would it cost a million dollars?

There is a saying; the love of money is the root of all evil.

Not money itself, but the love of it. There is a difference, but it seems like the difference makes no difference these days. Money itself seems to be evil as well as the love of it.

I've realised that there is something about a fist full of money that takes away noble inhibitions you may have had, paves the way, oils the gears, pads out the blog entry...Huh? Wot? Ok, time to get on with it...

Would you bother scamming anyone for a million dollars, if it was already given to you?

Money stolen from Ukrainian coffers. Is this corruption only confined to that country? I don't think so!

https://medium.com/about-ukraine/717e9951ab47

We are fed some well executed fiction by the media, all the time, about how gambling people waste all their money, about those terrible social welfare bludgers, the lazy $#%@& on the dole collecting money put there by the hard working taxpayer, the women having children to who knows what father just to collect the child payment.
There's the no hoper here, the centrelink fraudster there, that nasty thief, these useless young people, those cheating pensioners.

But is this really true? I find, more and more, that I don't beleive it.

In fact, I think it's mostly a load of codswollop we are being fed.

Yes, some might cheat the system. But you know what? We all know, anyone with a smidgen of brains in their skulls know that you won't get away with it.

So, is it really like we read in the papers, see on TV, hear shouted on whatever channel, that its cheats, tax fraud and all that, is why our country doesn't have any money, and there are no jobs, no employment, and shut your mouth and bear it because everyone is in the same boat.

Well, I think we are in the same leaky boat as Ukraine, and most other countries of the world.

The money is being siphoned out of the Goverment coffers almost quicker than it goes in there from taxes.

The lack of basic funding for our country's people, whatever age and situation, is blamed on foreign aid and other hand outs, on everything under the sun, except the real culprits.

And there's the Defence budget. Now there's a biggie of spending "reason" that we wouldn't argue with, but is it really necessary?

Are all of our countries really on the brink? All under such a massive threat that we have to upgrade our subs and planes to whatever gold plated titanium chrystal electronic do dad latest thingumybobsbicycle, otherwise we'll be invaded in 2 minutes?

Sometimes I really wonder why someone in government hasn't thought of just chopping up even a tiny crust of that massive defence budget that each country just "has to have", and giving, yes GIVING every single person alive in that country a million dollars each.

Yes, GIVING them $1,000,000.00. In our country this wouldn't even make the lights flicker.

And I immediately hear people shouting, but BUT, nobody would work if they just had the money handed to them on a plate like that. Nobody would have any incentive, to sweat for those dollars.

Well, I think people would be surprised with what would really happen. Yes people might sit around for a couple of weeks, just to sleep off the exhaustion.
They'd pay their loans off, and then spend the rest of the money on things every person on this planet has a right to have, IF equality really matters.

The secret would be that the money left would have to be spent on housing, putting their kids through college or helping them obtain a trade, tools and a relevant vehicle to go with it.

The older people could retire from their job after training a bunch of younger people to take over, there's a bunch of new jobs straight away, plus trainers/ mentors available, plus people being trained by those who are experienced and know their job enough to get away with not doing much . Oh yes, we all know it happens. But perhaps it doesn't happen as much lately, money has become so tight.

Some of the million dollars would also have to go towards buying locally made produce, groceries, vehicles, products, BOOKS, etc etc. There is a bunch of extra jobs straight off.
Then the million dollar recipients, all of them, would be required to build a new house, and give their old one to young people.

And with all that spending happening, the Government would reap it's money back in no time through GST, not having to pay people social security $, and by there being a lot more production per capita.

If every country did this, where would there be any need for corruption?

And as for work? Well, people could then train into jobs they really like, and not everyone wants the high flying stressful jobs. Like me for instance. I clean toilets, and apart from wanting to be famous (and making a million dollars) I'm happy doing this. Seriously, I am!

Well, sadly, if someone wrote a book with a (6)Millon Dollar Man story like this, it would go straight in the garbage bin.
Because it wouldn't work.

For starters, there's religion. People have every right to differing beliefs. But people are also human, and get carried away. Next thing you know, there is centuries of time passed and generations of people hating each other because someone was a tad self righteous, someone goaded, someone lost it, someone threw a rock in the first place, or worse.
There are those who think it's ok to burn people at a stake because of their judgement.
There are extremists who want to kill anyone who doesn't beleive their religion. Everyone is the infidel.
There are those who think it's ok to stick one race into gas chambers.
There are also those who think it's ok to be very sucessful but not share it with others. I can't think who the$e folk$ might be.

Families. It doesn't take much common sense, even if you believe in evolution (I dont), that people must have originated from a lot less people one time, many many minutes ago.

Yes, long before the Internet. Back when you clicked in your throat to speak, not clicked on a screen for an insertion point.

So it didn't take that long back then, even without Broadband and arguing over whose Laptop was whose, or who downloaded too much and now the plan is slowed until the month ticks over, it didn't take long for families to disagree.

If you believe in creation, and Cain and Abel, the Garden of Eden hadn't even wore out one lawn mower yet, when the family argument caused a fracture that has never been healed to this day.
Cain killed his brother Abel, all because Abel did better (lamb, living) in the sight of God.
God told Cain that his earthly (dust / dead ) efforts weren't good enough, and Cain was too proud to accept it, apologise and just lift his game.

Nothing has changed.

And it's not just religion and family feuds that are reasons why doling out $1,000,000.00 wouldn't work.

There is Power.
People have a deluded thing about the idea of power.
They think if they can say yay, or nay, to the decisions of another human, that they have power. It's pathetic. That power is purchased. And that person's satisfaction from weilding such power is a sad plotless genreless grammarless and spellcheckless story.

But people continue to say, stuff you mack, I like having the power to say YOUR FIRED, or , Go there! or Come here! (Like the guy in the Bible)

They like to threaten the world with nukes. They like to kill their Uncle because he sneezed or something. Perhaps he wanted to give a spoilt brat a much needed smack on his truly mental bottom cheeks.

So, I do digress. There are all these things whereby a million quid dished out to every Tom, Dick and Harry wouldn't work.

Greed. We all know what that does. If he has a million bucks, I want two million! I want a bigger house. A snazzier car. A better mailbox. A more attractive wife. And so it goes, on and on and on, until countries shoot each other, throw grenades into trenches, into pillboxes, and all that childish behaviour.

I really think 99% of the ordinary plain old population just want to work their job, something they enjoy, buy groceries and pay their bills with a bit left over to go camping or watch a movie, go home to their family with a roof over their heads, be safe, and live how they choose, as long as it's not hurting or interfering with someone else.

And so, the funding of our countries is being siphoned off into the hands of a few people. Is that how it is?

I'd so like to believe that this could not be so. Would humans stoop so low? Oh the terribleness of it, my hand goes to my face to cover my eyes. *sarcasm* (No, there's no emoticon for that, not yet anyway. Hmmm how to draw a face representing sarcasm. Sort of a smirk crossed with smug malice. Lovely of me!)

This blog is quite enough on this sad subject, that in all seriousness, now that I seem to have had a go at every group I could think of, I don't mean to make a joke out of Ukraine's plight.

I wonder what those people feel at night while enjoying those funds they have sucked dry from poor countries, full of people living in bad conditions, with snow, starvation and other atrocities to contend with?
Do they ever feel that terrible hunger? The cold? The desperation? The humiliation? The sense that others on this earth don't CARE?

I know people personally who do their best to help the needy in places in Moldova and Romania.
They endure a lot of hardship to take food to villages in the poorest regions of the world. Yes, unemployment is something like 90%.

Because the people in need are their relatives.

We needn't think we can just click to the next blog on WdC either. Because these people are our relatives too.

They are our brothers and sisters, over there doing it impossibly tough, because of corruption, greed and lust for power.

I could go on and on with my beliefs and opinions, but in the end, I think that is for each one of us to work out for ourselves.

Do we have the power to do anything?

Is there anyone who does have the power to change things? Enough power? Anyone who might want to change things? Perhaps if there is someone who has enough power, they might be waiting to be asked, waiting to be believed in. That would probably help, to start with.

It's obvious after centuries of the same old feuds and disagreements, the same poverty, greed and all the rest of it, we don't have the power to change, not even change ourselves.

Asking. Believing. It's free.

But it's up to us.

Sparky

Sparky