Word of wisdom from a dying generation [xpost from r/politicaldiscussion]

jeepster4 · 3 months

Your uncle may be more typical of the generation born before WW2 than you think.

SoylentOrange · 3 months

So Bob's your uncle?

eaturbrainz · 3 months

Bunk. I've heard a lot over the years from my grandmother (around the same age), and I think your uncle idealizes the past.

We had less partisanship and greed in the Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression? Oh please! Remember the Business Plot? You know, to kill FDR and install a fascist regime?

Getting soft? We know make an industry of locking up the young for trivial, in fact barely existent, offenses! Our work hours have gone back up to what they were when our grandparents (and you uncle) were children!

Politicians were more able to work together, but Truman also faced the Do-Nothing Congress? What do you call that?

Come on. America is acting out some very, very old, classically American patterns. This shit's not new, it's us.

brolix · 3 months

[deleted]

silversister · 3 months

The running joke is reported to be that the Congressmen & women wish each other a nice weekend on Wednesday evening, They spend most of their time at home raising money. Re-election has become a year round job.Get the money out of politics if you want change.

nazbot · 3 months

"Well, you're not allowed to discipline anymore. When I joined the Army, there was this lieutenant in basic training that everyone hated. He was the meanest S.O.B. I ever did meet. On the last day of training he told us, 'I know many of you hate my guts right now and rightfully so. But what I have done for you will help you in combat someday. If just one of you survives because of what I have taught you, I have done my job well.'

This is the only one I disagree with. That's basically the stance of 'I hit you because I love you'. Sometimes strong discipline is useful, sometimes it's just an excuse to be an asshole.

MalignantMouse · 3 months

Props to your uncle.

shadow776 · 3 months

Congress only works three days a week.

They are only in session three days a week. They do tons of work outside of that time, likely far more than 40 hours a week. It's not physical labor to be sure, but that kind of work is physically and mentally exhausting.

xerctoh · 3 months

I read this and I care. I feel all the same ways as your uncle does and if you even read this comment please let him know that there are young (I'm 23) , politically savvy Americans who feel the same way he does and who yearn to see our society become the wonderful beacon of light it used to be.

Tombug · 3 months

Brokaws book "the greatest generation" was a load of crap. Generations are not superior or inferior any more than races are.

skeletor100 · 3 months

It all sounds like wise words. I do have a question about the first quote, about Congress working three days a week. I was wondering if this was for the same reason that politicians here in the UK don't work all week. They work part time at Parliament in London and the rest of the week they are supposed to be in their constituency working for the good of their constituents. Are Congressmen supposed to return to their States to try and work for the good of the citizens in the State when they aren't working in Congress?

xxthemattxx · 3 months

I appreciated reading this, and I'd upvote you twice if I could.

Kurokikaze01 · 3 months

Brought a tear to my eye. Excellent read. I wish more people from the older generations thought the same way.

Skelletonhand · 3 months

What struck me was the bad cop Lieutenant, the NCO's are the bad cop these days so to speak.

tofu2u2 · 3 months

Your uncle sounds very wise and you are, indeed, very lucky to have him in your life. And he's lucky to have a family member who listens to him so well. Good luck to you and your family.

JohnChimpo · 3 months

I like how he knows to blame congress. He's in the same boat as all of us. You know why congress is bad? Karl Rove.

soxfan17 · 3 months

"Now, you can't say one thing to a kid without being insensitive. I hope this doesn't become our greatest flaw."

I believe this to be true, and I think it will become our biggest flaw. Kids are growing up to be marshmallows nowadays, detached from the real world.

I'm live in Canada. Where I'm from, kids in grade 7 and 8 can no longer fail anything besides math and English. In all other subjects, the lowest mark they can get is a D. An automatic pass.

Imspaced · 3 months

This is awesome insight. I have a great uncle who survived Pearl Harbor, but he doesn't like talking about it. He says things similar to this and I always love talking to him. But, although I hate to say it, our politicians aren't the younger generations, they're the older ones who have seen very much of what your uncle speaks of. They're greed, as well as your uncle's wisdom, stem from the same era.

TheGreatGumbino · 3 months

Very nice, thanks

linktochaos · 3 months

The disrespect Obama gets is ridiculous. Absolutely shameful.

tornadosgoOMNOM · 3 months

honestly i dont care what some old man thinks, age doesnt translate to credibility.

davelong23 · 3 months

I hate the people that so blindly say that kids shouldn't be allowed to move along in schools if they didn't pass the class. I'm 18 years old, and last year, my senior year of high school, I wasn't allowed to walk at my graduation for .5 credits I was missing, amounting to one class. One class is all it took to keep me from getting my diploma, and this was after I had worked my ass off to obtain 2 extra credits by doing a lot of overtime work at the school and helping out around the office. Months later, my familys been goin through some hard times so I've been helping at home and working to help us get by. What kind of jobs do you think they have for someone like me? A wage that's nonexistent that goes by in the snap of a finger. All because of one class. Now, could I have done more to put myself in a better situation come graduation, absolutely. It's one of my greatest regrets not giving it my all in high school, but its not like I had much help either. Teachers today are so stagnant and engrained in the system that they do more talking than actual teaching. I agree that education has to be reformed, but not in the way you imbeciles would go about it. Children are not dogs which can be taught to sit and roll over, to be a teacher is to connect with their students so they understand from a human perspective instead of words on a page. A lot more students would succeed if the teacher would tailor his lessonplan towards individual classes instead of vice versa. Not like I'm saying they don't have to pull their own weight, but this gives them a chance to really understand what they are learning instead of writing it down a paper and forgetting about it. Most high schools are a joke nowadays, I went to a so-called "good" high school and every almost everyone would cheat or copy answers. I suppose it is an American value to lie to the top anyway.

junggn · 3 months

Honestly, I couldn't agree more. Tim Thomas's decision was not a "political statement", it was a slap to our country and democracy's face. You do not get to sit, pout and disrespect our president just because you voted against him. Like it or not, he is your president. Respect that.

dbe · 3 months

If I recall, Tim Thomas didn't mention the Tea Party, he just said he's unhappy with our government. I wish more people would do this, maybe they'd get the message.

GrizzlyManOnWire · 3 months

"I disagree wholeheartedly with Tim Thomas's (Bruin's goalie) decision to make a political statement by not going to the White House to celebrate winning the Stanley Cup. That's what's wrong with this country. You respect your damn president whether he's a Democrat or a Republican. What he's saying is that he does not support the country he lives in unless the leader is from the Tea Party. That's just ridiculous. If he were here right now, I would have some choice words to set that young man straight."

I feel like alot of redditors (myself included) would disagree with this statement when George Bush was in office. Replace "Tim Thomas" with an outspoken democrat and "Tea Party" with "democrat"

SpiritofJames · 3 months

Parts of this sound like blithering idiocy. "I have faith in Obama." I wretched.

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