This Country Ain't Big Enough For You and Me: A Moment With Bill Reflection

It's hard to read the writing on the wall when you're always being distracted by pretty, shiny objects.

I don't understand education anymore. It used to be so simple. You studied hard, did your homework to the best of your ability and you got the grade you deserved. The big lesson here, as far as I'm concerned, was not to give up. Even if you did poorly on one test, you could still pull a good grade by the end of the year but working harder. A pretty important life lesson.

Not so these days.

Now it seems like students are presented with the grades they are expected to get based on past performance. If they are expected to get no better than a C in a given subject, then that's all they will get regardless if the work they do if worthy of an A. Where's the motivation to do better? Why bother to work hard if you're no better off for it? How can we possibly hope to instill any kind of work ethic? How can we teach our children the value of hard work if it's all for naught? This is the biggest **** you I've ever heard of. This is why the rebel in me can find no peace.

Hello billybuc.

Oh, Bill , learning so much of historical disturbing facts , reading all well written comments, not much left to add , to this unanswered question " who is going protect us from ourselves "? Who got us to this point?! Not the people themselves choosing to be lead into or by accepting helping hand of carefully planned " educational " programs leading away from traditional ' morality ' , like " its available, you can do it." Divorcing "loved one", murdering unborn, steeling from the family, using illegal substance, many things were legislated and preached as new way of being free, while in the same time it has become dependency on account of loosing liberty and freedom given by the Master of the Universe .

It's shocking to know how quickly and easy is re-educating

anyone without solid foundation of personally acquired wisdom and truth. It's even more shocking that out of three -hundred- sixteen million, less than half want to know this of you Hub, while most of them accept delusion of fleshy wrapped promised " free " care (health and otherwise), a good pay for doing nothing except, leaving " change " to working class " "hoping " that utopia of " Das Kapital" is going to last forever. And we are not there yet, since the unwillingness to learn how to read, has been fun to delude mostly everybody ( sorry not much has been done otherwise ), so the new sweet health care bill allows the establishment of " Dhimmitude " in the USA, and that's why YOUR question dear friend William has to be taken very seriously.. .

Voting up, awesome , and interesting.

( thank you for tolerance )

Peace be with you.

I was shaken by the recent school shooting threat. Once again, someone managed to get by security, with little problem. I don't think gun control, metal detectors, more security, etc. is going to solve our problems. It is the individual being that needs to change, one by one. If we caught on, then perhaps we could infect and spread this benefical virus. I also believe turning back to our roots such as respect for fellow man, living the simple life, building faith in God, and working hard (to name a few) would help tremendously. Your thoughts are worthy and I hope people listen.

... and we call ourselves intelligent, sentient human beings, Bill. Something is very, very wrong with the inhabitants of this planet. Thanks for this strong, powerful piece of writing that should wake everyone up.

I don't believe it was completely unattainable; some people did manage to achieve it. Maybe we need to stop working towards an ideal and work towards our own personal dream of the good life.

I'm still writing. In fact, I'm researching magazines I want to send my stuff out to. This week has been disjointed however because of medical issues with my oldest daughter. My head's all over the place right now but I'm still moving forward; even if it's only a step at a time. Have a good weekend, Bill.

Another thought provoking great article. Great discussions also.

Absolutely correct, Billy. Until we learn to live together and in harmony. It will keep happening.

The American Dream seemed simple enough at one time. You worked hard to achieve a better life and then you enjoyed it. When did it all go so wrong? Or am I being naive and it was never right to begin with?

This hub got me thinking even more now than ever about USA, and also the other incident of an Australian who was killed by three teens who got bored most disgusting image and sometimes I wonder what is so great about the American Dream, I don't think much of that so-called dream when innocent people are getting killed. Great points raised here.

Hello there, long time! Beautiful and touching article. Indeed, who is going to protect us from ourselves? Who is going to answer that question? Ourselves? May be the most critical disease we suffer from as human beings are our diverse opinions. Our opinions, informed by our selfish desires, willfulness, pride, arrogance or ignorance. We exist in a vicious circle of trying to do good and failing lamentably; traveling, but never arriving. What we truly lack is leadership, the kind of leadership that only one who is overall and all influential is capable of providing. Until then, we will continue to look away from OURSELVES to someone else. Thanks for sharing such a profoundly deep and touching message.

Very interesting hub about the population issue.

Voted up and interesting. Well Bill now I won't have to watch that horror film not after reading this. WOW There are just no words. Passing this on.

Hi Bill,

Violence is something that has been part of life here too, MJ living with it daily growing up through the troubles in Belfast. Just a few weeks ago where we live in the countryside now, there was a murder, which made the national TV news. You think you are safer and then this happens to serve as a reminder. Great job bringing us out of our comfort zone as you say, a great wake up call!

With 9/11 coming up we better all watch our backs because our government could care less and we all know that. Seems we might be all taking your hub in mixed directions but you have indeed as always got us to thinking, just maybe not what you wanted us to! lol

Wow! Yet again the arrow hits the mark. Your reflections are mirrors of the soul. "There is a time to every purpose under heaven." Cain slew Able in the Garden of Eden and man has continued to the present.

You are so right, only we can protect us from ourselves with love, peace and understanding...Helping each other is the first small step. God help us and lead us out of the way we are headed.

Voted up, useful, awesome, and interesting.

That is sad. The statistics itself are staggering, but to think of each one as being real, and affecting so many others... We are not numbers, we are people. This is very thought-provoking, Bill. Thanks for sharing it with us.

~ Kathryn

Hi billy, I can remember when I was a lot younger, there was about one or two killings a year over here on the news, these days there are about 2 a day! not going to blame certain people, but the more coming over, the more trouble seems to be happening, not good these days, you always get me thinking, great hub bill, nell

Isn't it strange that when i first started reading this, all i could think of was how good you are in math, then reading further, i realized you were not conserned with mathematical facts, you were concerned about life and the lack of it. We made the evening news in my little town of 800 people, seems a body was found in our wooded area today, a 50 year old woman who had been murdered in In. and her body dumped here. We have the man in our jail. He is a young man, 24 years old who wanted this woman's car. Sometimes you just want to build an electric fence and hibernate, but theres always that risk that the electricity will fail, then what? Man oh man your writing made an impression on me....

"yours"

It is always a good thing-I hate vacuous writing and your never is

Bill you never fail to make me think!

As a Cherokee, I appreciate your truth. As an American, I appreciate your passion. As Christian, I stand with you. As a person, I want our government to stop playing politics and get back to common sense. I do want our laws to protect our citizens and to deter crime. But as a parent, with arms, I want to protect my child from any tyranny on it's way. We need no repeat of massacres from the past, yet we know history repeats itself and it's inevitable. Only earnest prayer can help us now but not many are willing. Very sad.

This is a sad reflection on us as human beings!... The statistics are pretty scary, I don't know what it will take for people to come to their senses, life seems cheap when you look at the statistics. However, for those who have lost loved ones, whether through wars or crime the pain and loss is more real than any statistics.

You've done it again, another thought provoking hub.

I tell you what has been on my mind a lot lately and that is these old ladies in their 80s being broke in on and raped and murdered and I think man if I could I would have an old ladies class and teach these women to use a gun and when Mr Macho walks in that door granny blows his A$$ off. If this happened a few times these Mr Machos are gonna think twice, you know? Guess I don't take no blame for the world going crazy, you just take care of you and yours and don't live around trash, which is getting harder to do. America is going downhill fast. Love thy neighbor but watch thy back!

I don't know what the problem is, but crime just seems to be rising. A couple here were just arrested for raping a 1 year old. They even made a video of each other doing it. People are just getting sicker and sicker doing things that are unimaginable. Somehow we need to get down to the root cause and cure it.

That is crazy, your paperboy? Ok- onward to looking for that hub. I saw his last interview on youtube and it was chilling. Such a believable person. Scary! Ok- looking for your hub now.

It is insane how much murder goes on. I read a lot of true crime books and I suppose it interests me because I don't know how someone could commit not just murder, but the torture that sometimes goes on beforehand. I can comprehend anger, but I can't understand taking another life in cold blood. I just finished reading "A Stranger Beside Me" by Ann Rule about Ted Bundy ...and the acts committed were incomprehensible.

Wonderfully written and thought-provoking hub, Bill!

For comparison, in the Wikipedia "List of Countries by Intentional Homicide Rate" per 100,000 occupants, the United States = 4.8, Canada = 1.6, Japan = .4, Sweden = 1, China = 1, India = 3.5, and the United Kingdom = 1.2.

On the other hand, Uganda = 36.3, Zambia = 38, Congo = 30.8, Ivory Coast = 56.9, Jamaica = 40.9, El Salvador = 69.2, Honduras = 91.6, Mexico =23.7, Venezuela = 45.1, Russia = 10.2, and Greenland = 19.2.

In the US, it could be better and it could be worse.

I wonder what explains the huge differences in the homicide rate among countries. My guess is that in the more violent countries, power and plunder are more up for grabs than in the less violent countries, for historical reasons. In other words, I expect to find gang wars, civil war, or acute class conflict in the most violent countries.

the only question that has any bearing on this topic is… who is going to protect us from…..ourselves?

Hitting the nail on the head as you are so good at Bill. I think you and I both know the answer....

Mark

This hit home! It made me really think. It brought me back to 9-11 when I was drafting an estate plan and a client told me that a plane crashed through the World Trade Center where a friend of mine was working.

It's pretty easy to see how we got here--the industrial revolution took away our natural state, which is to live together and support one another in tribes and villages. Now, you have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps or you're a worthless pig. On top of that, we are constantly bombarded by poisons in our air and food and medicines and toxins like fluoride that the powers that be say are good for us. It doesn't matter if you're the greatest bible-loving Christian of all time or the most godless atheist who has ever existed: your brain is a fragile organ and any one of us is capable of doing the unthinkable if this organ malfunctions. But then, like you say, violence has existed for many, many years--we think that these are the most violent times, but if we look back in history we can see that they certainly aren't. The way you ended this was perfect: who will protect us from ourselves? We tend to look at things that happen to others and judge actions from the outside, when we should be looking inward, paying close attention to the fact that we are products of the violence and hatred and greed of our ancestors. Ok, I'm going to go to my happy place now.

Yes, can you imagine if we did have enough love and compassion in the world?

Another excellent, thought-provoking hub! Why do we do this to ourselves? Probably because we have all become less connected to each other, even in densely populated areas. That means it is so much easier to be a mere statistic, rather than an actual, living breathing person with value no matter the background or current circumstances.

We need to care more. Truly care more about our fellow human beings. We need to look at people with fresh eyes and an openness that seems to have been lost many years ago.

Keep up the great work, Bill. Thank you! Stephanie

Billy, those statistics are certainly a slap in the face! I have often wondered to myself how we, as a civilization, can be so violent. How can we be so insensitive and disrespectful of our neighbors? When will we ever get the idea that living in peace is a real goal that we should all be working toward? Why is it that Hollywood keeps cranking out grossly violent and bloody flicks? I guess I'll just have to keep wondering ;) Pearl

Voted Up+++

Frightening statistics! Even more frightening? "We shake our heads at the numbers and we wonder out loud..."

Who is going to save us from ourselves? Tha nk you Bill for a thought-provoking article that will hopefully do more than just get us thinking! Up+ and sharing!

Oh yes powerful indeed and as Joe says

"You provoke my pondering. You adeptly paint the picture and compel me to take a good look at it."

"And I never fail to see my reflection somewhere in it."

As I said yesterday you were born to teach and while you are not facing your classroom as you were before your present day class is world wide.

Sadly a word at times full of greed and hatred but we must never lose our voices; we must endeavour to shout louder to make sure we are heard.

Carry on Billy you are needed here on HubPages.

Have a great day.

Eddy.

Will there ever be an end ?

In some cities violence is a way of life. Innocent bystanders are killed in drive-bys and so it goes.

We read about it and then go back to whatever we were doing. The rhetorical question you end with should make us stop and consider. Is there really a way to end all it?

Has it gotten so out of control that there is no end in sight?

I hope not and I suppose I am part of the problem because I do not know the solution.

Angels are on the way to you Bill and to each of us as we try to make sense of the craziness and maybe find a way to stem the tide.

Will there ever be an end ?

In some cities violence is a way of life. Innocent bystanders are killed in drive-bys and so it goes.

We read about it and then go back to whatever we were doing. The rhetorical question you end with should make us stop and consider. Is there really a way to end all it?

Has it gotten so out of control that there is no end in sight?

I hope not and I suppose I am part of the problem because I do not know the solution.

Angels are on the way to you Bill and to each of us as we try to make sense of the craziness and maybe find a way to stem the tide.

I can never understand killing..Stealing for food or other acts..can be justified..But ending a life. And you may notice all the suicides today ..of people who have blessed lifes (or so it looks like). People are also desperate today...worrying about food, health, jobs and futures.

The statistics are startling, to say the least. Budget cuts, poor economy, illegal immigrants, starvation and poverty are all factors in the rising violent crimes and lack of resources to remove and rehabilitate those who commit them. Holy Mackerel, what has this world come to? I'd better put my rose-colored glasses back on!

Great hub here to bring awareness as to just how much violence is running rampant in the streets of America! Yes, more are killed everyday than in some wars, right here in the streets of America, take a look at Chicago.

The two largest cities in the state in which I live, people are just shooting people for no reason than just to shoot someone, and they are so brazen nowadays, where it is now done in broad daylight!!!

The hearts of men are full of pure evil, is what is going on, and God tells of this happening in His word in the last days that it will only get worse and worse.

God can change the hearts of men, if they will ask Him and repent of such evil and make an about face.

God bless. In His Love, Faith Reaper

Very good thoughts you raised here and seriously you always leave me reflecting a bit more after I read your articles. Thanks so much for the insight and definitely left pondering for sure now! Hoping you are having a good day now and I am off to do more work. Haven't stopped yet this morning!

Man, Bill, if there's one thing I can count on with every article I read that you've written, it's this:

You provoke my pondering. You adeptly paint the picture and compel me to take a good look at it.

And I never fail to see my reflection somewhere in it. The nagging reminder that I bear a responsibility for what I'm looking at.

Powerful writing, Bill! An artist ascending to his zenith!

Once again, I feel like I just got a 7-year battery under my hood, and I'm like a young Johnny Travolta getting electrified at the sight of Olive Newton-John all over again!

Aloha and grins, my friend, on this fine PNW Tuesday!

~Joe