History Repeating Itself
By EliFromMN
@EliFromMN (53)
United States
March 30, 2009 1:03am CST
History has a funny way of repeating itself, doesn't it? I believe that in my lifetime, we will see a new civil rights struggle, face the subject of prohibition, and experience the coloapse of the U.S. economy. I'm not a doomsday kinda guy. I'm a moderate conservative. In past generations, there was the fight for women and minorities to have the right to vote. They struggled with prohibiton and the great depression. Today, we are facing all of these at once.
The new civil rights struggle is coming from the gay community. IS marriage a legal, or a religous union? Should the government of the United States have a say in such matters? If so, then what does the Constitution say? Is legal unions enough to satisfy the constitution? I struggle with these questions. My morals say one thing, but I believe the constitution says another. What's the right answer? HOW do we answer?Just as alcohol was outlawed, today's addiction in drugs. Will marijuana be legalized? SHOULD it be legalized? I'm not a pot smoker, but I know people who are. I wouldn't say that they're the violent, hardcore addicts like those who do crack or heroin. However, will legalization open the door to other durgs? How much money will the nation save on jail space and money it costs to house people who are in possesion of marijuana? How much money could we generate from taxes?Of course, the economy is in shambles. While we haven't reached the levels of the great depression, it could easily reach that level if we're not careful. My grandparents and great-grandparents were able to weather the depression through hard work and pulling together as a family to survive. Will the generations of today be able to do the same?
These are just a few things that I was discussing with a very good friend. I was curious what you all thought.
1 response
@Arkie69 (2156)
• United States
30 Mar 09
There will be a lot of difference in this crash and the one in the 1930's. Just the fact there is a lot more people now will make a lot of difference. Our farming industry is structured a lot different than it was in the 30's. Most of the food was grown by smaller family farms which is not the case now. Our farms in the 30's didn't depend on money like they do now. Most farmers I know and have known stay maxed out on credit. If they can't borrow the money they can't even plant a crop much less harvest it and get it to market.
We also have a monster of a trucking industry now that we didn't have in the 30's. I don't care where you live in the US very little of what you consume is produced locally. Instead it is trucked in from all over the US. You can't find anything in your home you have bought that wasn't on a truck at some point. If you will get you a note pad and go through your home and list all the things you see that has not been on a truck.
This is what you call putting all your eggs in one basket. And...That basket has a big hole in the bottom. All you have to do to bring this nation down is stop the supply of diesel fuel that runs all these trucks. Within a week the food stores would be closed because they would have nothing to sell. Within a month to six weeks people would be starving in the streets.
I agree part of what we are seeing is history repeating it's self but this round there is going to be a lot of nasty stuff added that people didn't see in the last depression. They say there is only a 3 day supply of food in the LA Basin at any time. The rest is en route to that area on trucks and trains. Both are using diesel to get there. This along with a thousand other things puts us in a very dangerous situation that can kill a bunch of us in a hurry. Scared, hungry people are the most dangerous animal God made.
Art
