Nice little rant about the world: http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~savage/rants/wildness.html

Here's an excerpt:

A whole lot of meandering words about nothing....

"We pass through this world but once. Few tragedies can be more extensive than the stunting of life, few injustices deeper than the denial of an opportunity to strive or even to hope, by a limit imposed from without, but falsely identified as lying within."

~ Stephen Jay Gould

Sherpadog,

Yep. I guess having a life expectancy longer than 30 years is wasted on the author...
Anyone who believes a "pastoral perfection" life was lived by our ancestors needs to go camping for two weeks without gear.

-Blast

Which is better, quantity or quality? If you live to be 70, but do a job you hate until 65, was your life really better?

http://ezinearticles.com/?Read-This-Article-if-You-Hate-the-World&id=89280

Hmm, I'd say we have both quantity and quality over our predecessors. We certainly have a lot more choices, and the poor sap who chooses a path that they find unsatisfying deserves their misery until they make a better choice.

Real estate is just another possession. If we didn't stake out a claim on the land we live on, then we would, and do, fight about other covetous items. Land is only one facet of the struggle between the haves and the have nots. The author's views are perhaps germaine, but too narrow minded in that respect. The author also discounts whatever investment made into improving said chunk of land for the sake of the traveller, which I find wholly unacceptable. I do not intend to labor under the hot sun cultivating and cropping just so some freeloader can take what he wants and go on about his business without contributing his portion. Agriculture has long been proven to be far more efficient than hunting/gathering ever was. If venison is in greater market demand, then the rancher will grow deer instead of cattle. The author's premise is far too liberal for my tastes. As for community displeasure, once again I look to those wonderful liberal welfare programs which interfere so much with free market society. What's happening in New Jersey right now is a prime example. Politics and bureaucracy spoil everything.

Despite some social limitations that civilization makes inevitable, there is always one paramount choice in our existence that takes precedence above all others, and that is acceptance or rejection. I can change the things I control, choose to accept the conditions I cannot change, and find a way to live with those conditions in harmony with others, or be miserable. It is far easier for me to adapt to my surroundings than to try and adapt my surroundings to suit my desires. Those who learn that vital skill will get a lot more out of life.

Bear in mind that for any one of us who find our careers, our families, our social realms not what we wanted, there are a myriad of those past and present who would've killed to have what we loathe.

Listening to someone rant on about what might've been, could've been, or even should've been won't solve any problems, it only adds to the noise and puts the blame for their misery onto someone or something else. I much prefer to be a "glass is half full" kinda guy. Life is too short, you take what you can get and make the best of it; you could always have less.

It is always easier to quit trying and find a fault to blame than it is to never give up and be responsible for your own happiness. Life, such as it is for each of us, is a gift, in whatever form we are bestowed. It can either be wasted or relished. If a guy like Ivan Denitsovitch can find something in each day to be happy about, then how much moreso for us?

I'm very, very happy with the quality of my life. I have a great wife and two kids. I have an exciting, rewarding job that allows me to see the world. On the weekends I go hiking, canoeing, or other fun adventures. I turn 40 in a few months. Hopefully though medical science I'll still be doing this 40-50 years from now (except maybe swapping the kids for grandkids or even great grandkids). A dirty, brutish and short life doesn't appeal to me.

It's been my experience that people who complain about modern times are unhappy with modern times. The reason they are unhappy with modern times is because they made a lot of bad, dumb or otherwise crappy decisions in their lives. It then seems to me that it's a waste of time to listen to people who have made such poor decisions in their own lives. If they hate it so much they should work on changing their lives rather than whining about it.

Plus, complaining about modern times via a computer is just funny to those watching.

-Blast, who grew up so poor he had to borrow dirt.

Surveys can be spun easily enough by the format of the original questions that were asked.

I have a good family, a good life and have had very unique opportunities to do things, go places that I will remember for rest of my life. I also enjoy my work and do not and will not direct my life / goals based on others rants and surveys....

Let's see:
1. 60 percent of our population hates their job and only 30 percent tolerates it: love mine

2.Did you know that 45% of Americans surveyed hated their lives and only 10% was willing to say the loved their lives: LOVE mine.
3. In another recent survey done over 70% of Americans were divorced: Married 10 years this coming Feb. "Til Death do us part" means it.

4. Did you know that 50% of all Americans do not care for their neighbors and 40% of them will not even bother to have a conversation with them: Poker night, pool parties, movie & dessert night, group Christmas light hanging parties, etc. Do I live in the only good neighborhood around?

5. In fact 25% will not let their children play with the kids on either side of their home: DD1&2 regularely play with the children of seven neighboring families. It used to be nine, but two families moved. Sometimes they play at our house, sometimes they go over there.

6. Another recent showed that most Americans almost 66% did not like their communities, because they had changed over the years or there was too much traffic or some other legitimate reason. Actually in that poll only 10% loved their communities and got involved: LOVE it! I write the community newsletter, run our street's welcoming committtee and organize block parties.

7. Did you know that the average American watches 6 hours of TV per day and that most 79% said most of what was on TV was just BS: Hmmm, I watch the weather report in the morning and if I'm lucky The Simpsons on Sunday evening. That adds up to a little over 90 minutes of TV per week. The rest of the time the TV is off. We don't have cable or satellite tv, just plain old rabbit ears. I do watch DVDs while working out on the treadmill after I put the DDs down every other night.

I guess I'm a lucky dog.

-Blast

Our civilization has laws saying you can't just hunt for deer, even on your own property, any time you wish. Even when you can legally hunt deer on your property, within the season the law allows, you are still required to haul that deer into town and pay a small tax to have it tagged as legal.

I do have a couple cousins in WV who do hunt and fish out of season, they own a lot of land way back in the hills and are as close to living off the land as you can get these days. They cut their own trees and hauled them to their own sawmill and made limber and built their own houses from them. The hunt and fish as needed and the law overlooks them because they are responsible in they don't hunt more than then need.