Burlington
High School
Burlington, Kansas
Teacher: Devra Parker
The Important,
Forgotten
By
Sally Boyce
12th grade
Machan said: "For that which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it." Is this a true statement? Does it really happen in our society today? Many may think, well, no not really, but it does. Even in my hometown, I see many different examples of this exact idea.
For example, last year our school built an unbelievable and expensive baseball complex and redid our track. Sure, it looks great, but was it really needed to go to the extreme that they did? We were in need of ball fields closer to our school, but I have seen college fields that are much worse than ours. Not to mention, we have so many other areas lacking that haven’t even been attempted to be fixed or updated in years. Our auditorium is very run down, which should be expected for as much as it is used. The school uses it for plays, assemblies, guest speakers and many other activities. Our whole community uses it quite often, too. The surrounding areas have used it for pageants, dance recitals and many other activities. Yet, nothing has been done to fix it up a bit. Also, the track looks great and I understand that is something they have replaced regularly forever. Still, why did they do all of the extra little details that could have gone toward painting the auditorium or something along those lines?
Now, whenever there is a football game, baseball game or a track meet, people can see how rich our school thinks [it is]. If they go to a play, a pageant or a talent show, they might think we are very poor. Would it not seem like a better idea to balance these out a little bit? It makes our school look like all that matters are sports. This may be true, but I know that a great number of people put a ton of work into the more artsy type events. They spend hours practicing for their fall production, getting everything perfect, just like an athlete does.
Another
example of the common being least cared for would be with our government. Due
to the recent hurricanes hitting Texas and Louisiana, the nation has donated
huge amounts of money in relief. I agree that this is greatly needed, but the
government is also spending a great number on the wrong matters. For instance,
it is estimated that they are currently spending around 11 million dollars a day
on nice hotels for the people who no longer have a home. Of course they need
somewhere to stay, but do they need to stay at the Marriot? There are people in
desperate need for water and food that may not get it because that money was
spent on the cleaning of the pool. Those billions of dollars donated from all
over the world just do not seem like they were spent quite like they should have
been. If the people in Qatar who sent a million dollars on their own knew just
how their money was spent, they probably would not want to help as much next
time.
Also, think about the trash man. I know in our town most people look down on him like he is beneath them. Can you even imagine having his job? I admire his hard work, and he seems to never let anyone down. You see him working nonstop. What if he quit? What if it became our own responsibility to take care of all of our garbage? I think a lot more people would learn to respect him and his job. Sure, his truck may stink, but it is our garbage that makes it that way. His clothes may be a little dirty, but of course they would be since he is throwing our trash away each day. The garbage man in our town is a very dependable guy. We have never had our trash not get picked up during the week. I have actually had a great conversation with the one in our town. He is not mean or smelly at all, just a really down to earth nice guy.
Thus, more people need to realize what the common people want. It is important to remember the small parts of a community or nation just as much as it is to remember something else. It will not ever be completely fair; that is impossible. Yet, it can be even better if only a few change the big picture still gets better.
Answers To Questions Prompted By The Required Reading
Welfare State on the Street Where You Live (Tibor Machan)
Q1- Why does Machan use "steal" in his statement: "Private property solves this problem, but was abandoned a long time ago when taxes reached the point where we can steal our way to being provided with all sorts of things we desire, never mind thinking about paying for them or long-range budgeting."?
The government has made it to where the rich people can get away with paying nothing toward the government instead of paying more because of how rich they are.
Q2- Machan said: "For that which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it." Give two examples of this from your personal experience.
Our school is very wealthy compared to most. We have been known to focus on our sports more than anything else; for instance, our theater. The theater is used for all sorts of events within our school and our community it is in much need for repairs but instead they build an unbelievable sports complex.
Another example would be with our government. Due to the recent hurricanes they are spending approximately eleven million dollars a day for refugees. Of course they need shelter but the focus should be more on food and clothes instead of a four star hotel.
Q3- Do you agree with Machan that "...everybody is more inclined to neglect the
duty which he expects another to fulfill; as in families many attendants are
often less useful than a few."? Give an objective example of this.
Many people would much rather let someone else do the hard tasks instead of them doing it themselves. If there is a group of people they figure someone else will take care of it so they don’t need to worry.
Are We Going the Way of Rome?
(Lawrence Reed)
Q4- State Kershner's First Law. Do you agree or disagree and why?
I agree, people are taking from the rich to give to all of the poor. The Romans took too much though and their economy became poor.
Q5- What industry was the first to be taken over by government in both ancient Rome and the USA?
Agriculture was the first industry to be taken over by the government in ancient Rome and the United States of America.
Q6- Is cheapened money the cause or the outcome of inflation? Explain.
Cheapened money was the outcome of the inflation. The Roman coin was cheapened many times by emperors to help pay for the expenses. It led to a flooding of money which made prices skyrocket as the money stayed reduced.
Q7- How did the Edict of 301 affect Rome's economy?
All of the prices were regulated and everybody stopped bringing things to the market. They were no longer getting reasonable compensation and death increased drastically.
Liberty and Individual Responsibility
(Dwight R. Lee)
Q8- Lee claims that individuals could be "entirely independent of others" except
for what? Explain.
Lee says that we could be independent except for out scarcity. Without it we could truly have complete freedom with an extensive amount of activities without having an effect on others.
Q9- Describe the dilemma concerning rules as discussed by Lee.
Without rules everyone would have to use force to be free, therefore making the others who aren’t forceful enough not get their freedoms. The one with force would basically make the less forceful his slaves and it could turn around completely in an instant.
Q10- Why is the concept of private property crucial to freedom?
Through private property a system of social communication and and cooperation is established. Each individual has the ability to have individual liberty with their own property.
Lawrence Reed's testimony before the U.S. Senate Budget Commtitee.
Q11- Argue both
pro and con that in his testimony Lawrence Reed was advocating compassion and
aid for the poor.
When Lawrence Reed discussed principle one he was showing compassion and aid for the poor, by saying all should make the same money, but still work together and get paid for their own responsibilities.
Q12- "If people are free, they will not earn equal incomes; conversely, show me
a people who have equal incomes and I will show you a people who are not free."
Explain in your own words Mr. Reed's meaning.
Some people choose jobs that help our nation out tremendously yet they get paid little. Others are not considered qualified for the higher jobs, so they do what they can to get by. These people are the ones who make the richer peoples life so much easier because they are basically doing all of the dirty work for them. On the other hand, some are getting paid unimaginable amounts to do nothing but be rich.