Thomas Lunde wrote:
>
> Well, it is the difference between two ways of thought - isn't it. One is
> the thought of socialism and the other is the thought of capitialism.
Take
> for a point of interest housing. We often see two middle aged people
living
> in suburban splendor - 20,000 sq ft of tastefully decorated, heated and
> convienced comfort while we look at people raising kids who find
themselves
> in limited space, restricted furniture, living one on top of the other.
How
> do we rationalize that? Well, we do it through the capitalistic model,
> which says as you gain experience, get older and have more responsibility
in
> the work world, you get paid more - in other words, by the job. Perhaps
in
> a socialistic society, the family of children would be alloted the big
house
> on the basis of their needs and as the children grew, the living quarters
> might be reduced as the needs grow less.
>
Right on, Thomas. I have often reflected on this irony. The parents of my
best friend lived in a tiny two-bedroom house with two big
football-player-sized sons. After the boys were finished their education--a
long time as my friend got a Ph.D. in chemistry and his brother became an
obstetrician--the parents were able to buy a huge house on a quarter-acre
lot. They were in their mid-fifties then. Only about two years later the
mother began to manifest signs of Parkinson's disease, and soon after her
husband had to change to a much smaller house, as he couldn't keep up with
the house work and look after his wife.
Victor Milne
