My first remembrances of life were of our home on a farm in Kansas. There were many vivid memories of that time, which have been described elsewhere. It was pretty much a subsistence form of life, although I do not remember my parents ever complaining about their poverty, nor did I ever feel deprived. There was little money coming in from a country church during the depression. The collection plate had scattered quarters and an occasional dollar. We only survived because we had a big vegetable garden, which we all had to tend. Things were a bit chaotic and family life kept changing fairly rapidly until my father accepted the ministerial position at Watson Memorial Methodist church in Independence, Missouri. Our parsonage was right across the street from the town High School, and right around the corner from the Truman family home. The town auditorium was only a few blocks to the east, and the downtown only a few blocks beyond that. We walked to get to all of those places. Our grade school was some eight blocks away, to the north of us, but also walked by all of us each day that we went to school. School buses did not exist at the time in our lives. It was a relief not to be moving every few years. Once we hit that solid place, where we lived for some seven years, our house settled into a weekly routine, in which all of us were always working on something.
We had a little baby sister in the house, who didn’t have assigned duties, but the rest of us sure did. My older brothers wore clothes given to them by other families in the church, who had yet older children. When they no longer fit my brothers, I got them to wear to school. I was usually grateful, because these were new clothes to me. The only time I objected was when there was nothing but a pair of knickers to wear to school. Those were terribly out of date; it was terribly embarrassing to be wearing them in front of my classmates, who had up to date stuff. When class began, however, it no longer mattered. We were doing fascinating stuff: the teachers were showing us to make these little symbols, all in a row. They told us they were letters; then they started to put them together in various combinations. Then our teachers showed us books with pictures, showing things happening, and told us that this was what these various symbol combinations meant. Once we got the hang of it, we were able to put down, in these little symbol bunches, on a page, the same things as were saying with our mouths and hearing with our ears. It was learning a new language, which fit in perfectly with the one we already understood by sound. It was all fascinating, and the more complex it got, the more interesting it became.
Home life also went by in a blur every week. By the time we got homework done, had supper and finished jobs we were supposed to do, it was time for bed, then get up to do it all over again the next day. The only interruptions for us children were when my oldest brother would pick on my second brother, then my second brother would pick on me. When I tried to vent my subjugation by picking on my little sister, I was rudely and immediately interrupted by my parents, who told me in no uncertain terms that she was too little for me to bully her. I felt deprived, but somehow survived. The one thing we knew not to do was to bother my father when the week end arrived. He was busy getting his sermon ready for Sunday, trying to find words of wisdom for his flock. We were kept away by being given other things to do. Sometimes the study door went shut. Nobody walked in while the sermon was being practiced. Sunday was a rush, getting ready, going through the social graces and ritual ordeal of Sunday school, church, and after greetings. After surviving church, we always had a big Sunday dinner, then had to help clean up afterwards.
What followed next was the single time of respite for the week, a time I always treasured, and I suspect was also treasured by all other members of my family. We took a quiet time for a few hours after that big Sunday dinner, then would all pile in the car and head out north on Courtney Road. During the summer we would stop in the Missouri river bottom land at Mr. Mann’s melon farm and spend our time thumping watermelons, so we could buy the sweetest one to savor later. Then we would get back in the car again and head around the bend, over the big bridge, over the wide Missouri river, to Liberty, Missouri, home of William Jewell College. There was an ice cream shop there next to the college campus, where we would all order and delight in our favorite treat, quiet time, enjoying each other, enjoying being a family. We had some fantastic vacations once a year, and we had occasional play time at home, but those Sunday afternoon/evening jaunts up north, across the river, for an ice cream treat and gentle conversation, always remained my favorite break from the stress of the week. Everything else, through all the week, was some form of work, be it learning, helping, doing, preparing, cleaning, or some other chore. We snapped beans and shelled peas, did dishes, put things away, and did our studies.
I always thought that was normal, to work all the time. I could not, and still cannot, at this time, fathom a successful society in which there are large segments of the population who feel that they do not have to work because they are wealthy, and therefore should have everything done for them, plus other large segments of the population who consider themselves disabled, so everyone else should provide them a living. The other examples of communal life we have, in our world, such as ants and bees, do not tolerate this sort of behavior. They all work, all of the time, in some capacity. I believe that is one of the reasons why they are so successful. We are successful too, if in the colonies we establish (cities), everyone works, while those who are tied to that colony around the periphery, foraging to support that colony, (ruralists) are also working. It appears to me that a successful society does not have any place for hoarders, who do not give back everything they do not need for modest living, to their society which has supported them. A successful society, in my opinion, also does not have any room for those who make no attempt to contribute to the society which has sustained them. There are reasonable limits, and the Devil is always in the details. There should be a place for the disabled to do less, if they continue to contribute in some way, and yet be supported by those who are more able. There should be a place for wealth to be created, as long as most of that wealth is given back. In general terms, however, a healthy society does not have room, as I see it, for independent wealth, or completely dependent welfare. That may sound quite cruel, and it may be quite irritating to those of us who have thought that we should always allow the accumulation of wealth, and always take care of the disabled, for whatever reason. To me, these large segments of our population who do not give back are a drag, forming a sick sluggish society, not one which is vibrantly healthy.
What does it take for work to be ethical? Work ethics does involve devotion to duty, cooperation, and scattered moments of relaxation. There are other qualities it does not mean, however. Work ethics does not mean total immersion in the job, at the expense of those others who are dependent upon us. It does not mean just doing enough to get by, letting others carry most of the load. It does not mean hoarding, and then avoiding any responsibility for that sustaining society. It does not mean avoiding work because of various ailments. Ethics contains deep respect and support of all life, in every way we can, as long as we can. For that very reason, it also means getting rid of those who, in the vernacular, are deadbeats, who do not give whatever they can toward the support of other life, as much as possible.
I think we have been greatly misled, both by the mythology of our religions, and by our selfishness. Our society, for reasons which escape me, condones giving to those who choose not to work, to an almost extravagant extent, and condones wealthy individuals getting even wealthier, without ever giving back to the society which generated that wealth for them. These, to my mind, are symptoms of a sick society. In my practice, I am astonished to see the number of people who come in morbidly obese, on welfare, demanding to be given every medicine they can think of, and every support system they can conceive, so they can continue their saprophytic life. I am deeply appreciative of all life forms, in all shapes, colors and sizes, as long as that life form is willing to work in some capacity. If anyone is confined to a wheelchair, that person can at least answer a phone, or file a piece of paper, or sit at a desk, or answer questions at a window, or perhaps look after a child. If any one of us wishes to do so, any one of us can find a way to give back to our society in some way. To form our welfare system in any other way seems to me inappropriate. It would make a great deal more sense, to me, to deny food subsidies for those who are morbidly obese. It would seem more appropriate to ask them to come back when they are normal weight, can show that they have no money from any source, and are willing to work in some capacity. At that point, we could then talk about food stamps.
I certainly do not mind anyone getting wealthy. There is great value in encouraging invention, development, new products, new ideas, new ways of putting old things together, then have that product make a better life for those who are able to use it. My experience has been that the joy of all that effort is getting there, finding a way to create something better. Once that achievement has been reached, there is no joy in just holding on to it, protecting it. The joy is at that point moving on to the next goal that will challenge and excite. In my opinion, there is no societal value in holding on to wealth, then piling more wealth on top of it. If that wealth is not given back to society, then that person is stealing from that society. Our current situation in this country is that we are borrowing trillions of dollars, placing an immense burden of debt on every working person in this society, so that we can control the economy of other countries around the world, and support American business interests, so that all of them can become wealthier. Those wealthy companies give freely to wealthy congressmen, so that their joint wealth can be increased even further. It appears that those of us who are working in our society are being rapidly squeezed tightly in a vice between the sucking selfish wealthy and the sucking pleading welfare, while our infrastructure rots away. This cannot continue, without the collapse of our society into open revolt. We have little time left to return to an ethical society: Everyone works, in whatever capacity they can, and those who have more than a modest amount give all their extra earnings back to build a sound infrastructure which can support all forms of life.
I will add a more personal note to this discussion. I have dearly loved this life, in spite of my many mistakes. I plan to continue to contribute to my society in whatever way is in my capacity to do so, as long as I am able. When my body and my brain do not allow me to give back to my society any more, I do not want to hang around. My family or my loved ones may want me to stay in this life longer, but it will not please me. I do not want to be here any longer if I am not able to contribute in some way. Most of the extra money I have been able to accumulate in this life is going back to my community, through a living will, to build hiking and biking trails everyone can enjoy and use to maintain their health. There will be a modicum of money that will go to my children when I am no longer here, which I will hope each of them uses to jump start their savings. I will hope that each of them continues to work in some capacity as long as they have the mental or physical skills to do so, and I will hope that each of them gives back to their society whatever they do not need for a modest comfortable life style.
I challenge each of you to do the same. Don’t ask for help, unless you are willing to give something back, in some way. Don’t take from your society, unless you are willing to give back to it everything that you do not need for food, shelter, clothing, and nurturing your young. Otherwise, you are unethical. Ethics means working as long as we are able, and getting rid of those who are unwilling to work for the betterment of all other life. Take care of yourself, in modest ways. After that, your job is to keep working to take care of all others, in some way.
Ethics demands that each of us continue to contribute to our societies, which sustain us, as much and as long as we reasonably can do so. Ethics demands that we do the best we can to support all other life, and not take without giving back.