Priorities and Doing Without

I caught the last half hour of the Rush Limbaugh radio show while driving from one job to another and had a chance to listen as he ranted about folks complaining that their employers didn’t furnish health care benefits. His response came as no surprise, having listened to similar discussions in the past; a two part answer, prioritize what you need or want along with the totally unheard of philosophy of doing without.

I immediately thought of My Fair Lady; that point in the production where Eliza has come into her own and realizes that the world will go on, that the clouds will roll by and if they can do without him so can she, at which point he is left alone shouting, “Mother! Mother! She’s gone! What will I do?” In a matter of fact explanation his mother replies, “Do without.”

Upon arriving home I turned on the soundtrack only to find the particular line I wanted to hear had been edited out. I suppose I’ll have to watch the entire movie to enjoy some of the best entertainment ever put together in one show. The storm that blew through here last night knocked out the cable which supplies me with television as well as internet. We called the cable service provider and were informed that it would be back up in a few hours. Until then we can do without.

My wife and I have attempted to instill the idea of priorities to our children, all grown now, as we pointed out the most basic ideas of becoming responsible individuals. We live in a modestly affluent area where there is an interesting mix of opulence and some just barely able to exist. During the time our kids were in high school many of their friends would be given exotic sports cars as a token of their having achieved the lofty age of 16. The parents had more money than brains for having provided far too much with no chance for their children to comprehend the value system whereby such lavish extravagance springs from.

We purchased an old “beater” that we retained in our name and permitted each of our children the opportunity to drive, provided they earned enough money to pay their own liability insurance. We explained that if the car was destroyed through accident or neglect that they would have to do without. Our son found out that he was able to get around by walking to the front of the neighborhood, a distance of about a mile, where he could get on a bus and pay for the privilege of basic transportation. If you don’t have insurance you don’t drive and you sure aren’t going to drive my car and subject me to the possibility of litigation because of your inability to pay.

The same holds true for nearly every product or service available. Unfortunately so many folks never were given, never believed or took notes as they were given the lecture on the facts of life; the one that covered priorities, doing without, budgeting, saving for the future, incremental growth to achieve long term goals or in fine, the essentials of being an adult responsible for individual accomplishments and set backs. The only part they heard was that the school nurse’s office would supply them with free condoms and to use individually packaged needles rather than share with a friend in the bathroom.

One need look no further than the terrible waste of individual accomplishment, or rather, the lack thereof while examining the City of New Orleans as associated with the devastating hurricane damage of Katrina. Spike Lee, bless his biased and bigoted pointed little head took us all down a path of hateful recollection, “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts,” to be shown on HBO this month (linked via title bar); fingers pointed in every direction as to which governmental agency failed to provide for victims of the storm. Many easily could have left for safer ground had they not become totally dependent boobs, the result of half a century or more of being trained to become totally dependant boobs via government give away programs rather than becoming independent citizens able to deal with issues on their own. “We are poor and so it must be the governments fault.” “We have no place to live so the government needs to provide us a place; oh, and don’t forget to include free utilities and food stamps” “If we were rich white folks the government would have stepped in sooner.” I think that about sums up Spike Lee’s contribution to society.

I read a letter written by a friend of mine from my church. He was joined by many other members who volunteered their time and efforts on several weekend trips to help restore basic service to those hardest hit by Katrina and Rita along the Gulf Coast. Each week they would put yellow or white T-shirts on and jump at the chance to be of service; clearing debris, cutting downed trees in yards of folks they’d never met or whatever needed to be done. I asked him if it would be okay to borrow some from his accounting.

“Before I went on this trip, I noticed a lot of debate regarding God’s Hand in Hurricane Katrina. Some hypothesize that it was a wicked city waiting to be destroyed. They wish to help, but think that the city’s wickedness made destruction eminent. Others hypothesize that the Lord did not specifically point the hurricane at New Orleans, but simply let things happen. After this experience, I have my own thoughts on the subject.”

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“Weather or not the Lord brought the city to its knees because of their wickedness I can’t say. I think God has a plan for all things, and the hurricane was part of his plan. . . I think that perhaps the Lord sent the storm to help us all reach a little deeper.”

“A lot of need was created in a short amount of time. After seeing the things that I saw, I believe that the Lord has used this destruction to create better people all over the world. I saw the Priesthood used this weekend like I have never seen it used before in my life. We all dug a little deeper and perhaps served more than we have in a while. The need motivated us into becoming what only He knows we can become. I don’t like to focus on the sins of a city that was almost destroyed, instead I chose to focus on what has been accomplished and the long term impact of the hope that our Sea of Yellow and White spread. I think that we were able to show people that there is still good in the world and people still care about one another. That is what struck me this weekend. Everything else is purely academic.”


These brethren came home and the spirit that shown from their eyes explained that they would never be victims, having learned that regardless of what nature throws at you, there is always a way to get back up off the ground and figure out how to start over and make it happen.

Now contrast that with the hang dog look on the faces of the folks Spike Lee interviewed; mind you, I’ve only seen the advertisement “trailers” portraying those who will never make it on their own because they continue to be victims nearly a year later. Thank you very much; but I think I’d rather watch a mediocre Astros team loose 14 – Zip than waste my time watching a bunch of spineless whiners crying about how the government isn’t doing enough, didn’t show up soon enough or should have warned them about it.

The opportunity to become independent, to stand on your own two legs is part of the American legacy, a legacy which far too many have decided is too costly since it requires considerable effort. I will say it again, being a real American citizen requires priorities, doing without, budgeting, saving for the future, incremental growth to achieve long term goals or in fine, the essentials of being an adult responsible for individual accomplishments and set backs.