Hi Nigel -- very well written and corect. I would add that you had the "fortitude" to describe it as you see it as being Canadian at the end - and your voting advise is "spot-on".
Here in the US - your only partially right - as I can't speak to any other nation.
As now an 80 year old great-great- grandfather - hefe in the US - what I have seen is something that you mentioned - but didn't talk about - the break down of the family as far as parenting, and the decline of it is concerned.
My mother, who stayed at home "raising my sister and I" in our earlier years - had to go back to work in her profession as a nurse - when my father's pay as a US ARMY Major could no longer support us with the rising costs of living really stated.
But my parents kept "raising us" as had centuries of parents before.
They didn't fall for the "new" way of raising children -- ie. becoming "friends" / loosening parental "guidance" / letting the children "decide what they would and would not do" etc.
Also -- and this is most important / my parents "enforced the family rules of decency and respect for elders, teachers, and leaders.
The result was over the years - that I witnessed the decentigration "in general" of the family unit here in the US at an accelerated rate - as the "divide" began between the "have's and the have-nots.
I don't know about Canada -- but as I grew up - I learned why - everyone wants too come to the US. They see it as the "land of opportunity" - to accomplish what others have done - a better life as far as financial prosperity and life from what they perceive that have in their home lands.
That has always been the mantra about the US -- "t's a better place".
But that "better place" you described, at least here in the US - has now been split apart by the very people that you talk about -- that were kids growing up 30 - 40 years ago -- because of one thing that they used - and the other - simple GREED.
What they used -- was "social media" - invented by them, formed by them - "for-them" - by their "leaders" who have constantly demonstrated their total disregard for centuries of "norms" and "established / acceptable behavior by children.
And this has all been allowed now by those generations of the "parents" of the children that "social media" has raised.
The reason that you have your poorer people taking those low paying jobs - at least here in the US) -is because most US born young people will take them -- they are too engrossed in following each other - or thier new social media icons - on social media / or trying to get into colleges that have to pay over-priced professors and administrators - to pay for multi-million college football coaches.
What I am saying is -- there is a lot that you said -that was correct.
But you totally left out the social upheaval that has occurred world-wide with the explosion of social media and it's means of communications - on everything.
It wasn't, and isn't;-- as "cut and dried" as you presented to your students.
Hi Scott… I agree with you… and I kept the article short and just stayed on the economics of prosperity…. but as you say you can add a non-economic value to “prosperity” as well and you are saying and I agree….. its also been a loss.
Just a point I spent my growth years in the UK and came to Canada as a 28 year old senior engineer so my facts are Canadian. The Canadian economy was better and bigger than the UK and that’s why I came to join the aerospace world in North America.
So I grew up in worn torn UK as a post war kid and to your point we did not have much physical wealth (not even a school as it was bombed out) but we had a great social fabric that you describe now lacking.
I just wonder if the impact of social media and drugs and both parents working instead of parenting would have been less if our young folks had more of a future… just saying.
Hi Nigel -- very well written and corect. I would add that you had the "fortitude" to describe it as you see it as being Canadian at the end - and your voting advise is "spot-on".
Here in the US - your only partially right - as I can't speak to any other nation.
As now an 80 year old great-great- grandfather - hefe in the US - what I have seen is something that you mentioned - but didn't talk about - the break down of the family as far as parenting, and the decline of it is concerned.
My mother, who stayed at home "raising my sister and I" in our earlier years - had to go back to work in her profession as a nurse - when my father's pay as a US ARMY Major could no longer support us with the rising costs of living really stated.
But my parents kept "raising us" as had centuries of parents before.
They didn't fall for the "new" way of raising children -- ie. becoming "friends" / loosening parental "guidance" / letting the children "decide what they would and would not do" etc.
Also -- and this is most important / my parents "enforced the family rules of decency and respect for elders, teachers, and leaders.
The result was over the years - that I witnessed the decentigration "in general" of the family unit here in the US at an accelerated rate - as the "divide" began between the "have's and the have-nots.
I don't know about Canada -- but as I grew up - I learned why - everyone wants too come to the US. They see it as the "land of opportunity" - to accomplish what others have done - a better life as far as financial prosperity and life from what they perceive that have in their home lands.
That has always been the mantra about the US -- "t's a better place".
But that "better place" you described, at least here in the US - has now been split apart by the very people that you talk about -- that were kids growing up 30 - 40 years ago -- because of one thing that they used - and the other - simple GREED.
What they used -- was "social media" - invented by them, formed by them - "for-them" - by their "leaders" who have constantly demonstrated their total disregard for centuries of "norms" and "established / acceptable behavior by children.
And this has all been allowed now by those generations of the "parents" of the children that "social media" has raised.
The reason that you have your poorer people taking those low paying jobs - at least here in the US) -is because most US born young people will take them -- they are too engrossed in following each other - or thier new social media icons - on social media / or trying to get into colleges that have to pay over-priced professors and administrators - to pay for multi-million college football coaches.
What I am saying is -- there is a lot that you said -that was correct.
But you totally left out the social upheaval that has occurred world-wide with the explosion of social media and it's means of communications - on everything.
It wasn't, and isn't;-- as "cut and dried" as you presented to your students.
Just a suggestion to think about.
Hi Scott… I agree with you… and I kept the article short and just stayed on the economics of prosperity…. but as you say you can add a non-economic value to “prosperity” as well and you are saying and I agree….. its also been a loss.
Just a point I spent my growth years in the UK and came to Canada as a 28 year old senior engineer so my facts are Canadian. The Canadian economy was better and bigger than the UK and that’s why I came to join the aerospace world in North America.
So I grew up in worn torn UK as a post war kid and to your point we did not have much physical wealth (not even a school as it was bombed out) but we had a great social fabric that you describe now lacking.
I just wonder if the impact of social media and drugs and both parents working instead of parenting would have been less if our young folks had more of a future… just saying.
Hi Nigel -- I wrote an answer back -- but "something went wrong" - which happens sometimes.
Please contact me at my email -- scotsman7@comcast.net - as I would like to continue this.
Thanks
Scott McKie