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Dropouts and the American Dream



Posted: Thursday, October 01, 2009

by e
Dhammabucha Rocksprings Meditation

According to CNN Money, the high school dropout rate is very high, as high as 22% in Alabama, and according to the census bureau, only 27% nationally finish college. This means that there will be lots of people in the $8.00 to $10.00 an hour salary bracket for years to come trying to raise families like everyone else and have some kind of a life, maybe even a little money left over for the kids at Christmas.

They won't, however, be able to afford health care, and since they will be at the bottom of the salary range, their employers wont be able to help them either. Average health care costs for a family of four for one year, (just premiums, not high deductibles and co pays) vary only a few thousand dollars from what a low paid employee receives net after deductions. And since he or she will change jobs frequently because of the unfairness and instability of low paying employers, they will be without heath care much of the time. And that is the coming American nightmare. Even if these hard working people were able to save a little money, maybe work two or three jobs and get some equity in a family home, which would mean so much to them, the first illness would take all their assets away faster than a New York minute on Wall Street.

And as it currently stands, the richest industrialized nation in the world could care less. If you can't make it here in America, then either love it or leave it. And many wealthy people are very satisfied to love it very much - and leave it that way for the poor, the sick, and the old folks who have created this country. How cruel.

So can we blame the poor in not having any incentive to better themselves, if everything will be taken away by a hospital or court as soon as they or their children become ill? Better to sell drugs on the street, ay? Where is the incentive? Where is the concern for our fellow man and woman regardless of their situation?

Everyone is not born equal. This is obvious not only from observing the law of karma, but from observing humanity. Obama is a black man, and he is reaping the consequences of that innocent difference in one's skin color by ignorant, frightened people who cant think for themselves and can only follow along sheepishly, mimicking their leaders who crave fame at any cost. How sad.

What in the world is becoming of us?! Who would have thought that a great America would fall to these levels of a complete disdain for those less fortunate. Old people, ill people, disadvantaged people, people of color or slanted eyes - let them fend for themselves. We are white, rich and strong and that's all that matters.

Well, I've got news for you. If you think that way in your heart of hearts, and regardless of what you do by faking your external feigned concern for your fellow human beings, then your next existence will not be determined by how many Biblical passages you can quote, but how you sincerely live your life when it comes to those at a disadvantage. Only your kindness and compassion will matter. And if you have none, if you are tight inside and hateful of those who you consider to be a drag on your society and lifestyle, then how can you voice the word "Jesus" in the same breath as condemning those less fortunate? Jesus, reportedly, took care of the down and out. Why? Why didn't he make a lot of money and start a business?

Think about it. Think about your American dream, and then take a moment out of your comfort zone and think about the guy next door's American nightmare. This is very important for you - when your time comes.

E. Raymond Rock (anagarika eddie) is a meditation teacher at DhammaRocksprings Theravada Buddhist Meditation Retreat Center: http://www.dhammarocksprings.org and author of “A Year to Enlightenment: http://www.amazon.com/Year-Enlightenment-Steps-Enriching-Living/dp/1564148912

He lived at Wat Pah Nanachat under Ajahn Chah as a Buddhist monk (novice) and at Wat Pah Baan Taad under Ajahn Maha Boowa and Wat Pah Daan Wi Weg under Ajahn Tui as a fully ordained Buddhist monk (bhikkhu). He was a postulant at Shasta Abbey, a Zen Buddhist monastery in northern California under Roshi Kennett; and a Theravada Buddhist anagarika at both Amaravati Monastery in the UK and Bodhinyanarama Monastery in New Zealand, both under Ajahn Sumedho. The author has meditated with the Korean Master Sueng Sahn Sunim; with Bhante Gunaratana at the Bhavana Society in West Virginia; and with the Tibetan Master Trungpa Rinpoche in Boulder, Colorado. He has practiced at the Insight Meditation Society and the Zen Center in San Francisco.
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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)
» left by paul
from nyc 2 years 213 days ago.
Sad,but true           Youre correct;theres a sad correlation between Bible thumpers and  reborn jesus screamers and low I.Q.s   (and I firmly believe in an all loving God,and I have an I.Q.  of  160   )                                             Wheres the incentive?Some states and local municipalities actually pay their High School seniors minimum wage, to encourage them to give up their much needed,competes with homework and studying, part time jobs ,and stay in school to finish their degree.                                                                        As a High School English teacher for thirty-five years,Ive seen the more than scary, progressive,( the avid reality show watchers) dumbing down of each successive class,over these many years and I often blame it on retarded T.V. shows that the moronic public relishes.              When,sometimes,at Open School Night ,a parent desperately confronts their own failing childs low grades,  by  the  complaint ;"my kid NEVER reads!",I remind them that they ,as parents ,are  real role models and set ultimate standards,at home, and ask them,in return;"do YOU read?Does your kid EVER see YOU sit down with a book,to read?'Sometimes it sinks in;often it doesnt.                                     The problem is also the easily recognized by students irrelevant curriculum that hasnt changed in decades;the same deadening,dull as pocket lint novels still haunt the dusty English bookrooms that killed many a pupils love for learning,a generation ago.When I ask my seniors to read a chapter,for homework,Im told;"I read ten pages and just as soon as I get out of the coma,I will read another ten!"Paul Schroeder
» left by e 2 years 213 days ago.
131 fans.
Hi Paul, thanks for the heartfelt comment, I can feel the frustration, and you have been there on the front lines. My idea of education is quite different from current practices in the world. You can't make people learn, or read, or thirst for answers. They have to have a heartfelt interest inside their own minds, and that is the key - understanding their own minds. This is something that will carry them through an entire lifetime - understanding their minds, And this is where the energy and creativity comes from, from a disciplined and calm mind. Otherwise, education is just going through the motions to graduate and make money. Recent studies somewhere, I apologize but I don't have time to look it up presently, have indicated that a few minutes of quite, focused meditation daily in the classrooom has increased grades rather dramatically. I know from experience that without meditation, the mind becomes dull and cynical, and lazy.
 
Best...........e
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