#TruckerProtests #CanadianTruckers #coronavirus #COVID19 #FlattenTheCurve
The trucker protests in Canada amount to a few ruining the livelihoods of many.
The truckers seem to be protesting vaccine mandates. Yet, most of them – more than 80 percent – are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, protesters have been basically cleared from blocking the Ambassador Bridge, linking Windsor, Ont., to Detroit, Mich., the most widely used border crossing in North America. But reports say other protests, including those in the Canadian capital, Ottawa, are continuing.
So, the question becomes, why?
We’ve all experienced frustration, sadness, anger and, perhaps, every other volatile emotion during the last two years.
The virus has done a number not only on some of our bodies, but also many of our psyches.
That anguish, combined with divisive politics that has emboldened a few, perhaps is at the center of the trucker protests.
The good news is the border egresses are being unblocked, and, hopefully, the manufacturing supply chain disruptions can be eased.
A second manifestation of the virus-provoked frustration and anger is in U.S. schools. Parents, probably still frustrated over opening, closing and reopening of schools during the past two years, have taken to challenging the curriculum, reading materials etc., that probably have been used in their schools for years.
If the parents and schools don’t work out their disputes in a fashion that allows students to learn history, and other undisputed lessons, properly, schools will not only lose teachers and other educators in large numbers, but the ultimate penalty could be schools losing accreditation.
Loss of accreditation could mean that graduates of those schools may not be admitted to colleges, or other higher forms of education, regardless of how intelligent they may be.
The lesson here is that we all want freedom of speech. We all want our grievances heard. As parents, we all want to help make our schools the best they can be.
But, we all must remember that the 1st amendment to the U.S. Constitution does not permit us to yell “fire” in a crowded theater when there is no fire.
The right to free speech is not unlimited. Those who wrote the Constitution EXPECTED us to avail ourselves of our rights with some care and respect. They EXPECTED us to know not only our rights, but also right from wrong.
Therefore, leaning on the Constitution to justify wrongdoing is not what the founders intended.
In short, we have rights to be exercised. We, therefore, should exercise them. But we should do so responsibly.
How does one define responsible? If exercising your rights is causing harm to others who are not part of the dispute, one should think twice about how one exercises those rights.
Consider the person who calls out sick to work when he or she is not sick. That person may have a grievance with the employer. But his or her coworkers are most likely to suffer more punishment than the employer.
Speaking of illness, you may feel you have the right to conduct Activity X during a raging pandemic without taking available precautions. You may feel that if you contract the disease, so be it,. But you do not have the right to contract the disease and spread it to others. That’s why mitigation measures and vaccines may be necessary.
It seems as if the protesting Canadian truckers realize this, and have gotten their shots in large numbers. That makes the reason for protests all the more baffling.
Peter
Tag Archives: Canada
PARENTS’ INCOME MAY INFLUENCE KIDS’ EARNINGS
#income #ParentsIncome #earnings
“If you’re born poor, you die poor.”
That’s according to a United Kingdom politician from six years ago. The quote leads off an article by Michael Heath Bloomberg published in the Aug. 30,2017, edition of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The article says little has changed in those six years. Great Britain, France, Italy and the U.S. continue to show a high correlation between parents’ earnings and those of their children, the article quotes a report by Standard Life Investments. The Scandinavian countries, Australia, Germany and Canada show a similar correlation, but to a lesser extent, the article says.
As a result, human capital is wasted and workers are less motivated, the article says. Higher levels of inequality in earnings stunts economic growth, the article says, quoting research.
Let’s think about this. Perhaps children go into the same, or similar, professions as their parents. More likely, however, parents probably have told their kids that their potential is limited because of finances, innate ability etc. How many have been advised by parents, or other trusted elders, to seek security, rather than follow dreams?
The article says researchers tracked the proportion of 30-year-olds who earned more than their parents did at that age, and found a significant downtrend: just 50 percent of children born in the 1980s earned more than their parents at the same age, compared with nearly 80 percent of 1950s-born kids, the article says.
Another figure the article quotes: in the American Midwest, just 41 percent of children born in 1984 earned more than their parents at the same age, compared with 95 percent of those born in 1940.
Certainly, decline in manufacturing, as the article says, has much to do with that. Inflation is certainly another factor. People working in the 1940s and 1950s were paid much less than their children would earn. But wage stagnation is real. And it’s obvious in just about every industrialized country.
So what to do? Most everyone could sense this problem that the article actually quantified. The security that one’s parents may have advised their children to seek is just not there. A young person today – even some who’ve invested in a college education – can expect, unless he or she is truly fortunate, that his job and career he starts with will change, or end, before he wants it to.
And the change that happens usually means more work for less money, or having to take a new job that pays less.
There are ways to combat this. First, don’t be afraid to change careers. See what the market is looking for, learn the appropriate skills, and change. Second, save your money. That may require forgoing frivolous pleasures so that you can bank, and properly invest, money over time. The time trajectory, remember, may not have a person working to age 65. It may only last until, say, age 45.
Finally, be open to checking out different ways to make money. Perhaps you are unaware of the many good ways to make money that have nothing to do with a W-2 job. To check out one of the best, message me.
Though the article paints a gloomy income picture, it doesn’t have to be that way. It may take a desire to want a better life, a willingness to looking at things that may look uncomfortable and a belief that YOU can ultimately control your own situation.
The security your parents may have told you to seek is likely imaginary. Therefore, not only is there no harm in pursing your dream, there could be a real benefit to doing so. Remember, too, that pursuing a dream can also allow you to help others do the same.
Peter