Demons & Angels - a Way Forward

What’s the solution?  In my mind it’s got to be resolved within respectful relationships.  Whether it’s a politician on the other side of the aisle or a citizen from a different race, how can we possibly expect to have a balanced perspective if we never talk to someone from the other side of the issue?

It’s incredibly easy to demonize others, isn’t it?  It seems to be a part of our human nature that we must fight against with great intention.  I still love to argue but am realizing more and more arguing is quite futile in most cases.  Proving I’m right shouldn’t be the end goal of most discussions, agreed?  Also, it becomes much more difficult to demonize the other side or person if you know the names of their kids.

I have staked my life on the gospel, but increasingly believe one is normally not argued into eternity.  It does happen I’m sure but I just wonder if the best use of our resources is developing better and better apologetics rather than learning how to love our neighbor as ourselves.  How much do we spend on furthering our education versus how much do we spend on throwing neighborhood parties?  Believe me, I’m just as guilty as the next guy on that.

Demons & Angels

Originally I wanted to title this post Angels and Demons but didn’t want to risk the possibility of copyright infringement.  Recently I have decided to lower my news diet.  Really it should be called bad news, right?  How often do you hear about good things in the news?

The reason I did this was because I find it usually brings me down a fair amount in my daily demeanor.  It can also cause unnecessary stress when I get worked up over something.  Usually it’s about something I have no control over anyway.

The second reason I cut way back was it’s increasingly difficult to find unbiased news.  I read The Economist on occasion which still leans a bit right.  Overall though, it’s generally less biased than other news outlets like FOX or CNN.  I do listen to some NPR podcasts but they’re not news ones, there’s one called Planet Money that’s about economics in the world that I really like.

My dad in particular can get pretty fired up about the liberal news media and their biases.  I encouraged him though to see that FOX is biased as well, it’s just the other side of the same coin.

It is of great concern to me how much sway the media has on our population.  Facebook news feed is particularly concerning with the algorithms that keep feeding you more of what you want to hear rather than different sources and perspectives.

As a direct result, we’re drawn further into tribalism.  Where our own people, in whichever category you like, are angels and those people of the different side are demons.  It’s especially apparent in politics but I’ve seen a trickle down effect.

Ownership or Access? - House Edition

The same goes for housing.  Home ownership is a fine thing and sometimes cheaper than renting.  However, how many times do people buy an enormous house with a spare bedroom or two that only gets used 40 or 50 days a year at most?  Wouldn’t it make more sense to rent a bigger house for a weekend when extended family comes?  We have a big house now for a very good rental rate but it still bothers me somehow that we have a spare room that goes unused the majority of the year.  When we first moved in I said it was the biggest culture shock I had experienced up to that point of living in Spain (after 7 months.)

I’m not saying owning a car or a big house is a terrible thing, simply that it’s inefficient.  Now, we just bought a car thanks to the generosity of a couple donors in particular and we’re incredibly grateful for it.  However, as my wife and mom both have said several times over the years I do tend to be idealistic.  Quite frankly I hope I never lose that.  There are certain areas where I have become much more realistic and I feel like something is lost when that happens.

I may very well end up owning a home myself someday, I have been known to do a 180 degree turn several times in my life already (marriage, baby in particular come to mind.)  I would just hope it’s smaller rather than larger and that we just pitch in on the cost of a rental house when people come to visit.  Who knows though, my parents bought a rental property in Sarasota for a couple years and I rented out a spare bedroom on AirBnb and made a nice side income with it.  Perhaps that would be a feasible option in the future if we had an unused spare room the majority of the year.

Ownership or Access? - Car edition

It struck me in 2008 when I was serving in New Zealand during my summer break as a teacher that my Honda Civic cost me $3,000 a year just to drive.  This was a car that I owned outright mind you.  For good insurance, gas, oil changes, and a little maintenance here and there - $3,000 a year.  Gas was higher then of course but the underlying principle remains.

A car that I used almost daily a maximum of 30 minutes a day was costing me $3,000 a year.  Stef and I both miss the efficiency of the states many times and so it occurred to me that is possibly one of the most inefficient things in our country currently.

I of course understand the importance of convenience - which is where Uber comes in and/or the future of driverless cars that you can call upon as needed from a smartphone app.  I also understand in many places that simply isn’t an option due to size and population needs.  In our pueblo for instance.  There’s also the obvious issue of car seats and that would have to be accounted for somehow.

On the whole though, it’s certainly a possibility in more places than not.  Where you can access a car without owning it.  Where you can use it for the 30 minutes to 1.5 hours most people use it on a daily basis and then someone else can use it when they need it.

You would have to figure out the right pricing scheme, where again driverless cars would be advantageous.  I think overall though, it would be much cheaper than owning a car, especially if it’s a new car with a loan.

Ownership or Access? An Introduction

Recently, I heard a podcast that addressed the same issue I’ve been thinking about since roughly 2008.  The idea of access versus ownership.  The sharing economy versus the regular economy.

During the crisis I remember assuring people something good would come out of it.  I would quote the famous line ‘Necessity is the mother of invention’ or something similar.  Pleasantly, I was proved right by the beginning of the sharing economy.  Or perhaps it might better be called the reinvention of the sharing economy as it has been around for millenia.  Now we just have the added convenience of using smartphones for much of it.

It’s certainly more accepted among younger generations than older generations.  For older generations it’s seen as foreign and weird, and understandably so.  After World War II home ownership was a possibility for people like never before and became something desirous in the eyes of the middle class.  The same goes for owning a new car.

However, I believe that’s starting to change.  Or at least is on the margins and trying its hardest to break into the mainstream.  There are most assuredly downsides to it; how much Uber drivers actually make versus what the company would have you believe for instance.  In my opinion however the benefits far outweigh the costs.