How are we different ?

Old Salt said:
Going by my own experience, there would be a couple of survivors, ready to take charge while the rest of us huddle, numb with shock, shivering, alone! After the shock wears off human nature will assert itself and we grudgingly go along with the "organisers" but there is no big "brotherhood of all!" :cry: And I once believed, along with Beethoven, that one day "Alle Menschen Werden Brueder" (all of mankind would be brothers)! All the saber rattling, all the mini wars and the recent invasion of Ukraine are making me a cynic. We just don't seem to make progress since WWII when it comes to loving and co-existing harmoniously! God I believe, help thou my unbelief ... when it comes to humanity! But, please, prove me wrong in this forum!
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I wish I could....but I can't.
I saw a poster in my hooch when i first got to Vietnam. "suppose they gave a war and nobody came". Still remember that.
All I know is that when necessity came, all that matter was the guy next to you.

The military, coupled with experience left a lasting impression.

The news today is like nothing has changed in the world.

History repeats it self as they say, which is very true. But all those who came after us lack that understanding or knowledge.

I suppose that we are left with knowing that we tried, did our best and God knows.

Solution??

All I know is that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

So the Amazons, Microsoft, Apple and Facebook, etc ............control the world.

rbtvgo
 
Racism is no longer fashionable
As @fuzzybuddy said, however, some of us, suffer it much too often.

Currently, wondering how things will work out for Archery Club, as half the group yesterday session seemed to dislike us and the other half loved us...

Racism, sadly, has been part of my life due to ancestors/relatives. I'm much darker than hubby (who referred to himself as a blue Scots just like Billy Connolly lol) and munchkins too.

Although, daughter turns my shade after being in the sun.

Being called a red skin due to grand-maman. An F-Yank due to changing my speech pattern during working travels. It's ongoing and very hurtful at the end of the day...
 
rbtvgo said:
you seem to be a kindred spririt. My point, you captured and expressed much better.
I had to reread your comments because there were some thoughts that I had not considered. Grudgingly going along....your right. Only after the fact can you consider whether following someone else's lead or whether you should have struck out on your own was the right choice. My point, was that differences matter little when you are trying to survive. Why can't we think and act like we need each other all the time.
rbtvgo
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Answering your final question, which i put in bold: Because many of us don't recognize the ways we are connected and mutually dependent. Because too many of us judge others on externals facts about the person instead of engaging them in conversation, giving them a chance to demonstrate what skills/talents they have that might be useful to a group trying to survive.

My first thought on reading your original post was not about the scenario or how i think it would go---i recalled a conversation i had with my Navy son (now retired after 20 yrs) about 'gays' in the military. i said wondered how the enlisted personnel felt in general about it, that i would hope gay enlistees would be judged by their actual behaviors both in peace and combat. He said that most of his fellow enlistees he'd talked to about the subject or observed seemed to feel as he did: The most important thing about any fellow service person is being able to trust them to have your back when things get rough.
 
I was in the military, so I get your point there. Division was not allowed, and you needed to be able to count on your fellow man or woman.
I also get your point of people working together in harmony. It was captured in the John Lennon song, "Imagine".
As much as I love the idea, it's really just a pipe dream. That's just not everyone's nature.
In the past, communes, and community gardens, etc, have been tried with very similar results. The minority of the people do the majority of the work, and some are greedy, selfish, devious, and independent and they just won't work together for the good, even if it seems like the best solution. I know that doesn't say much for humanity, but people are not like ants or bees with a hive mind.
Even if there were a brief period of communal cooperation, I don't think it would take very long for that to dissolve.
 
rbtvgo said:
Suppose we were all on airline going somewhere, maybe west. we crash and the closes land is an uninhabited island. How long would it take before all the differences disappeared and we all worked together ???? This is one thing that sticks in the mind of people who served their country. There was a monument in their lives when all that matter was the person next to them. They never forget that.
So how are we different? and how are we the same?
rbtvgo
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All would be fine if everyone else would just listen to and obey me! ;)

My first thought is that cooperation would be neigh onto impossible. The military is very different, lots of training and enforcement of the cooperation that wouldn't happen with the plane crash survivors.

However as I read through this I was reminded of this story.
Happy Heart said:
Here is a story posted this morning about children surviving a plane crash:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-65630020
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And then thought of the Uruguayan plane crash in the Andes (Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571). Those are the only 2 real world examples of this kind of thing I know of. In both cases the people worked together as well as could be expected. Comforting to know my first thoughts may have been wrong.
Warrigal said:
We call it mateship.
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Good point, and it seems to have happened outside of Australia as well. Did not know that about Katrina, interesting. I had relatives in New Orleans and know there were other examples of good things done by people working together.

Unfortunately not enough, and for the first few days the government's response was dismal. The "Cajun Navy" saved more people than our government.
 
rbtvgo said:
not being Australian. what is a pommie B?
I live in New Jersey. Enlighten me.
rbtvgo
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Using polite terms, it refers to an Englishman whose parents were not married.

To call someone as a pommie B is not necessarily an insult. It all depends on the tone of voice.

The pommie B could be one of your mates. He will not be offended and may cheerfully respond in kind.
 
POM is a referenc to Australia’s past as a convict colony.

POM is supposedly a bastardised acronym, meaning “prisoner of Mother England” or “prisoner of Her Majesty”. To add bas***d to it, is certainly an insult unless you are among the closest of friends.
 
palides2021 said:
If I were in that situation, I would be very focused on helping others to survive and share what knowledge I have to move forward. The only difference I foresee is that I am female and would probably want my privacy relative to the men in the group.
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Had to think about everyone's comments. A lot of times this forum is very thought provoking. Which to me is a good thing.
Being different adds interest to life. I find myself interested in other people and their upbringing and beliefs. I may not agree with their beliefs but that's okay. Customs and traditions are always fascinating to me.
Why they believe what they do, what they believe etc.
The bottom line to me is that we all want the same things. Happiness, satisfaction in our efforts and a feeling that our efforts have benefited our families and friends. That we have contributed to the good of all.
 
Jamala said:
POM is a referenc to Australia’s past as a convict colony.

POM is supposedly a bastardised acronym, meaning “prisoner of Mother England” or “prisoner of Her Majesty”. To add bas***d to it, is certainly an insult unless you are among the closest of friends.
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there are various theories as to the origin of POM - that is one of them

Adding bastard is not certainly an insult in Australia though the word gets used quite often here without malicious intent.
 
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