OT Re: Chicken Choices, insurances and more,

[Guest guest]

I have tagged us OT because I think this thread for a while has had

little to do with chicken, in the strict sense.

I completely agree. I have no pride in where our family is or is not

because I understand that it is not primarily what I have done that

has gotten us here. A number of people have pointed out that my

posts have been empathetic and compassionate - my own family has been

in these situations and are currently in some of them.

What happened to your family is heartbreaking and vile. It grieves

me to hear of it happenng to anyone, let alone someone I respect and

am getting to know and look forward to meeting, Lord willing, at a

WAPF conference or some other venue.

I also pointed out in most of my posts that it is

hard to make general statements for the reason you gave below, that

we don't know the exact circumstances. I also never implied that the

poor should just pick themselves up by their bootstraps - though

their are examples that just such a thing is possible, even in a

broken world with broken systems. I also said in an earlier post that

we usually we are not in a position to judge well with others, unless

they let us deeply into their lives.

It seems there is some sort of divide/either or when it comes to

these issues in some of the posts... either you are emphatic, or you

are helpful. You are compassionate, or by offering counsel/critique

you are judgmental. I don't think such a divide exists, at least not

when you look at Jesus and the OT/NT, which is the background I work

out of and from. You can offer great compassion and yet boldly

confront people about their sins (such as Jesus with the woman at the

well). The people who have been most compassionate towards me are

the ones who have done both - at the time, it may not have felt

compassionate, but in hindsight I understand much better.

I also thought that some posts went too far, making poverty and

calamity something completely out of the hands and control of people,

which at times it is, but at times is not. The posts show this to be

true - some people have experience on both sides, and I have been

trying to point out the need for both sides.

And in some of my posts I said there are extreme cases that no amount

of preparation, or insurance, or family and friendship, will be able

to stand against... welcome to a truly fallen world. But the extreme

cases do not negate the general truth, nor do we build our lives or

ethical systems on extreme cases since by nature they defy the

general logic and experience of life. They remind us to be humble,

as you have reminded us.

Per insurance, there are certain things that no amount of insurance

will cover. Yet, there are thousands of families (such as those who

work with Dave Ramsey), who avoided complete catatrophe by having the

proper insurances and other prudent steps.

Do we not get insurance then because it doesn't work in 100% of the

cases? Eating well will not prevent death - so should I just eat

cheesy puffs and drink coke?

Some of the posts seem to me to be nihilistic in their tone, which

completely stops discussion (IMO, I have sought to stay rather

neutral when reading someone's post, because as I have said, I just

don't know, which is another reason I posted, wanting things to stay

more impersonal, aka talking about problems and solutions, than being

personal in tone and nature, though if people want to share personal

stories to help others learn and have empathy for one another).

If we are all just the victim of time and chance and can't do

anything at all about it, why do anything at all? So, seeking

balance between personal and impersonal.

Kids and family need dinner so I must go;)