To Friends, Good Times, and Unjust Statistics
We had a lovely weekend visiting with K. Flanagan. It was a nice blend of relaxtion, hitting the 'Ville, and long talks that reminded me of the times Kell would wander down to my dorm room in the mole hole and we'd chat about anything and everything 'til we realized we had other committments, like class, studying, or sleeping. Over the weekend, we ate good food, walked around downtown, headed up Tom's mountain to tour Monticello, watched a great foreign film, and still managed to get some sleep. I'd like to use this platform to express how proud I am of Miss Flanagan and what a beautiful person I have had the pleasure of seeing her become. Her heart of service to Christ is always humbling to me, and her ability to weather storms and keep pressing on in faith is inspiring. Kell, God has you firmly in his grip, and you are a valuable assest to the Kingdom - I can't wait to see what happens!! Love you!!
On an entirely different note, I learned today that the MEDIAN income for Charlottesville city is hovering around $62,500!!! This is distugstingly high for a median - and while it may symbolize a stong economy in the 'Ville, it also evidences the cruel injustices that I see everyday in my work with the non-profit; some struggle to live at the very bottom of the ladder, while those at the exact middle have abundance plenty. Also of note is the median income in Fairfax County, VA- ringing in at $88,500. Unbelievable. (Oh - an important point of reference here is that nationally, the median income averages somewhere between $35-45K).
6 comments:
K looked our county up and it turned out to be much like C-Ville. Just yesterday I was at the DMV to finally take care of switching my license address and as looked around, I would say I probably made more $ than 70% of the people there. That's just me alone, not including hubby's income. I've heard that the whole "opportunities more readily available for the middle class" thing is a hoax from some people, but I can't agree. Just looking at the hair and teeth of some of the people there showed me I've had it good. Unjust, indeed.
Unjust it certainly is. But did anyone ever dispute that? The world is entirely, completely, totally, ridiculously, awfully unjust. It always has been and always will be. "Life isn't fair."
I think we should try to fight it everywhere possible - try to give everyone a chance to live in relative comfort - but why do we always talk about injustice as if it's a surprise?
Stop bitching and start a revolution, right?
Oh, I don’t think anyone is surprised. I think the point of calling something unjust is just as your said – because socially responsible adults cannot allow injustice to be a part of our shared landscape. It is sort of like yelling fire: you aren’t doing it because you are surprised that fires start sometimes, but because you see it as your duty to alert others and encourage their participation in putting it out.
Most people yell "fire" to warn or get the attention of others. Rarely are the same people who yell to others about the "fires" the people who end up soot covered from fighting it. Much like this issue.
I guess. I just notice that on all of our blogs we're always saying, "people are so poor! I have so much!" but rarely telling stories about doing anything about it, pointing out ways to do it, or talking about tangible ways to address the issue. Maybe I think we could all use a little more soot, ok?
mair, you made me cry when i read this post. your constant love, support and friendship means so much to me. what a great time we had! i miss our talks. we must do this again sometime.
Post a Comment