ISN'T IT
AMAZING THAT GEORGE CARLIN - COMEDIAN OF THE 70'S AND 80'S - COULD WRITE
SOMETHING SO VERY ELOQUENT...AND SO VERY APPROPRIATE...
A MESSAGE
BY GEORGE CARLIN:
THE
PARADOX OF OUR TIME IN HISTORY IS THAT WE HAVE TALLER BUILDINGS BUT SHORTER
TEMPERS, WIDER FREEWAYS, BUT NARROWER VIEWPOINTS. WE SPEND MORE, BUT HAVE LESS,
WE BUY MORE, BUT ENJOY LESS. WE HAVE BIGGER HOUSES AND SMALLER FAMILIES, MORE
CONVENIENCES, BUT LESS TIME. WE HAVE MORE DEGREES, BUT LESS SENSE, MORE
KNOWLEDGE, BUT LESS JUDGMENT, MORE EXPERTS, YET MORE PROBLEMS, MORE MEDICINE,
BUT LESS WELLNESS.
WE DRINK
TOO MUCH, SMOKE TOO MUCH, SPEND TOO RECKLESSLY, LAUGH TOO LITTLE, DRIVE TOO
FAST, GET TOO ANGRY, STAY UP TOO LATE, GET UP TOO TIRED, READ TOO LITTLE, WATCH
TV TOO MUCH, AND PRAY TOO SELDOM.
WE HAVE
MULTIPLIED OUR POSSESSIONS, BUT REDUCED OUR VALUES. WE TALK TOO MUCH, LOVE TOO
SELDOM, AND HATE TOO OFTEN.
WE'VE
LEARNED HOW TO MAKE A LIVING, BUT NOT A LIFE. WE'VE ADDED YEARS TO LIFE NOT
LIFE TO YEARS. WE'VE BEEN ALL THE WAY TO THE MOON AND BACK, BUT HAVE TROUBLE
CROSSING THE STREET TO MEET A NEW NEIGHBOUR. WE CONQUERED OUTER SPACE BUT NOT
INNER SPACE. WE'VE DONE LARGER THINGS, BUT NOT BETTER THINGS.
WE'VE
CLEANED UP THE AIR, BUT POLLUTED THE SOUL. WE'VE CONQUERED THE ATOM, BUT
NOT OUR PREJUDICE. WE WRITE MORE, BUT LEARN LESS. WE PLAN MORE, BUT
ACCOMPLISH LESS. WE'VE LEARNED TO RUSH, BUT NOT TO WAIT. WE BUILD MORE
COMPUTERS TO HOLD MORE INFORMATION, TO PRODUCE MORE COPIES THAN EVER, BUT WE
COMMUNICATE LESS AND LESS.
THESE ARE
THE TIMES OF FAST FOODS AND SLOW DIGESTION, BIG MEN AND SMALL CHARACTER, STEEP
PROFITS AND SHALLOW RELATIONSHIPS. THESE ARE THE DAYS OF TWO INCOMES, BUT MORE
DIVORCE, FANCIER HOUSES, BUT BROKEN HOMES. THESE ARE DAYS OF QUICK TRIPS, DISPOSABLE
DIAPERS, THROWAWAY MORALITY, ONE NIGHT STANDS, OVERWEIGHT BODIES, AND PILLS
THAT DO EVERYTHING FROM CHEER, TO QUIET, TO KILL. IT IS A TIME WHEN THERE IS
MUCH IN THE SHOWROOM WINDOW AND NOTHING IN THE STOCKROOM. A TIME WHEN
TECHNOLOGY CAN BRING THIS LETTER TO YOU, AND A TIME WHEN YOU CAN CHOOSE EITHER
TO SHARE THIS INSIGHT, OR TO JUST HIT DELETE...