Lets talk third world

I spent a little time overseas while on my military stint.  I got to see some real shithole places in the world. I’ve told some of those stories here a time or two, but I think it might be time for a little revisit and clarification.

People on the downside here in the US, have zero clue how well they have it. We have the richest poor people in the world.  Most have a television, cell phone,  internet access in some form,  microwave ovens, usually a roof over-head.  I’ve seen homeless people with Cellphones and one even had a Laptop

Lets visit a small burg outside of Olongopo for a quick minute.  The family I was introduced to lived in a one room shack. It was a rather large one; around 16′ a side and very sqaurish.  The beams were palm trunks that they cut down clearing the area for the house.  No electric other than a car battery that lit a headlight hanging from the ceiling.  The floor was wood, more of that palm trunk, quarter sawn by hand.  You had to wear sandles in the house or get some really nasty splinters in your feet.   The walls were made of cardboard that still showed the ink listing them as ‘Meal, ready to eat, qnty 12’.  These were sliced open and flattened, then stapled to the framing.  Start at the bottom and work up so the sections overlapped to shed water. (Monsoon season, it rains sideways!!!)

The tin roof was made from flattened ammo cans scavenged from nearby practice ranges.  Same thing, start at the edge and work to the peak to shed water.

7 people lived there.  Mom, Dad, Grandma and 4 littles.  Cooking was done outside. Well most EVERYTHING was done outside. The house was more of the bedroom than anything.  Dad made a living grinding leaf springs into knives and Machetes.  Mom and the littles (the ones big enough) were scavengers for resources to include food stuff in the Jungle. Grandma taught the littles too small to help out in scavenging and used them as labor around the house.

This was just 4 klicks from Olongopo City.  Subic Bay Navel Station in the Phillipines. The year was 1991.

I doubt that they are still there.  Last I saw, thanks to internet and ubiquitous camera usage, the US military leaving may have been the best thing to happen there. 

My point? No real point except to illustrate how GOOD people have it here, despite the flaws and foibles I hear so many bitch about. I see poor here as jealous types because “they’ve been oppressed”. That Family I just described; happy go lucky as all get out and not a trace of jealousy in them. They welcomed me and the Gunny like we were family. I don’t know how Gunny knew them but he definitely was an old friend.

I want to say its the education system, but thats not all of it. There is also a mass advertising ploy of “more bigger better best” that is also to blame. Hard to know what you don’t have, if it isnt smeared in your face every 10 minutes in 45 second intervals. (And one good reason I do not miss the Toob)

Maybe whats coming at us is a “reset” to allow this country to learn some humility again. I won’t say thats a bad thing. Maybe we need that smack in the face like we were some brat child atomping a tantrum over not getting that new toy.

If so, we won’t stay there long. Americans of old would strive more than resign to the downward slope of entropy. Even the hillbillies of old would make attempt to better the situation. (Maybe not in a way modern ppl would recognize but it would be an improvement)

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