IF I SEE ONE MORE MICHAEL JACKSON STORY ON TV, I may just have to cancel my cable. I mean you can’t turn on the news without being inundated with coverage of this sad, and yes, even pathetic pop-culture icon. But do you know what is particularly irksome? It is the GREED that is on display. Family, so-called friends, and supposed supporters are swimming around his casket like a school of sharks. They’re moving in for the kill, not realizing that he is already gone.
One example: The biological mother of two of Jackson’s children is reported to be seeking four million dollars from the Jackson estate in return for the custody rights of the children. She already received about eight million when she was divorced from Jackson a few years ago. How much is enough? It makes me ill when I read these reports, especially when I consider our present economic situation and the number of folks who are struggling to pay their mortgage.
I am reminded of a story I read about an exclusive school in Hollywood attended by children of movie stars. Asked to write an essay on the subject of poverty, one little girl started her literary piece this way: “Once there was a poor little girl. Her father was poor, her mother was poor, her governess was poor, her chauffeur was poor, and her butler was poor. In fact, everybody in the house was very, very poor.”
I believe we’re sending out the wrong message to our children. They need to understand that the god of greed will turn on them. If they worship at his feet, he will exact the last penny and leave them with nothing but broken promises. Greed is the logical result of the belief that there is no life after death. We grab what we can while we can however we can and then hold on to it hard.
Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run, knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost. As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared. He immediately collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth. In a few minutes he was dead. Afterwards, his servants dug a grave. It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide. The title of Tolstoy's story was: How Much Land Does a Man Need?
One example: The biological mother of two of Jackson’s children is reported to be seeking four million dollars from the Jackson estate in return for the custody rights of the children. She already received about eight million when she was divorced from Jackson a few years ago. How much is enough? It makes me ill when I read these reports, especially when I consider our present economic situation and the number of folks who are struggling to pay their mortgage.
I am reminded of a story I read about an exclusive school in Hollywood attended by children of movie stars. Asked to write an essay on the subject of poverty, one little girl started her literary piece this way: “Once there was a poor little girl. Her father was poor, her mother was poor, her governess was poor, her chauffeur was poor, and her butler was poor. In fact, everybody in the house was very, very poor.”
I believe we’re sending out the wrong message to our children. They need to understand that the god of greed will turn on them. If they worship at his feet, he will exact the last penny and leave them with nothing but broken promises. Greed is the logical result of the belief that there is no life after death. We grab what we can while we can however we can and then hold on to it hard.
Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run, knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost. As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared. He immediately collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth. In a few minutes he was dead. Afterwards, his servants dug a grave. It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide. The title of Tolstoy's story was: How Much Land Does a Man Need?
posted by kazookid | 6:53 AM
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