Wilson, Wyoming (like Austin, Ann
Arbor, Ames, and Missoula) is a blue town in a very red state. It is stunningly beautiful and is filled with
beautiful people. The abundance of
opportunities for outdoor recreation seems overwhelming. It appears that everyone in town is ice
climbing, skiing, hiking, golfing, rafting, hunting, or fly fishing. An afternoon spent drinking in the view is
time well spent. It is also the town in
the United States with the highest income.
Housing prices in liberal cities, such the
Boston metropolitan area where I currently live, are the most expensive in the
country. Few visible minorities can
afford the price of admission. One of
the great ironies of our current age is that those who live in these cities are
great advocates of diversity and inclusion.
Often, the price tag for admissions is an obstacle for those they would
like to include. This fact saddens me
and I am looking for a way in which we can be as inclusive as we claim to be.
I think of the city of Marblehead, north
of Boston. It is filled with beautiful
Victorian Mansions festooned with Black
Lives Matter placards. It would surprise
me if many persons of color have ever lived there. It appears that places where people cry out
most loudly for social justice are the same places where social injustice is
most clearly evident.
How might we take the plank out of our own
eye so that we can be demonstrate the compassion we claim to have?
This is so true, John! I ponder this all the time! I really hate private property and yet, completely conversely, am grateful that I am a home owner knowing that I won't be without shelter. But the whole notion of land and home ownership seems inherently wrong. Whoever ever decided that land was theirs in the first place for the taking? I know - our very own white ancestors, but how do we go about fixing that? Everyone should have access to land and places to have a roof over their heads.
ReplyDeleteI am so loving your blog! I forget to check it and then I catch up on a bunch of days - very rewarding!