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Tuesday, August 2, 2005 - 8:12amSanction this postReply
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I tend to pick my battles carefully, and on my own. That is because I am a businessman, and that is a primary. Whatever time is left over I must decide about carefully.

The reasons that someone like me chooses to engage in charity, and social justice issues involve a couple of things.

The first one is because I have found myself in a place where I have a little more time and resources to aim at pursuits that do not directly involve capitalism. Capitalism is never hurt by my actions, because I am based out of it. It is also because true capitalism does not create impediments to iimproving mans' lot; in fact it does nothing but improve it. What happens is that there are things that a person sees they can do that satisfy them outside of straight capitalism, and still benefit it.

Service, to me, is not the right word for what this is. When I engage in projects of this nature, I consider my actions to be proactive ones. Not all "causes" involving the human condition automatically mean surrendering to collectivist or altruist thinking. The general welfare of all things acts is in my own self-interest. Just because so many people have entered into that realm with hanky ideas about the whys and whats of it does not discourage me from entering it on my own terms.

rde

(Edited by Rich Engle on 8/02, 9:15am)


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Friday, August 5, 2005 - 2:52amSanction this postReply
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In the extremely short amount of time I spent in the military, I learned a few things. One of these happens to be that alot of people who join the military should not be there - and these are volunteers. If you have ever heard stories about deserters during Vietnam, then you would get an idea of what I mean. The last thing that I would want is to wake up with a rifle in my face because the man who was with me decided that he didn't choose to be there to begin with.

Joe


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Monday, August 8, 2005 - 7:50amSanction this postReply
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Joe Idoni wrote:

> One of these happens to be that alot of people who join the
> military should not be there - and these are volunteers.

I agree. I think there are too many who enlist just because of the money for college that the military dangles in the faces of young people leaving high school with the desire to better themselves. I considered joining the Navy myself -- to do a few years and then take advantage of the GI Bill -- but thought that I'd be whoring myself out by serving the military of a government I held in contempt just to get a few grand for college.

Besides, my grandfather didn't join the Army for college money. He joined the Army because there was a war on and he believed that the cause was just.

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