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Once upon a time there lived a beautiful young woman and a handsome
young man. They were very poor, but as they were deeply in love, they
wanted to get married. The young people's parents shook their heads.
'You can't get married yet,' they said. 'Wait till you get a good job with
5 good prospects.' So the young people waited until they found good jobs
with good prospects and they were able to get married. They were still
poor, of course. They didn't have a house to live in or any furniture, but
that didn't matter. The young man had a good job with good prospects, so
large organisations lent him the money he needed to buy a house, some
10 furniture, all the latest electrical appliances and a car. The couple lived
happily ever after paying off debts for the rest of their lives. And so ends
another modem romantic fable.
We live in a materialistic society and are trained from our earliest years
to be acquisitive. Our possessions, 'mine' and 'yours' are clearly labelled
15 from early childhood. When we grow old enough to earn a living, it does
not surprise us to discover that success is measured in terms of the money
you earn. We spend the whole ofour lives keeping up with our neighbours,
the Joneses. Ifwe buy a new television set, Jones is bound to buy a bigger
and better one. If we buy a new car, we can be sure that Jones will go one
20 better and get new cars: one for his wife and one for himself. The most
amusing thing about this game is that the Ioneses and all the neighbours
who are struggling frantically to keep up with them are spending borrowed
money kindly provided, at a suitable rate of interest, of course, by friendly
banks, insurance companies, etc.
25 It is not only in affluent societies that people are obsessed with the idea
of making more money. Consumer goods are desirable everywhere and
modem industry deliberately sets out to create new markets. Gone are the
days when industrial goods were made to last forever. The wheels of
industry must be kept turning. 'Built-in obsolescence' provides the means:
30 goods are made to be discarded. Cars get tinnier and tinnier. You no
sooner acquire this year's model than you are thinking about its replace-
ment.
This materialistic outlook has seriously influenced education. Fewer and
fewer young people these days acquire knowledge only for its own sake.
35 Every course of studies must lead somewhere: i.e. to a bigger wage packet.
The demand for skilled personnel far exceeds the supply and big companies
compete with each other to recruit students before they have completed
their studies. Tempting salaries and 'fringe benefits' are offered to them.
Recruiting tactics of this kind have led to the 'brain drain', the process by
40 which highly skilled people offer their services to the highest bidder. The
wealthier nations deprive their poorer neighbours of their most able
citizens. While Mammon is worshipped as never before, rich get
richer and the poor, poorer.
The argument: key words
I Once upon a time: young woman, young man; poor, in love.
2 Parents objected to marriage: good job, good prospects first.
3 Young people complied: could get married.
4 Still poor: borrowed money for house, furniture, car, etc.
5 Lived happily ever after paying off debts j modem romantic fable.
6 We live in materialistic society; trained to be acquisitive.
7 'Mine', 'yours' concepts from early childhood.
8 Success measured by money.
9 Keeping up with the Joneses: e.g, new TV; new car.
10 Jones and neighbours spending borrowed money, paying interest rates.
I I Not only affluent societies want more money; consumer goods
sirable everywhere.
Modem industry creates new markets.
13 Wheels of industry: built-in obsolescence: e.g, cars.
14 Materialism influences education.
15 No knowledge for its own sake; purpose, more money.
16 Big firms compete; recruit students: big salaries, 'fringe benefits'.
17 Brain drain: services to highest bidder.
18 Wealthy nations deprive poorer neighbours of talented people.
19 Rich get richer; poor, poorer.
The counter-argument: key words
I Interest in earning money not a modern phenomenon, but people not
interested only in that.
2 Young people borrow money: a satisfactory arrangement: inde-
pendent of parents, can start lives.
3 The argument proves nothing: only that living standards are better.
4 People interested in living decent lives consistent with human dignity.
5 Education is not money-orientated; it's skill-orientated; necessary be-
cause of modem technology.
6 Technology requires professionals, not amateurs.
7 Brain drain: skilled people are not always after more money but better
work facilities.
8 A marked swing away from scientific studies has been noted: return to
humanities; knowledge for its own sake.
9 Many young people not motivated by money: many reject materialistic
values.
10 Many voluntary organisations (e.g. Peace Corps): idealistic, work
without reward.
I I A marked reluctance to work long hours for money: desire to enjoy
life.
Social welfare in many countries makes it unnecessary for people to
struggle for money.
13 State provides: education, medical services, etc.
14 High taxes: a disincentive.
3S
16 'Compulsory military service should be abolished
in all countries'
Believe it or not, the Swiss were once a warlike people. There is still
evidence of this. To this day, the guards at the Vatican are Swiss. But the
Swiss discovered long ago that constant warfare brought them nothing but
suffering and poverty. They adopted a policy of neutrality, and while the
5 rest of the world seethed in turmoil, Switzerland, a country with hardly
any natural resources, enioyed peace and prosperity. The rest of the world
is still not ready to accept this simple and obvious solution. Most countries
not only maintain permanent armies but require all their young men to do
a period of compulsory military service. Everybody has a lot to say about
10 the desirability of peace, but no one does anything about it. An obvious
thing to do would be to abolish conscription everywhere. This would bethe
first step towards universal peace.
Some countries, like Britain, have already abandoned peace-time
conscription. Unfortunately, they haven't done so for idealistic reasons,
15 but from a simple recognition of the fact that modem warfare is a highly
professional business. In the old days, large armies were essential. There
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Dobre pomysły nie mają przeszłości, mają tylko przyszłość. Robert Mallet
De minimis - o najmniejszych rzeczach.
Dobroć jest ważniejsza niż mądrość, a uznanie tej prawdy to pierwszy krok do mądrości. Theodore Isaac Rubin
Dobro to tylko to, co szlachetne, zło to tylko to, co haniebne.
Dla człowieka nie tylko świat otaczający jest zagadką; jest on nią sam dla siebie. I z obu tajemnic bardziej dręczącą wydaje się ta druga. Antoni Kępiński (1918-1972)
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