Why Did Americans Turn Off Their Minds?

The other day, I was talking to an acquaintance and I asked a simple question; "Why did Americans turn off their minds?" and then I thought to myself, did Americans knowingly do this or were those minds turned off for them? In other words, is it a fault of the media, the political structure, their employment, the education system, or the proverbial; all of the above? Okay so, let's talk about this for a moment shall we?

The other day, I was discussing this philosophical thought with a fellow thinking, John Altmann, and I had inquired in our dialogue; "Don't you feel as if we have a dummying down in our society, and that folks are less-than capable of thinking - isn't that one of the problems that society is so easily led astray in the first place?"

You see, we were discussing philosophy, and it seems everyone should be interested in these topics, it is the foundation of human society, and yet, they don't seem to understand, or even care - how can this be? It's almost scary when you think about it. Indeed, I told John that "I am enjoying this conversation and dialogue. I also enjoyed the essay he wrote which we later dissected thoroughly.

Later, I noted that some might be offended by such an intellectual dialogue and discourse, or essay of the same vein due to their mind-numbing brainwashing; TV + school + political advertising. Still, that doesn't mean they shouldn't hear such points of contention, if nothing more than to make them think and challenge themselves and those who indoctrinate them.

I guess folks have a choice, and it's not for me to make, but it is for them to decide, either they use their minds for what they are for, or they don't and let them rot, it appears folks have made that decision by failure to consider the choice in advance, now it's too late for them. Maybe more philosophical writing in the right places could wake a few of them up? That would be excellent, if we could get Americans to think again.

There was an old television commercial for a Channel in Los Angeles which stated; "Tune into KABC because there is more to life than news, weather, and sports." Indeed, they were capturing the essence of what folks were thinking at the time, this was the early 80s, but today, no one seems to even realize that there is more to life than FaceBook, Twitter, Obama, Oprah, the National Inquirer, People Magazine, Jerry Springer, Dancing with the Stars, and their iPhone. But I assure you there is.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Future Concepts. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/

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Future Generations Expected to Be Less Well Off Than Their Parents

Over the course of the last few generations each generation has had more disposable income, relatively speaking, than the last. This trend could soon change though. Those currently in their 30's and 40's are expected to follow this pattern and be better off than their parents, but their children are, on average, expected to be less well off.

According to a PWC study, those born in 1993 will be 25% poorer when they retire than those born in 1963.

Those born in 1963 were able to buy a home earlier, at the age of 29 on average, and benefited from rapid increases in the value of their homes. They had no student debt and many are likely to be able to retire early.

Those born in 1993 are likely to have a higher real income but they are also likely to spend more. The PWC study states that it is expected they will be able to buy their first home by the age of 35 on average. This could be higher, though, as the average is already more than that now. Many of those born in 1993 will have student loans to pay off. They will also live longer so their retirement pot must last longer.

So why is the trend of each generation turning? The wealth gap between each generation is already narrowing in relative terms. Pensions and property could be two key factors.

Pensions are getting worse. Fewer people are paying into a pension fund at all, and this problem is increasing with people living longer. So while bigger pension pots are needed, pension contributions are actually going down. This is already a problem for some who have retired and will likely get worse in the future unless something is done to revert this.

Property has risen sharply in the last few decades. With each generation benefiting more, each generation has become wealthier than the last. It has been easier to obtain a mortgage than it is likely to be in the future. Many house prices have now got to a stage where they have become unaffordable to many young people so getting on the housing ladder is become harder. Increases are also likely to be less in the future so future generations may make less on the property market.

A current issue is that wages are not rising comparably to inflation. So things are costing more relative to what people are earning.

Each generation since world war two has been wealthier than the previous, but this difference is becoming less. The tide is turning and those born now are likely to be less well off as adults than their parents.

Can parents help protect their children from what could be a decline in living standard? The answer is yes, if parents have disposable income they could save it on behalf of their children. The best way to protect against inflation could be to invest it, for example in a Junior ISA. The Junior ISA is the new savings scheme for children, whereby parents can make investments on behalf of their children where gains will not be taxed.

Andrew Marshall ©

The Junior ISA is a good way to financially assist your children in the future.

Click here for the PWC study mentioned in this article.

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New MPs urged to 'stay true' to their values

Former federal parliamentarians are urging new members of the Commons to "stay true" to their initial motivations for entering politics and not allow the culture of Ottawa to force them to sacrifice their values or beliefs.

The advice is contained in the fourth and final report: The Outsiders' Manifesto: Surviving and Thriving as a Member of Parliament, conducted by Samara, a research organization. Samara interviewed 65 former members of Parliament.

"The advice the MPs delivered most consistently had less to do with adjusting a particular parliamentary rule or convention and more with general tips encouraging future MPs to stay true to themselves and to whatever it was that brought them to politics in the first place," the report stated.

For many MPs, their most fulfilling times as parliamentarians came when they worked outside the "Ottawa bubble."

"Although the MPs described much of their daily work as dominated by their political party, their most salient moments were remembered as those spent working outside Parliament’s agenda or that of their own party," the report said.

Most of the former MPs paid little attention to proposed parliamentary changes often discussed in the media, such as reforms to the Senate, party financing or elections. Instead, they focused on improving the culture and practice of politics and the way to get citizens better engaged.

Many former MPs slammed the riding nomination process, claiming it lacks transparency. They said the role of the local constituency association in selecting an individual needs to be reformed.

MPs also recommended better training for new parliamentarians during their initial weeks and months in Ottawa.

Some suggested improving the efficiency of Parliament through electronic voting or reducing the time spent on question period. As well, some MPs favoured reducing political party interference in committee work.

Improvements are also needed in civic education, and young people need better opportunities to meaningfully experience Canadian democracy, the report found.

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