I recently talked to an elderly friend and she asked me if I remember the watering trough in the road at Depot and Fox St by Woodburn's grocery store, well I remember hearing about it when I was a kid. That trough was for horses before cars were prevalent in Owego. It got me thinking that in a very short time we have gone from wilderness to urban and all that comes with that. My Great Grandparents were born in the early 1880's just after the Civil War, they grew up on farms and didn't have cars but walked to town or rode on the horse drawn wagon . There were no immunizations of any type and radio was just starting to begin but not in their area. You got your news from the local paper or the neighbor . In those days the Preacher in the church many times delivered news from the City and Church was the social center of the town. My Grand Parents McDowell were born in 1902 and 1904 , neither went beyond elementary school. My Grandfather ran off at 13 or 14 and enlisted in the Navy during WWI and served on a Battleship in naval battles in the North Atlantic, until his mother wrote the Navy and they found him and sent him home. My Grand mother was one of 8 girls in her family and they were tenant farmers. My other Grand parents were born in 1909 and 1911 , they lived in town and both graduated High School a great accomplishment for a women in those days. That Grand father lost his father when he was 13 and he and his mother came to town and served as servants for a rich family Grampa did the yard work, etc. and his mother was the cook and maid. Both sets of Grandparents remember the first time they saw a car and listened to the radio, they loved going to the theater for movies with my great Grandfather and my Grandmother playing the tuba and piano or violin and piano. When my Grand parents were married they were both sets married by Reverend Edgar Frank , This was just after or during the Great Depression , both Grandfathers had to leave to get work one with WPA and the other on the Bridge gang for the Railroad. My Mom and Dad were born in 1932 and 1935 , just after the Depression. In most of the country the economy had came back but not in upstate NY . Both my parents had to struggle to get any cash and hunted and fished for food or worked cleaning houses. When they were married they too were married by Rev. Frank . I was born in 1956 and my Brother and 3 sisters came over the next 10 years. We were poor by anyone's standards but we had a lot of love. We spent many nights getting a bath in a tub in the center of the kitchen floor with mom pouring in the water she had heated on the stove. We lived in what was called a cold water flat, when I was about 5 we rented a house down the street on Depot St and we lived there for several years this was by the Railroad yard and the Depot . So we saw our share of hobos come through and come to the door begging for food or water. They always came to the steps of the porch and the dog would bark , Mom would look out and always gave them something of what little we had. They would go to the back door every time to get the items so that other hobos would not flag the house as an easy mark. We didn't have a car so Dad had to hitchhike to Ithaca and back everyday even in the winter. Finally , Dad got a car and we moved one block over into an upstairs apartment. The next year dad bought the house and we moved down stairs. It was a 13 room house heated by a stove with a heater on the side in the kitchen and two gas space heaters one on the first floor and one on the second floor. Both sets of Grandparents lived within 2 blocks of us , so we always saw of Grand parents every day or two. See up to the 1970's family ate together talked and played together. We all went to Church and we all gained knowledge from our elders. TV began to erode this but the advent of the Computer changed the family structure tremendously , now you could instantly get information , talk to a relative and spend hours on end playing games inside by yourself. Now if you can get kids and parents to do things together it is most times playing a video game and screaming at the unit. This is why many of us just do not understand how to communicate with the new generations they have no history of learning from elders . How Sad
Today we learn by electronic means approximately 90% of the information that we need to effectively survive in today's World. In comparison to the 1950's when about 5% of the information needed to survive was from electronic sources. When is the last time you rad and actual print newspaper , I would suggest that it was probably over 2-3 weeks ago. Why because we carry the world on our hip in the form of smart phones, etc. Instantly we can see stock quotes, world news, local news and the weather. But, what do we give up for that instant gratification? Today we no longer no how to escape the world's pressures, when is the last time you went for a day with out hearing about the stupid Trump Investigation? I wanted to know how long I could go without knowing anything from electronic media, about 5 minutes after I awoke yesterday, I had to check my checking balance , in the old days I would have looked at my register and known. Today I have to log on and check it. Why because now we schedule payments of bills on line and we pay with a card al the while, nobody carries cash any more. There is show now called the Purge which allows crime to rule the country one day a month or year. I would like to propose a day a year with no electronic media allowed, turn in your phones, shut off the laptop, un plug the PC and relax. If you absolutely have to get something or contact someone , you will have to get up and walk there or drive there and have face to face contact. Think how much time to think you would have that day and how relaxed you will be.
So join me in calling for a no electronic media day in January 2020 , There President Trump another out of the box act for you oh that's right that means no tweeting, guess that's not going anywhere guess I'll have to send him a face book message.
Why are we as country so divided? I believe it is based in
changes made in the country after Watergate. Prior to this so-called investigation,
elected officials were always treated with respect. The late 1960’s was rife
with incidents that upset the populace, but they were cut and dry issues for
the most part. Middle America including urban areas was scared because of the
riots for Civil Rights and College Riots about the Viet Nam war. Starting in
the late fifty’s colleges had hired almost exclusively Ivy league type
educators and had moved to the far extreme left in views. This was force fed to
the students and not controlled by most college boards of Trustees. So, when Nixon
was elected it was thought he would immediately pull out the troops, even
though he had stated right along that he would bring the troops home with “Honor”.
Thus, you had the beginnings of an opportunity to incite the masses. Ted Kennedy
after Chappaquiddickbasically ruined
his plans to become President was convinced that he needed a President that would
do exactly as he wished. The Watergate break in gave him the chance to level
the political field that had turned decidedly Republican. So, began a circus of
attempts to force Nixon from office, Congressional hearings, reports in major
newspapers that were no longer verified extensively but printed for effect. In
the end Nixon felt he had to save the office of the Presidency and resigned.
So, the technique of accuse and discredit became the main attack dog of both
parties. Since that time, we have seen every President been accused of wrong
doing and hearings held. Every President has had to extensively scrub their background
to remove or contain any item that could be used to discredit them. The media
also has never come to the middle again and has been a tool for the Democratic
Party, until Fox News arrived and was the Republican attack dog. So now we have
large fields of candidates every election running because they think the front
running persons will be eliminated by some scandal or another.
We the populace have been bombarded for years with constant
scandal or what the media calls a scandal. I personally don’t care about Trump
or Clinton’s Tax returns or extra marital affairs (unless in the Oval Office)
or any thing else done before winning the Presidency. What I do want is a
President that does what he says he will do and who does not rule in a manner
meant to eliminate political support for the other party illegally. The problem
is that now most of the country gets on social media and they are attacked for
their views. We must stop the evil speech now before it spreads to the next
generation. So please think about the tone your responses and posts convey are
remember that even though many of rights have been diminished it is still
America where you have the right to express your opinion.
Because He Lives Blog Because He Lives “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.” Psalms 19:14 (KJV) Do you ever wonder how we know that the Lord is happy with our words and deeds? Well it is in the feeling that you have served someone else because Jesus is Love and he only wants us to love him and each other. As long as what you say and do is moving the conversation that way you are always certain you have pleased the Lord.
