Sunday, October 28, 2007

What do we want?


What do we want from the people around us? What do we expect from them?

It's normal for a person to carry themselves along. Moved by their own wants, feelings and instincts even. Held up by their own spirit and willpower. It's the number one instinct of human nature; survival. After that comes wants and goals.
For animals survival is the most important instinct aswell and it's common for a pack to leave a sick or wounded packmember behind if it's slowing them down. A chain is no stronger than it's weakest link.
Humans are the same way, survival first, even if it means leaving a sick or wounded behind.

Most humans have a strong empathy for their closest; family and friends. Some go beyond and reach out to anyone who needs a helping hand.
But only few people are willing to be slowed down by helping a person who can no longer carry themselves along.

It isn't uncommon to be carried along by others, but it means giving up yourself and going only the ways of the carriers.

I find myself fallen and my spirit broken. Kicked and pushed along in the direction everyone else is going and want me to go.
I'm fallen, so "choice" is no longer an option for me. If I can't carry myself along, I don't get to choose my path. Should I try anyway, I would get left behind as the sick and wounded animal that is slowing down the entire pack.
My broken will is in the way and I'm nothing but an obstacle.
My spirit fight for it's right to choose it's own path. I do have a choice, but it's one that could easily break me.
Should I just let myself float along, carried by others' wants and maybe in the end get back on my own feet, but with the feeling of having lost a big part of me and my worth?
Or should I give up and let them go. Fall to the ground alone and wait... And in the end, either shrink and dissapear or raise to my own two feet, alone but with my self intact?


We want the people around us to walk behind us on our path, to fit in. We expect them to do as we do and not be in the way.
- If they don't live up to it, we leave them behind.

Friday, October 26, 2007

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Less tax for women

Two italian economists, Andrea Ichino and Alberto Alesina - men - have suggested that since it seems impossible to achieve equal pay for men and women, that maybe women should simply pay less in tax. So the end result would be that men and women get the same payment.


Obviously that idea is generally a bad idea in the view of a man and a good idea in the view of a woman, yes, jealousy is a bad thing. Hehe.

In all seriousness though;
I'm a woman (possibly of the few) who believes that men and women will never and should never be completely equal. Simply because - we ARE not equal. We do not, biologically, possess the same abilities. Generally speaking.
Usually men are good with space, math, logic and speed. And they can't multitask.
Women are good with creative things, overview, details and they multitask really well.
Men don't read emotion well, women do.
Men read maps and sketches well because they can transform it into 3D - so to spek. Women can't.
All generalized of course.

That having been said, of course the pay needs to be equal for the same amount of work. A female burger flipper shouldn't be making less than the male burger flippers. A female doctor shouldn't be making less than a male doctor.
And so forth...

The same job done with the same effeciency requires the same paycheck regardless of gender.


So as for that, yes, lowering taxes for women until they reach the same outcome (or income rather!) in pay as the men have, would be a good idea.
But the idea has some major flaws...

There's going to be some male managers out there who simply do not agree. And so they either just lower the women's salary even further or they up the men's salary.
So unless the tax is fixed individually on a yearly basis for every single working person, I doubt it would work.

But the idea is good and the debate it creates is even better.