Comments on: Gandhi’s Experiments With Truth

By: Wendy Wells

Wendy Wells — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 07:13:43 +0000

You have inspired me to broaden my horizons! There is a mission group of medical people called Project Smile. They travel to places like Cambodia and do oral surgeries on children around the world. If one agrees to work nights the trip is paid in full. Nights is all I’ve done the past 5 years. I have been on a medical mission before. Anyway its about time I get a passport, huh? I would like even to take a travel nursing assignment somewhere in Europe. That way i could live there an extended period of time. One more year my son is out of high school and more travel can be done!

By: Brook

Brook — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 03:29:56 +0000

Wendy, it sounds like you’re doing something right. I’m no parent, but it seems to me that by focusing on the stuff that’s really important (self reliance, financial responsibility, cultivating a natural love for learning, respect for the body, etc.), you automatically set the stage for good results (good academic performance, athletic disposition, smart personal finance, etc.). Too many people focus on specific outcomes without a clue how to get there.

Speaking of “cash only”…have you seen Million Dollar Baby with Clint Eastwood? I forget the exact lines and circumstances, but he gives advice to Hilary Swank’s character that if she buys a house, pay ALL CASH, NO MORTGAGE. I thought that was such brilliant advice. There are logical reasons for NOT paying all cash for a house (for instance, if the money could be invested elsewhere with returns greater than the mortgage interest rate), but I think it’s smart to buy a house that could be bought upfront in cash…

By: Wendy Wells

Wendy Wells — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 01:47:00 +0000

Ok so Im about to quote the great Ozzy Osborne! Song Crazy Train….”the media sells it and you live the roll” have alwayes loved that line, there is so much truth to it. And it comes out of a time where everyone thought he was evil. I have never looked at the whole life insurance thing this way but it fits right in with all the consumerism America is made of. I love what you said about the never ending cycle of it all.
My goal has always been to live “liquid”. No debt. So my current focus is on paying off my debts and learning to live on cash only basis. I’ve had yard sales and used the money to make home improvements. Talk about good for the soul. Could have paid for it out of my pocket but it was satisfying using the clutter to somethimg positive! About to do it again in a couple weeks!

Oddly enough my son is a straight A student and a good athlete. So would you agree that if one is moved towards self reliance that it creates a cycle of a drive to not achieve a grade of an A but to learn. There is a difference. Also to be self reliant can move one towards maintaining a better physical condition? Just a thought…..

Im thinking you might want to consider a topic of the overuse of the exclamation point. Im so guilty of it!! , not to mention the winky face.

Later….

By: Brook

Brook — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 13:44:19 +0000

Wendy, that was one of my favorite quotes, too. It turns all our conventional ideas of life insurance upside down. In line with our national consumerist mentality, we are programmed to believe that life insurance is some natural, necessary purchase. Worse than that is when people see insurance policies as “investments.” While I can see the value in having life insurance to cover children and existing debt (it wouldn’t be very nice to leave your loved ones with a load of bills to pay!), I do not understand the idea behind having gargantuan payouts.

In Ghandi’s time (and still in India and most parts of the world), people didn’t accumulate debt, didn’t have loans, and didn’t buy on credit the way the developed nations do…so that should be factored into the equation as well. With the typical American having thousands and thousands of dollars of debt, and little to no savings, life insurance almost becomes necessary to pay the bills after death. We’re basically to a point where our overextended consumerist ways require yet another purchase, of insurance, to cover the former. It’s ridiculous when you think about it! The more stuff we buy, the more stuff we need to buy to maintain and protect the earlier stuff we bought—it’s a never ending cycle that, when purchased on credit, bankrupts people and nations.

I’m glad to hear you’re raising your son to be self-reliant! Grades and athleticism don’t matter so much as adults, do they? I agree with you that being self-reliant is the only true freedom.

By: Wendy Wells

Wendy Wells — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 11:33:34 +0000

Ok. so after reading this and working all night, I kept coming back in my mind to this quote….“In getting my life insured, I had robbed my wife and children of their self-reliance. Why should they not be expected to take care of themselves?”….I love this! My goal in raising my son is to be a thinker! I don’t care about straight A’s and best athlete. I care that he grows up and can be self reliant!!! to me that is where true freedom is!! Hope this makes sense wrote it in a hurry.

By: Wendy Wells

Wendy Wells — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 03:40:58 +0000

Great entry!!! Have always loved Thoreau. Never looked into Gandhi much. May have to check that out.

By: Brook

Brook — Mon, 24 May 2010 16:13:31 +0000

Thanks. Hopefully, not too many copyright laws were broken, but I doubt Gandhi would be upset about his words reaching more people.

Coincidentally, I’ve been reading Thoreau’s Walden this month as well. Gandhi credited Thoreau with many ideas, and it’s obvious having read both books this month, that Thoreau is a genius in his thoughts, and for his everlasting impact having inspired Gandhi, Tolstoy, and others.

By: Tom

Tom — Sun, 23 May 2010 08:00:10 +0000

Great post, we all know that Gandhi was a great man but it is interesting to see so many of his profound and important quotes.