This afternoon, 30 years ago, I looked through the plane window on my right and saw the coast of America for the first time. That was my second birthday, one that I actually remember in vivid details, unlike the first one. Humans remember small changes of higher contrast, rather than bigger changes that happen gradually, and this is why it’s worth to look back where we were to understand what our kids will live in.
We came here as refugees and out of necessity … not to die. Indeed we came very close more than a few times (and still having scars to prove it) but somehow escaped the fate of few of our close friends. So it wasn’t much of a choice. They were different times, nothing like today. No one had it easy. Some of the guys from my ESL club basically had US servicemen fathers, clear threat of death from the commies and still spent decades on the run and in refugees camps (nightmare fuel) trying to get into US, not for financial gain but simply have a place to exist in peace. This was the time when the whole concept of immigrating to another country was difficult at best. A stark contrast.
I can’t say that the whole “experience” was great. In fact it sucked, a lot and on many levels. If you are coming from a shithole, a mere sanitation would be an improvement. The last couple of years in the Soviet paradise we were pretty much to homeless, slept in abandoned buildings and airports, but we knew it wasn’t norm, it wasn’t always like that for us, in fact we were slightly above average before getting caught well into commie persecution machine. At a new and foreign place, it took years to start learning the language, customs, laws, all the shit you take for granted. I started reading at 4, read a lot, not in English, and now I had trouble expressing simple concepts. No internet or communication with outside world, depression, those were small potatoes. The financial assistance was as expected stolen and program admin eventually went to jail, a few decades later on embezzlement charges. The poor families were given paper stubs for free lunches, which was the reason I never ate at school, I also walked two miles to school in any weather on foot, because f*** your handouts, that’s why.
We can talk about the “experience” a lot, but the relevant things I want to touch on, was America 30 years ago, because I do remember it just as it was, like today, always had. We ended up in … Burlington, VT. 30 years ago, it was a shit place, depressing when you are at the bottom. If you think of it as the hippie capital, you are wrong. There was a gun shop off the Main St. and you could legit go in and buy gun and ammo on a whim. The general attitude toward any foreigners wasn’t all that accepting, and I mean people have walked out to me several times and asked to speak English or GTFO … and last time I was simply trying to talk to a Bulgarian friend in a language other than English. Yeah, people were red neck, intolerant and didn’t have reservations to let you know about it. In fact New Hampshire today is weak sauce compared to the most liberal town of Vermont, 30 years ago.
So I went to High School, our Chemistry teacher used to bring guns to school because he was WWII and colonial nut. He left them in the corner of a room between classes, unattended and no locks. I don't mean just muskets, I mean real codified "high capacity assault" rifles with "clips" like a M1 Garand that actually and highly probably killed people. No one gave shit or worried about the gun ploting murders. The only photo I have left from my High School times was me, him and the Garand. When I find it, I post.
There are two extremes for people’s outlook on life. One is that in long term we are all dead, sun goes supernova … the other is people not giving a f*** and just hitting snooze continuously all their life, living in the moment and enjoying their next year, next five years in peace or having their 2a rights not taken by tyrants or illegitimately “elected” POSs. Most of you younger f***ers here won’t get it, no matter how I say it. You will get it when you get older, when you have your first kid. If you are honest with yourself, you can look back to see how your attitude toward life/death and your family changed. Freedom is worth fighting for for your kids and 2a is just a canary in our coal mine under the swamp.
PS
So what’s the point? I don’t f***ing know, and no, this is not a rant in case you are eager to rate OP shit. I don’t know the point, because I’m just sad to see how over such a short period of time shit has deteriorated so bad on so many fronts. I don’t have any solutions. If you must rate OP, rate it on depression inducing scale.
We came here as refugees and out of necessity … not to die. Indeed we came very close more than a few times (and still having scars to prove it) but somehow escaped the fate of few of our close friends. So it wasn’t much of a choice. They were different times, nothing like today. No one had it easy. Some of the guys from my ESL club basically had US servicemen fathers, clear threat of death from the commies and still spent decades on the run and in refugees camps (nightmare fuel) trying to get into US, not for financial gain but simply have a place to exist in peace. This was the time when the whole concept of immigrating to another country was difficult at best. A stark contrast.
I can’t say that the whole “experience” was great. In fact it sucked, a lot and on many levels. If you are coming from a shithole, a mere sanitation would be an improvement. The last couple of years in the Soviet paradise we were pretty much to homeless, slept in abandoned buildings and airports, but we knew it wasn’t norm, it wasn’t always like that for us, in fact we were slightly above average before getting caught well into commie persecution machine. At a new and foreign place, it took years to start learning the language, customs, laws, all the shit you take for granted. I started reading at 4, read a lot, not in English, and now I had trouble expressing simple concepts. No internet or communication with outside world, depression, those were small potatoes. The financial assistance was as expected stolen and program admin eventually went to jail, a few decades later on embezzlement charges. The poor families were given paper stubs for free lunches, which was the reason I never ate at school, I also walked two miles to school in any weather on foot, because f*** your handouts, that’s why.
We can talk about the “experience” a lot, but the relevant things I want to touch on, was America 30 years ago, because I do remember it just as it was, like today, always had. We ended up in … Burlington, VT. 30 years ago, it was a shit place, depressing when you are at the bottom. If you think of it as the hippie capital, you are wrong. There was a gun shop off the Main St. and you could legit go in and buy gun and ammo on a whim. The general attitude toward any foreigners wasn’t all that accepting, and I mean people have walked out to me several times and asked to speak English or GTFO … and last time I was simply trying to talk to a Bulgarian friend in a language other than English. Yeah, people were red neck, intolerant and didn’t have reservations to let you know about it. In fact New Hampshire today is weak sauce compared to the most liberal town of Vermont, 30 years ago.
So I went to High School, our Chemistry teacher used to bring guns to school because he was WWII and colonial nut. He left them in the corner of a room between classes, unattended and no locks. I don't mean just muskets, I mean real codified "high capacity assault" rifles with "clips" like a M1 Garand that actually and highly probably killed people. No one gave shit or worried about the gun ploting murders. The only photo I have left from my High School times was me, him and the Garand. When I find it, I post.
There are two extremes for people’s outlook on life. One is that in long term we are all dead, sun goes supernova … the other is people not giving a f*** and just hitting snooze continuously all their life, living in the moment and enjoying their next year, next five years in peace or having their 2a rights not taken by tyrants or illegitimately “elected” POSs. Most of you younger f***ers here won’t get it, no matter how I say it. You will get it when you get older, when you have your first kid. If you are honest with yourself, you can look back to see how your attitude toward life/death and your family changed. Freedom is worth fighting for for your kids and 2a is just a canary in our coal mine under the swamp.
PS
So what’s the point? I don’t f***ing know, and no, this is not a rant in case you are eager to rate OP shit. I don’t know the point, because I’m just sad to see how over such a short period of time shit has deteriorated so bad on so many fronts. I don’t have any solutions. If you must rate OP, rate it on depression inducing scale.