Salute & appreciation to all those who are respecting others in a multi culture society, but some times, at the slightest difference of opinion, I have been asked, “why do you live in USA”? or “America love it or leave it” !.
Other than family reasons, there are better options wherever our tax money is spent, from Europe to Northern America, and down under in New Zealand & Australia, but some of the pictures below may be the reasons that people love this country.
Because of kind people who dedicated these chairs for others. Or because of long list of leaders like John Muir, who founded Sierra Club, or in our time Warren Buffet who joined Bill Gates to create largest GOOD DEED of of mankind to eliminate poverty, and for all others who make a difference in a positive way.
Because authenticity & truth is the dominant culture.
Because most people are honest, decent & hard working, finish their jobs completely & deal fairly with others.
because of tolerance & freedom
Inside this small mosque at 11211 Central ave, Watts, Ca, an Ayatollah Khomeini’s picture was on the wall when I stopped by on a Friday noon prayer around 2005. Learned this Mosque is very active in the community. Sometimes up to 100 people walk the neighborhood in groups of 4 and 5, inviting the gangs to peace …. I also learned this mosque had played a major role in the now famous truce between violent gangs, Bloods and Creeps that made the news in early 2000’s.
When I inquired about their shortages, found out a few more vans to move these volunteers around. He said between members they have 5-6 vans, sometimes more, but the number of peace volunteers always exceeds their passenger vans.
Because people leave a parking for a veteran.
I am free to start from myself and my community, weather English or Persian community, act responsibly on my responsibilities to both community.
Reza Pahlavi has been on US protection & support, has received budget from CIA and all our Arab allies for almost as long as the history of 1979 revaluation.
Naturally, he is looked at as a traitor in Iran by many while US administrations in the last 42 years have had a one sided point of view on many issues. Some of the involvements are against the sovereignty of a nation.
What John F Kennedy said to Americans “say what you do for your country, not what your country has done for you” is in the same line of being in attitude of gratitude, Expect less and do more, do not wait for a leader to show up & correct all the wrong.
I am meant to be here to raise my voice.
“Annual letter from Bill Gates from his Linked in page:
How Much Do We Spend on Foreign Aid? Much Less Than You Might Think.
Melinda and I published our latest Annual Letter this week. It’s a bit of a departure for us. Unlike the past 5 letters, this one isn’t about the foundation’s work. Instead we decided to take on some of the myths—about poverty, overpopulation, and foreign aid—that are blocking progress for the poor.
For example, many people think that development aid is a large part of rich countries’ budgets, which would mean a lot can be saved by cutting back on it. When pollsters ask Americans what share of the budget goes to aid, the average response is “25 percent.” When asked how much the government should spend, people tend to say “10 percent.”
For the United States, the actual number is less than 1 percent.
One percent of the U.S. budget is about $30 billion a year. Of that, roughly $11 billion is spent on health: vaccines, bed nets, family planning, drugs to keep people with HIV alive, and so on. (The other $19 billion goes to things like building schools, roads, and irrigation systems.)
I don’t want to imply that $11 billion a year isn’t a lot of money. But to put it in perspective, it’s about $30 for every American. Imagine that the income tax form asked, “Can we use $30 of the taxes you’re already paying to protect 120 children from measles?” Would you check yes or no?
It also helps to look at the overall impact this spending has. To get a rough figure, I added up all the money spent by donors on health-related aid since 1980. Then I divided by the number of children’s deaths that have been prevented in that same time. It comes to less than $5,000 per child saved (and that doesn’t include the improvements in health that go beyond saving the lives of young children).
Five thousand dollars may sound expensive, but keep in mind that U.S. government agencies typically value the life of an American at several million dollars.
Also remember that healthy children do more than merely survive. They go to school and eventually work, and over time they make their countries more self-sufficient. This is why I say aid is such a bargain.
The U.S. government spends more than twice as much on farm subsidies as on health aid. It spends more than 60 times as much on the military. The next time someone tells you we can trim the budget by cutting aid, I hope you will ask whether it will come at the cost of more people dying.
In the letter, I take on two other myths:
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Poor countries are doomed to stay poor.
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Foreign aid is just a big waste.”
Here to see these good news, responsibility to broadcast it.
Any hope for better future? YES..!, New generation, generation Z or millennials “are for sustainability, diversity, inclusion and giving back to the community”.
