When men are about to commit, or sanction the commission of some injustice, it is not uncommon for them to express pity for the object either of that or some parallel proceeding, and to feel themselves, at the time, quite virtuous and moral, and immensely superior to those who express no pity at all. This is a kind of upholding of faith above works, and is very comfortable. — Nicholas Nickleby

My Take – Some of the worst things that have happened in my life were done for my own good, or at least that’s what the busybody who did them thought.  Those who believe in the perfectability of man usually have the best of intentions, at least at first.  They just want to uplift the oppressed, or avenge the wronged, or whatever.  Problem is, they almost always fall short of their promises, even to themselves, and their reaction tends to be rather emotional.  On a personal level, they just become annoying and piquish.  On a national scale, they become the Inquisition, or the NKVD, or the ONDCP.  If we were just left alone to fend for ourselves, to live the lives we want, a lot of the issues in the world wouldn’t have occurred in the first place.

“The labour is so pleasant,”said Agnes,”that it is scarcely grateful in me to call it by that name.” — David Copperfield

My Take – Work I enjoy, no matter how difficult or seemingly unpleasant, always seems to go by quickly.  Mary Poppins was onto something with that whole “spoon ful of sugar” idea.  If I like what I’m doing, I do more work and I do it better.  The best trick is to find a hobby that you love and that others will pay you to do.

“Business!” cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence were all my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!” – A Christmas Carol

My Take – Irish Woman and I believe that we are blessed to have more than we need, and we feel that that blessing comes with a responsibility to help out those who cannot provide for themselves.  It’s an obligation of honor, not a compulsion.  We are under no obligation to help those who will not provide for themselves, just those who truly cannot.  I think that’s a distinction we need to make:  Those who truly need our help should get everything we can give them.  Those who can provide for themselves, but refuse to do so, deserve nothing but scorn.

Now, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else, and root out everything else. You can only form the minds of reasoning animals upon Facts: nothing else will ever be of any service to them. This is the principle on which I bring up my own children, and this is the principle on which I bring up these children. Stick to Facts, sir! — Hard Times

My Take – Want to flip one of my switches?  It’s easy.  Just try to win an argument by saying “I feel” or “I believe”.  Tell me what you know, not how you feel about a subject or what you believe.  Feelings are for poetry; belief is for religion.  Show some discipline, learn what is and what is not known, and be able to discuss and argue that.  Until you do that, I’m not interested in anything you have to say.

I have been taught to look upon those means, by which men raise themselves to riches and distinction, as being beyond my heeding, and beneath my care. I have been, as the phrase is, liberally educated, and am fit for nothing. — Barnaby Rudge

My Take – One of the struggles I have with my kids is trying to convince them to learn skills that will feed them when they can no longer depend on me.  Yes, I also like reading sonnets, looking at expressionist art, and doodling on blogs as much as the next guy, but that doesn’t keep the lights on.  Learning a marketable skill will go a long way toward putting food in your belly.  History is littered with educated paupers, and I would rather that my children don’t add to their number.

‘Please, sir, I want some more.’ — Oliver Twist

My Take – Dissatisfaction and the willingness to risk all to improve are keys to success.  Oliver knew his chances of being denied and punished just for asking were pretty much 100%, but he tried nonetheless.  And contrary to the opinion of 51% of the American electorate, there is nothing wrong with wanting more and doing what it takes to get it.  So long as how I get what I want for myself and my family in a legal and ethical manner, then it’s no-one’s business but my own.

The pain of parting is nothing to the joy of meeting again. — Nicholas Nickleby

My Take – It’s never easy to say goodbye.  When friends, family, or tribe get together, I always dread the last couple of hours when everyone slowly makes their way to their cars.  There’s the usual hugs, promises to stay in touch, and occasionally a couple of tears.  By the time I’m halfway home, I already miss everyone.

But the feeling I get when we all get together is wonderful.  Being able to look down a table and see a crowd of people I care about reminds me of why I slog through the rough days and travel for meetings.  Maybe I haven’t seen them in years, maybe I saw them the other day.  To me, it doesn’t matter.  There have been too many people who either drifted away or were taken away for me to not cherish reunions.

Yeah, I’m a big softie.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way… – A Tale of Two Cities

My Take – We truly live in a black and white world.  We live in what any of our ancestors would consider abject luxury, but we are bankrupt, not only financially, but also culturally and socially.  We have all the knowledge of the human race at our fingertips, but the number of functional illiterates grows every year.  We spend more on education than we ever have, yet the product of our educational system is very lacking.  Our crime rate is on a downward swing, but the viciousness of crime has skyrocketed.

So what are we going to do about it?  To me, it comes down to two words:  Grow Up.  We have to face the ugly reality that we cannot continue to go deeper into debt, whether it’s the government or the family.  We have to act like parents and make sure that our children are getting at least as good an education as we did, no matter the cost in time and trouble.  We must also raise our children to respect other people and the law, even if it means we’re not their best friends.  None of these options are easy, and few of them will be popular.  But we must find our way out, or we risk wasting everything our ancestors bought with their blood and sweat.

“My other piece of advice, Copperfield,” said Mr. Micawber, “you know. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery. The blossom is blighted, the leaf is withered, the god of day goes down upon the dreary scene, and — and in short you are for ever floored. As I am!” — David Copperfield

My Take – Sounds pretty simple to me.  Do not spend more than you make, and life will be much happier.  I am amazed by the amount of debt our nation, not just the government, has racked up in the past few decades.  Credit cards, car loans, huge mortgages, student debt, and you name it, we owe it.  It’s to the point where those who save for years to be able to pay cash for the day-to-day things are considered an aberration.  I’m not perfect at this, but I’m getting better.  I hope the government can get better at this too.