Unfornately, the tone of some of the responses that come across my screen here
remind me of what I've called the "Cynical Sarcasm Chic" so common in
modern American culture (see many popular magazines, as well as
editorials in our own Daily News like those tearing down Jim Waddell
and the school district's recent sportsmanship policy). Whatever
happened to honest disagreement, civil argument and respect for one
another? I've become more aware of the tone of my comments and have
resolved to try not to contribute to this trend in my own
correspondence, and I'd encourage others to do likewise.
I live outside of Moscow, and I greatly enjoy getting
out of town, avoiding the constant noise of my neighbors' cars and
barking dogs (Jim Fisher, I've been there and I totally empathize,
but that's another topic), being snowed in, and sharing my land with wild
turkeys, owls, and deer -- all of which is part of a long American tradition.
I am not miserable, isolated or inconvenienced. Rather I am enriched by my
closeness to the rigors of life in nature (all but forgotten in the
greater artificiality of life in urban cocoons), my increased appreciation of
my neighbors, and my enhanced valuing of my friends elsewhere in the county.
The bottom line: there are a variety of lifestyle preferences in this community
and benefits and costs accrue to all of them...
Also -- Carbondale may or may not be as bad as Greg Brown describes, but the
point still remains valid (there are lots of towns out there that fit
Greg's description).
Chuck