This to me is the very essence of Liberalism today:
While it isn’t my job here to make a moral pronouncement, in my half a century on the planet I have detected a significant moral shift. I can remember when living off government money without working was considered less than morally optimal, and being on the government payroll carried with it no special moral authority. Nor should it. Yet I have seen a growing tendency in some circles to see tax eaters (of all varieties) as morally better than the people whose taxes pay them. This makes no sense.
And I get this in massive doses every day living here in Austin, where there is this perverse pride in being an unemployed slacker or freeloading artist type.
One of the biggest fears of the “Keep Austin Weird” crowd is that hardworking, industrious, and ambitious people will swarm the city and displace them and make things a bit more “normal” around here.
Like this guy:
Do you have any doubt that this guy votes Democrat?
When the WSJ recently pronounced Austin as the Number 1 city in the U.S. in Business Vitality, there was a collective groan from 78704 (the cool, hippie/slacker part of town), who regards this kind of news as an affront and an insult to their way of life.
More pictures of Austinites “Keeping it Weird” below the fold.
The rest are all from Eeyore’s birthday bash, held every year here in Austin (yes, for the last 44 years, Austin puts on a big hippie dope smoking, drum-beating festival to celebrate the birthday of a cartoon donkey):
The phrase “Keep Austin Wierd”, was originally coined to encourage people to support local Austin buisnesses.
Unfortunately, some people misinterpreted it as a contest.
With unemployment rates in Texas at an all time low, why is it that Austin’s Homeless community continues to grow and grow?
Given the choice, I would probably hire an illegal Mexican before I would help out a worthless bum.
Left by Kemo on June 26th, 2007 at 4:30 pm