The culture here is selfish. People grow up and live their lives to look out for numero uno. It explains so much. This is so vastly different from the US foundation of Christian values, namely "Love your neighbor as yourself." I'm not exactly sure how the Guatemalans missed it. Maybe some of it is survival instinct.
Selfishness is why the buses rush and put everybody else either behind, or in danger. The driver in his mind is more important than you. For the same reason people skip ahead at stop lights or will blatantly skip you in line at the store.
Selfishness is what causes somebody to get a dog that they can't feed, and then let it run in the street because it would be too much trouble to keep penned up.
Selfishness is why people will borrow money from the Gringo with no intention of paying it back. It is why they will steal from the Gringo with no feelings of remorse.
Selfishness is why a father would rather get drunk than buy his kids shoes or school supplies.
Selfishness is what will keep Guatemala poor and a third world country. If everybody is only working for themselves, there can't be real teamwork, or helping each other move forward.
Selfishness is what happens when God is not in the picture. God is love, and LOVE is what motivates a person to put their own needs/wants aside and do something for somebody else without expectations of reciprocation.
I couldn't disagree with you more--well at least about that fact that the above aspects of selfishness are not present in the US. It is to be expected that you will see many forms of selfishness in a poor country and among poor people. To a certain extent, "selfishness" is a necessity and certain manifestations of altruism are more readily seen where there is more material security (the US). Of course, you'll say, Jesus was an exception to that and we are called to follow. True, and Jesus is an exception to almost all norms of society both in Guatemala and the US.
ReplyDeleteThe foundation of the US on christian values and a "love thy neighbor" mentality is a myth. I love my neighbor so much that I'm willing to pool a portion of my income into a system to provide healthcare for those who cannot afford it. But of course this idea is seeing strong resistance in the US at the moment. Why? Because "The culture here is selfish. People grow up and live their lives to look out for numero uno." Now THAT explains so much in the US.
I make these comments not to criticize the US, but disagree with your comparison. Apart from some of the petty acts of selfishness you describe (which are found in the US also), the Guatemalan people are warm and inviting, though rough around the edges. One could easily argue that THE reason that the US is in the stage of development and material wellness that it is... is precisely because of its model of economic development which--again not to criticize but solely to state a fact--requires its participants to seek their self interest for survival.
Its important to make these distinctions so as not to come away with ineffectual ideas about how to improve Guatemala. Guatemala is over-run by churches of various types and denominations, religion, and even those who are sincerely devoted to God, whom I respect much. It just surprises me that a Christian missionary is so quick to throw stones of selfishness at a people who, more than any preacher in the US, so warmly showed me unos pasos de Jesus.
Selfishness is a problem in Guatemala. It's also a problem in the US. And in Europe. And Africa. And South America. It's not so much an issue of throwing stones--but a genuine realization of the cause of peoples' behavior. Once we realize that selfishness is what often drives people, it's easier to understand why they do the things they do. We're all selfish to a certain extent--all proud and flawed and fallen. Christ's example is one of pure selflessness, which is how a Christ-follwer should live. But, to me, understanding that the world sees selfishness as a means of survival makes it easier to comprehend the mindset behind an unbeliever's lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Guatemalans are selfish. But Americans are also selfish. The whole world is. That's why everyone needs Christ.
Jimmy: I wonder if every observation of yours actually reveals selfishness or if there is another motive which is perhaps mistaken, e.g., self-preservation. Is it selfish for the chicken bus driver to drive aggressively, or is it the self preservation that comes with knowing that he must net 1200Q a day before he makes a centavo for his family?
ReplyDeleteJames: Characterizing the resistance in some quarters of the US to national socialism is not necessarily selfishness, it could simply be an opposition to an ideology which degrades the human person and is certain to fail. You would have a better argument if you chose abortion or divorce rates as examples of selfishness in the US.
There is no shame in deceit or cruelty--no honor in honesty. Altruism is seen as stupidity. Kindness is foolishness to be exploited.
ReplyDeleteThis is far more the norm than not, the world over, and is the source of so much misery. Socialism's root is envy and theft, not equality in the legal sense--you can see the same urge in a Greek peasant village, where a neighbor will destroy your tree if it produces too well.