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Poll
What would you do with money?
Get a nice house, nice things, and donate the rest to the needy 8%
Blow it all on whores, hashish, and hooch 33%
Purchase computer equipment for illegal purposes 25%
Hoard it; swim in pool of gold coins 33%

Votes: 12

 God and High Society

 Author:  Topic:  Posted:
Apr 09, 2002
 Comments:
I admit it. I want to be a member of High Society. I want an impressive house. I want to attend parties with string quartets. I want to have conversations where 4 syllable words are more common than "like." I want to wear a suit to places other than work.

I'm almost there. I can taste it. And I think I am entering through my local Christian medical professionals group.

diaries

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I have worked hard at this goal. I went to a snobby private college. I made friends with art and music majors. I have now regularly attended operas and symphonies for 4 years. I studied, prayed, and got into medical school. I got an account on Adequacy. God willing, I will live the American Dream.

Last weekend I went on a beach retreat. Wealthy MD's who are members of this medical ministry pooled together all their beach houses and condos on the Alabama coast so everyone (even poor students) had a place to stay. I had fun. I got closer to Christ. I networked. I meaningfully connected with other students. And I did all this in an amazing house on an exclusive island community.

The single med student group meets weekly in a huge house in a ritzy historical part of town. I went tonight and I had one of the most enlightening Bible studies of my life.

Over the last few weeks I have had a revelation. "High Society," or at least the segment that has now accepted me, is nothing like the decadent scotch-swilling, coke-snorting, tax-evading pricks depicted by Hollywood. That is most likely a myth of jealous liberalist screen-writers who have never done a day of honest work. The members of this ministry are extremely hard-working, upstanding members of their community. They exemplify family values, patriotism, love for God and love for your fellow man.

I think there may be something to the concept of the Protestant Work Ethic. I can see it in these blessed souls reaping the benefits of their devotion and toil.


So...? (none / 0) (#1)
by elenchos on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 03:22:07 AM PST
You didn't get laid?

Sorry to hear that -- it sounded promising.


I do, I do, I do
--Bikini Kill


He's got to marry first (none / 0) (#2)
by because it isnt on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 04:36:18 AM PST
if he's doing the whole God thing, yeah?
adequacy.org -- because it isn't

depends. (none / 0) (#3)
by nathan on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 06:56:48 AM PST
Saint Augustine had a dissolute youth.

Nathan
--
Li'l Sis: Yo, that's a real grey area. Even by my lax standards.

Yeah. (none / 0) (#5)
by tkatchev on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 11:20:25 AM PST
Except he's not St. Augustine.


--
Peace and much love...




you never know (none / 0) (#10)
by nathan on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 03:47:06 PM PST
Anyone can grow up to be a Saint. It just takes work.

Nathan
--
Li'l Sis: Yo, that's a real grey area. Even by my lax standards.

I thought... (none / 0) (#12)
by The Mad Scientist on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 07:59:58 AM PST
...that becoming a Saint requires a sign of an old man with a funny hat, as known as papal sanctification?

However, if we don't take the strictly Catholic meaning of saintness, you can be right. Saint Brian Kernighan, the patron of unix programmers, is a good example.


Yes. (none / 0) (#13)
by tkatchev on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 09:09:48 AM PST
But only after you die.


--
Peace and much love...




And (none / 0) (#17)
by Hansard on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 02:25:38 PM PST
you'll probably have to wait a couple hundred years.


 
clue (none / 0) (#14)
by nathan on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 10:29:46 AM PST
Not all saints are Catholic saints.

Nathan
--
Li'l Sis: Yo, that's a real grey area. Even by my lax standards.

I hope... (none / 0) (#15)
by tkatchev on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 11:26:56 AM PST
...that you're not implying some sort of mythical Protestant saints. :)


--
Peace and much love...




I think he means (none / 0) (#16)
by because it isnt on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 11:34:05 AM PST
patron saints of countries, eg St Andrew.
adequacy.org -- because it isn't

 
hmmm (none / 0) (#18)
by nathan on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 03:42:43 PM PST
How aboust mystical Orthodox saints?

Nathan
--
Li'l Sis: Yo, that's a real grey area. Even by my lax standards.

 
It is promising. (none / 0) (#4)
by First Incision on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 07:17:04 AM PST
Of course, getting laid is one of my goals in joining this ministry. But as "because it isnt" pointed out, Christians tend to think more long term, and prefer to get laid within the bonds of holy matrimony.
_
_
Do you suffer from late-night hacking? Ask your doctor about Protonix.

 
So.. you feel hanging around with Doctors (none / 0) (#6)
by JoePain on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 02:48:08 PM PST
will make you part of High Society? Sorry dude.. I got news for you. You have to be born into it. Your parents have to have so much money that neither you nor your children nor their children will ever have to work.

It's ok, I can see where you would confuse what you have described as high society, most people of low birth rank would.

My suggestion is to put a gun to your head since you will never achieve the wealth needed for high society as a mere doctor, and a career change at this stage after so much time invested would likely be to much for you to deal with.

You will never really fit in. At best you will be one of the old boy's bitches. At worst, as a Doctor, you will be one of those bone-headed buffers the rich put between themselves and 'honest working people.' You will complain about how much you pay in taxes all the while whining about how hard you work. All to the benefit of those that DONT HAVE TO WORK TO KEEP WHAT THEY HAVE. hehehe. your a sap.


You sir... (none / 0) (#8)
by First Incision on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 03:17:49 PM PST
are obviously one of those backward old-world types. You are probably from one of those countries that never deposed their monarchs, like England or Saudi Arabia.
_
_
Do you suffer from late-night hacking? Ask your doctor about Protonix.

Well, technically speaking... (none / 0) (#11)
by Illiterate Bum on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 09:25:12 PM PST
from a sociological point of view, Mr. Pain has a somewhat valid point. "High society," so to speak, usually consists of those that fall in to the upper-upper class, often described as "blue bloods," who possess enormous wealth that has been primarily inherited, rather than earned, i.e. old money. Set apart by their wealth, members of said class usually live in a world of exclusive neighborhoods, like Nob Hill in San Francisco or Beacon Hill in Boston (Oddly enough, despite the so-called prestige that follows those of the upper-upper class, I remember how the rest of the student body at UC Berkeley would often ostracize the few students that we had hailing from Nob Hill). The Rockefellers, Kennedys, and the Shrivers would be examples of families that fall into the upper-upper class.

The class that you seem to be speaking of would fall under the category of lower-upper class, which consists of people who have earned their wealth through achievement (or sheer dumb luck as the case may sometimes be). Bill Gates, despite the enormous amounts of money that he has, falls under this category of "new rich." To members of "society," the lower-upper class can never really enjoy the same level of prestige enjoyed by the upper-upper class, and thus rarely gain entry to the clubs and associations maintained by old-money families (exceptions being, of course, if one married into it, i.e. Arnold Schwarzenegger marrying Maria Shriver, or if one is "fortunate" enough to make the right connections).

Of course, that still says absolutely nothing at all about the Protestant work ethic, which I admire greatly. And of course, since I am not aware of the identities of the people you have networked with, you might very well might be on your way into "high society." A good starting point would be to consult the Social Register, a directory of sorts that lists those that fall into the upper-upper class. In any case, despite my thinly-veiled dislike of those that fall into the upper-upper class and the caste-like system that they maintain, I wish you the best of luck in reaching your goals.

My apologies for the long post. Cheers.
-----

"...normal, balanced people do not waste time posting to weblogs." --tkatchev

In order to clarify (none / 0) (#19)
by First Incision on Thu Apr 11th, 2002 at 09:04:42 PM PST
Maybe I need to tweak some of my definitions and clarify my points. Maybe I am not aspiring toward "High Society."

On reading JoePain and Illiterate Bum's definition, I don't think I want to join this "upper-upper class" at all. When I made my derogatory comment about JoePain's questionable national origins, I was insulting the pre-industrial idea that idependent wealth without hard work is admirable. Just as I have little respect for lazy British royalty, I have little respect for Beacon Hill's 15th generation English expatriates.

As a "red-blooded" American, I believe in the Almighty Dollar, The American Dream, Social Mobility, and One Nation Under God. Capitalism has roundly flogged feudalism no matter waht JoePain thinks.

I think I will be quite content with these members of your so-called "lower-upper class."
_
_
Do you suffer from late-night hacking? Ask your doctor about Protonix.

Good for you. (none / 0) (#20)
by hauntedattics on Fri Apr 12th, 2002 at 11:24:11 AM PST
Don't even think twice about Mr. Bum's comments, since he obviously has no idea what he is talking about. He refers to the "upper-upper class" as (for example) those from Beacon and Nob Hills and then puts the Kennedys in that exclusive group.

As those of us on the scene know, no true Boston Brahmin would ever deign to mix with the scions of an Irish (!!) Catholic (!!) bootlegger.

Sounds like you had a great time on your retreat. Welcome to the "lower-upper" club. I'm interested to know more about your religious breakthroughs.




 
What was that saying... (none / 0) (#7)
by derek3000 on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 03:10:19 PM PST
you know, about the camel...and the needle? Or something like that.


----------------
"Feel me when I bring it!" --Gay Jamie

 
Why is it that your diary (none / 0) (#9)
by jvance on Wed Apr 10th, 2002 at 03:27:24 PM PST
combined with JoePain's comment, makes me think of "Eyes Wide Shut"?

Stop it! I hate hate hate hate hate that movie!

"There's something we forgot to do."

"What?"

"Blow each others' brains out in a soulless suicide pact mercy killing."
--
Adequacy has turned into a cesspool consisting of ... blubbering, superstitious fools arguing with smug, pseudointellectual assholes. -AR

 

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