Not in my backyard

What happened to the selfless generation of my grand parents? Well, maybe my recolection of them is tainted by the black and white images of "I Love Lucy" or "Mayberry RFD". Or maybe it was jsut that there was more room for things like quarrys or just that the amount of communication was just so much slower. I think the idea of sacrifice for the greater good has always been around. And it is usually paid for by those less fortunate (with notable exceptions of the French Revolution and the the rise of Socialist Communism - but even in those situations there were those who benefitted and those who suffered). A chronic "problem" I see with democratic processes where the governing officials are elected frequently is that too often those who want to do good are run out of office by others who want that power. They are not given enough time to really affect much change. An obvious solution to this is to allow people to serve in office longer so that they have more time to get the changes done that are needed. Unfortunately the reverse is true as well. If someone who is in there that screws things up those under them would 'suffer' longer. I have seen communites struggling to get more schools, more infrastructure, more parks, whatever finally begin to move forward only to have a group of citizens essentially say "not in my backyard". I see people saying how much they support the troops and democracy, but they do not want to allow their sons or daughters to enlist in the armed services. I do not know this answer, but where is the balance? Sometimes hard decisions have to be made. Sometimes that landfill or prison needs to be there. I guess what I am saying is that I get tired of hearing people complain about everything, and usually they are not the majority. They just get heard the most because they are the only ones doing the talking. Verse for today: Psalm 146:3-7, ESV Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever; who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry.