Juxtaposition
Posted on: August 16, 2012
A Yahoo! headline loudly declares “S’pore is now richest in the world” and shows these stats:
I can imagine some folks getting drunk with joy.
But I would put that table beside the words of John F. Kennedy:
Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages; the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials.It measures neither our wit nor our courage; neither our wisdom nor our learning; neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country; it measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile.
It is a sobering truth. It was true then and it is true now.
So if you ask me to choose between a smart man and a good one, I would put my money on the good one.
