Knot
Dyslexia
Charlie Earl
When I was a
child in the mid-1950s, I can recall my father switching from a wire-tie hay baler
to a string-tied one. Occasionally the new machine would “slip a knot,” and we
would have to manually tie the twine. My father insisted that we use a square
knot to secure the bale because other types might come undone or require too
much time to craft. As a seven year bone-headed kid, I had all kinds of trouble
mastering the square knot. Sometimes after my effort was complete we would pick
up the bale to toss it on the wagon, and it would come apart….scattering hay
all around. My father would become rather demonstrative and animated while
questioning my mental capacity. Clearly…. I was knot dyslexic. The over-under,
return path of the twine was too much for me to master easily.
Imagine if
our government education system (the public schools) and our government
entitlement apparatus had existed back then as it does now. There may have been
a special class for those who were knot dyslexic. There may even have been an
after school program with dinner included for those who suffered from the
heartbreak of knot dyslexia. Probably… given my small community of
McCutchenville, Ohio, and the relative skills and coordination of my elementary
school cohorts, I would have been the only one in the entire building who
suffered from the affliction of knot dyslexia. Nevertheless… justice and equity
would have required the ACLU to insist that my difficulty be addressed and
financed by the state. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT I LEARNED TO TIE A SQUARE KNOT THE NEXT SUMMER, but with a
well-financed and massively growing program, I might continue to be immersed in
my tragic circumstances to this very day. My short-term knot dyslexia morphed
into knot proficiency in a matter of two hay/straw seasons. In my opinion my
father’s volatile admonitions were much more effective than any government “help”
program. And less costly (although now I suffer recurring nightmares from “knot
anxiety”).
One can
analyze the plethora of poverty programs administered by governments at all
levels and detect regressive outcomes. Costs go higher, public employee
payrolls expand (public unions) and poverty either does not abate or, in some
cases, becomes worse. My father went home to meet the Lord nine years ago, but
I continue to hear his commanding voice as he instructs me about the subtleties
of knot tying … and many other things. If he or somewhat like him were handed
the “poverty portfolio,” I am convinced that improvement would be significant
and fast. Tough love works when the instructor has a vested interest in the
learning and improvement of the student. Government programs fail because too
often the public employee and the recipient have no “skin in the game.” The bar
is set in the low position because there are limited awards for achievement.
Those who receive aid are reminded that they are entitled to government
intervention because of their inabilities to succeed on their own… and the
cycle of dependence is reinforced.
Poverty,
just like knot dyslexia, need not be a permanent status. I assume that many of
you just like me have been broke at some times in your lives, but you expected
to overcome it by working harder and smarter. Excessive government intervention
in our lives … the ups and the downs… thwarts our initiative, steals our
dignity and robs us of the chance to prevail over adverse circumstances. To
truly embrace our human potential we must avoid the knotty ties of government
constraints. We are NOT incapable.
Charlie Earl
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