Originally Posted by
CliffordK
Life has compromises, and one has to consider both one's personal needs, as well as one's family's needs. And, they may have differences.
In this case, my niece has applied to the Youth Corps. But, due to her age, they only have a day program available. Her family is going through a rough patch, and I think this will be a good opportunity for her. And, because of the day program, it is only available here, not in her home town.
In future years, she should qualify for the overnight program, and could be dropped off anywhere (and should also be able to drive herself some as needed).
But, this will also get her out of the house, and some independence.
I also anticipate this to be a short-term need this summer, of a few months, then I'll get back to riding as soon as it starts raining again.
You have to work within the parameters that you are dealt in each situation. That said, I see a pattern where people become powerless to address the larger issues we face, such as climate, sprawl, etc. because they keep getting stuck in the day-to-day details of social-economic patterns that seem compulsory for various reasons. LCF involves making certain sacrifices to avoiding complying with a human-geographical paradigm that favors driving in numerous subtle ways. It makes it harder when there are so many people who just ignore/deny the issue as being an issue at all, and then they are putting social expectations and pressure on those of us that do to go along with their complex of needs/wants and making themselves out to be victims when we refuse to tow the automotive line.
Often people talk in this forum as if LCF is some self-righteous elitism that looks down judgmentally on those who drive. If that happens, it's because we have to resist the enormous subjugating pressures of the automotive compulsion somehow. Maybe if more people would adopt a disdain for driving with self-righteous elitism, they would gain the strength to reject things that require driving to a destination. Someone once said about debt, "if I can't afford it with money I already have, I don't need it." Such an attitude puts most purchases out of reach, but the sacrifice is worth it. The same can be said about LCF, that "if I can't get there without driving, I don't need to go there," but most people aren't strong enough to make such sacrifice, so you end up having to decide how much to nurse along the culture of weakness/dependency that the driving culture has fostered.