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Won't somebody think of the trustafarians?
By: Mark Hemingway
Commentary Staff Writer
11/20/09 4:11 PM EST
Want to feel better about yourself? Then read this Washington Post story, "Grappling with a wealth of guilt: Young heirs seek moral balance between inherited windfalls, social responsibilities":
The dinner in Adams Morgan was held at the home of a private school teacher who inherited $1.5 million. It was a rare chance for members of the Resource Generation, a nonprofit group whose 35-and-younger members devote themselves to philanthropic work for social justice, to talk about their guilt and their views on social inequalities without fear of eye-rolling from people who might view them as spoiled rich kids playing at helping the downtrodden.
No eye-rolling? I'm afraid that's going to be impossible:
"Those of us with wealth and progressive values resist the privilege and actually deny it because of this inequality that exists in society," said Stansbury, who has spent his time since college working for a nonprofit organization devoted to labor issues in Latin America.
"We're not going to accept that form of privilege," he said. "But when it comes to [my son's] health care, we're not going to mess around. You're going to take advantage of [the money]. It's a real blessing, but it's not fair."
Oh Fortuna, you capricious sprite! In the real world, using whatever resources are available to you to take care of your children is generally a laudable pursuit and not something to be guilty about. However, Stansbury has plenty to feel guilty about -- he just hasn't realized it yet:
"I'd like to have my kids be exposed to more diversity, something less sheltered than where I went to school," said Stansbury, sitting in his living room and surrounded by books on subjects such as Karl Marx and the farm crisis in Mexico. "It depends on where we live."
The article makes no mention of it, but a photo accompanying the article has Stansbury standing in front of a flag for the FLMN -- the formerly violent revolutionary political party in El Salvador with a heavy communist influence. Yes, leave it to a rich American dilettante and would-be communist to feel guilty about taking care of his children while supporting an ideology that killed 100 million people in the previous century. But the amazing thing is that, among the DC chapter of the Resource Generation, I'm not sure that Stansbury wins the award for the worst person:
Janelle Treibitz, 28, a part-time waitress who performs with the Puppet Underground performance group, which raises money for grass-roots organizations, could relate.
"In Vermont [this year], I broke my finger and didn't have insurance," said Treibitz, whose father is chief executive of a Colorado company that designs visual presentations for court trials. "I got my X-ray and gave [the hospital] a fake name and walked out. Is that okay that I am doing that -- taking up resources because I am refusing to take money from my parents?"
NO JANELLE, STEALING IS NOT OKAY. It's especially not okay when your family has plenty of money, but you justify crime on the grounds you have more daddy issues than sense. And "Puppet Underground performance group"? This is beyond parody. I give up. Where's Tom Wolfe when you need him?
More from Mark Hemingway
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- Bloomberg obit headline calls Murtha 'Supporter of Troops'?
- Democratic Senator Ben Nelson to filibuster key nominee favored by Big Labor
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