Are some people just destined to fail?

[SlowwHand]

Right. It's all mother's fault.

[Japher]

No, Sloww, it's the fault of the desire you have for your mother

[SlowwHand]

Well, that's her fault, not mine.
See how that works?

[Japher]

Well, I am just going to blame "The Man" and leave it at that...

[Dinner]

Genes set the stage but it is still up to you what you do on the stage. No one is a puppet on a string.

[Ecthy]

his "ego" is sure working well

[Maniac]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
There are a whole lot of losers in this thread, looking to put their failures on something besides themselves.

Are you talking about me? I don't think I have been talking about any failures of mine. In fact personally I have enough opportunities and I could have more if I worked harder.

I have big news for you. Life is what you make it.

Only partially... Just as so many dumbasses similar to you, you see things way too black and white concerning having opportunities. Having the will to get up plays a part, and is a necessary condition for success. But it isn't a sufficient condition for success. Environment does play a part. How else do you explain the scientifically proven strong correlation between the social-economic status of one's parents and that of the person itself? Do you really believe that's because they're all lazy bums which don't want to work and be succesful?

Actually, this thread is the same as Albert's.

Yeah I know. I read his thread right before I posted here. After reading all that bull**** there, I reacted to it here on you.

[Japher]

It's getting to be a lot like Speer's...

you see things way too black and white

Wow, Sloww, you never get that do you?

[Pekka]

Come on Sloww.. no one claimed to be a failure?

I claimed to be a winner big time! No excuses, no theories of genes destroying the future.. And I do believe, that the future is what you make of it.

You are judging the character of men too fast my dear old man

[Ecthy]

funny how it's always the winners that say it's what you make of it, then the people on the receiving end ("losers", I prefer to call us/them just non-alphas) claiming the opposite and the blind mainstream peole that don't participate.

[Dinner]

Here's what I know about my recent (with in 4 generations) family. One my mother's side my great grandfather was from Chicago, graduated from Notre Dame University in 1910, and was an officer in the US Army during WW1. In 1920 he started a business making neon lights and actually got the contract from Budweiser to make neon bud signs. They actually ended up with quite a bit of money and later on during the depression when everyone else was dirt poor my grandfather had a nanny, went to privite schools, and lived in a large house. My great grandfather supposedly drank alot, but it didn't effect his job apparently, and was very emotionally cut off. In the Late 1940's he sold his business and retired only to die of a heart attack a few years later. I never met him but his wife, my great grand mother, died when I was 7 and I do remember her.

My mother's father graduated from USC and became an Army Air Corp pilot; He was sent to the Pacific in 1945 (the year he completed flight school) but there were very few Japanese planes left by then and he never saw air combat. After the war he tried to find a job as a pilot but there were many, many more pilots with more experience so he ended up getting a job in the insurence business intially as a salesman but later he worked his way up into management. Eventually he became the manager of All State Insurence's main office in downtown LA. His wife, my grandmother, died of cancer when I was 2 so I never knew her. I'm told she was a house wife and that my grandfather was overly fond of bourbon whiskey though he did quit drinking later in life (mostly because his second wife said she'd leave him if he didn't).

On my father's side his grandfather and father were both coal miners in Scotland. When my father was born my grandfather decided he didn't want his son to be a coal miner so they moved to America (it took them three attempts before they got their visas). Once in America they were dirt poor but my grandfather got lucky and landed a job with Convair as an aircraft painter. He worked there for 20 years and then retired at the age of 39, and then started his own painting business which he ran for 25 years. He sold the business and then my grand parents spent their retirement years traveling around the world on cruise ships (at least 5 cruises per year but sometimes more). Neither one of my father's parents ever drank that was just part of their strict Protestent up bringing.

Both of my parents did drink though and that was the cause of much of their unhappiness. Still 3 years ago my mother quit drinking and my father agreed to cut back a great deal so there's always hope. My parents married to young (my mom was 19 and my dad 21) in my opinion but they did all right. My Dad graduated as an electrical engineer (he was the first in his family to go to a University while in my mother's family everyone went to a university) and my mom dropped out of school to be a house wife. After my sister and I got older she went to work as a human resources manager which she kept doing until 2 years ago when she had to quit for health reasons. Now she stays at home and my dad supports them both.

[Pekka]

Thanks for all of you sharing your family stories.

I guess I just wanted to tell my story and hear yours.. and not make this another 'opportunity' thread.
Interesting stuff

[Dinner]

I forgot to mention that my paternal great grandfather was a quartermaster in the British army and was sent to South Africa to take part in the Boer war. We still have his wedding picture. They got married in the evening on a Sunday and on monday morning they got shipped out to go to South Africa. He didn't come back until the war was over several years later. Still they managed to have 12!!!! kids before they were through.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by SlowwHand
What it depends on is your heart and hard work.

I agree with you somewhat.
But what about those who are unable to find a way to work hard to move up in life?

[:) Smiley]

The only failure destinies are those that are self-fulfilled