North-South Shuttle.

North-South Shuttle.

I have read numerous self-help books on how one should attain personal success, which in our modern world basically means ‘making money’. One of the truisms there is “go to where money is”. Meaning, one goes to industries or places or gatherings of people where there is money in bigger abundance than somewhere else. One joins some sales organizations, real estate investment clubs, or as common sense would dictate, one goes to work in locations where they pay well- Alaska, for fishing, oil rigs, ships, where your room and board are all paid, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Japan, Iraq, etc.

Likewise, if one wants to be happy, whether after one has made big money or even before that ,(if one has a bit of money to spare) one should go to where happiness is. And happiness is generally found in lower-income tropical countries such as Bangladesh, Burma, in poorer ( but not too poor) nations of the Caribbean and Africa, the Philippines, Indonesia, etc. There are some researchers that claim that neither riches nor, (definitely!) poverty can buy you happiness, but having “somewhat enough” does. Generally, it seems that in a place where the weather is good all year around, where minimal housing, food and medical demands are met, industrialization and agriculture are balanced, prices are low, interference of government organs into private lives of citizens is negligible; where people are friendly, and religion and prayer is practiced, but not fanatically so; where the rhythm of life is relaxed and folks are friendly and helpful to each other; where boyfriends and girlfriends, husbands and wives are easy to find, and jobs pay little but somewhat above the survival level, that is the place where happiness finds its abode.

Upon arrival into such places, one notices that the very air there seems to be filled with invisible happy ether, kind of like laughing gas, and after staying there for a bit of time, that either will permeate your very soul. Grim visitors from Northern Europe and Northern Asia or from other hustle-and-bustle societies in which a stranger is mistrusted, prices are high and one is under an eternal barrage of bills and loan repayment notes, and each person has to puff him/herself up like a frog in order to be respected, relax and start smiling in those societies and become happy themselves.

One does need to keep in mind, though, that the happy, “just-enough” countries aren’t good at inventing sophisticated technological devices, making high efficiency weapons, giving birth to great scientists or providing top-notch services. So, one simply does not go there looking for those. One gets knowledge and services from the North and later, goes to “absorb” the happiness of the South.

People there are happy as is, so there is not incentive to push oneself too hard or to be disciplined. This is why most of such happy (or happy-go-lucky) nations fell victims to colonial expansions by gloomy and serious invaders from the North who spent centuries battling unhappiness, and, as a result, created sophisticated arms, and developed evil but ingenious predatory minds bent on survival and ruthless competition.

That is what basically, over the centuries, created the North-South divide, where “rich” and unhappy Murlock nations of the North subjugated the innocent, “poor” and happy nations of the South. The divide is still there whereby the North is still miserable but strong and efficient, while the South is still somewhat lax and happy but incompetent when it tries to compete with the North. The North is a hungry wolf whereas the South is a tender doe which is just happy grazing on some grass and prancing about the savannah.

However, one should not get involved in politics and try and liberate does from wolves
unless one wants to get oneself killed or deported. One should simply shuttle between the unhappy, mechanical and cold places which have money, and happy, humane and friendly places which provide us with a never ending spring of felicity.