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[Gene GeRue <genegerue AT ruralize.com>]

> > >

I had written:

> > > Every human animal wants all they can get with as little labor as  
> > > possible to get it.

To which James replied:
> > > >
> > Every??  You?   Me?  Certainly not me.  I could "get" a lot more
> > things, have done it in the past, but have decided that more was  
> > distinctly
> > unsatisfying. The Nearings, for example, were wealthy but chose to  
> > live frugally
> > and do a lot of hard manual labor.  Long list could follow.

To which I replied:
> >
> Ah, James. For you and all of us the getting is not just material  
> goods. It is time for our music and time for our families.

Shame on me. Mea culpa. As a writer it is my responsibility to make  
clear my position. In my original statement I should have said  
"effort" instead of "labor." Using "labor," especially in the  
discussion context, implied a return of material goods. Better yet  
would have been: "Every human animal wants all they can get out of  
life with the least effort."

I wrote it badly. This I find upsetting. I must now figure out a  
proper penance. Suggestions are solicited.