He and others make the case that although the widening wealth gap may be inevitable, finding financially creative or cost-effective ways to raise baseline standards of living is still possible.
“The real question is not ‘why are the rich rich?’ or what to do about that,” Mr. Kelly argued. “It is ‘why are the poor poor?’ and what to do about that.”
Leland Presley has a prospective inheritance: the modest house he shares with his mother, which was paid off before his father died seven years ago.Charity Rachelle for The New York Times
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
'The Garden of Lost and Found'
By DALE PECK
Reviewed by RON POWERS
In Dale Peck's
novel, a Midwesterner arrives in New York to claim his inheritance, a
brownstone that may contain buried treasure.
生前葬
Taiwanese face death with 'living funerals'
TAIPEI — The eulogies, the songs, the crying and the hugging all make David Tseng's funeral virtually indistinguishable from any other such rite on Taiwan -- except he is still alive.Tseng is only 25 but he is wheelchair-bound and in the terminal stage of a genetic muscular disease that has paralysed him since childhood, with no known cure.
"I don't know how many days I have left so I want to hold a 'living funeral' for myself, to announce my last wish of donating my body for medical studies," Tseng said.
In Taiwan, "living funerals" have been embraced by a growing number of people with terminal diseases.
Tseng, a native of south Taiwan's Kaohsiung city, bade farewell to his family and a group of about 100 doctors and students late September at a local medical school which will receive his body when the day comes.
"I may not live a long life but I have the company of my family and many people who care for me. I finished college and wrote a book... I didn't live in vain," Tseng told the audience as his mother wiped away her tears.
"I think what matters in life is its value, not how long it is, so we should cherish the time we have and do something good," he said.
Catholic Cardinal Paul Shan, 85, is among prominent local figures who have thrown their weight behind the concept. He launched a "goodbye tour" in late 2007 with a series of speeches to share his fight against lung cancer.
"We hope to encourage the ill not to fear death and help them bid proper farewells to their loved ones," said Chou Chin-huar, head of cancer charity Chou Ta-Kuan Foundation, which promotes the practice.
A "living funeral" can take the form of a speech, a concert, a trip or a painting exhibition which is meaningful for the person who knows death is approaching, he said, adding some do not plan conventional funerals afterwards.
"They can say aloud the things they want others to know and fulfill their last wishes before it's too late," Chou said.
"Hearing the eulogies while they are still alive can help them face the final stage with ease."
Tseng's father agreed, saying the young man's spirits were lifted after the ritual.
"The response was overwhelming. So many people phoned to encourage David or came to visit him when they heard about it. This gives him more courage and faith," said Sam Tseng.
The practice reflects growing openness towards the subject of death in Taiwan, a society that has gone from traditional agrarian values to full-blown modernisation in just two generations.
In the past, even mentioning the word "death" was believed to bring bad luck, and preparing one's own funeral while still alive was a major taboo.
"Nowadays more people are willing to discuss death, make their wills and plan their funerals ahead," said Yang Kuo-chu, a professor at the Department of Life-and-Death Studies at Nanhua University.
He attributed the change in attitude to thanatology, or the study of death, being more commonly taught in schools, while the authorities have also been promoting forward planning to reduce inheritance disputes.
"The 'living funeral' has some positive effects of comforting the sick and overcoming the death taboo," Yang said.
"I don't think it can replace a conventional funeral but it might if our customs, cultural and religious perspectives are completely altered one day."
Tseng, who is down to only 23 kilograms (50 pounds) and bedridden, relying on oxygen as his condition worsens, said he is prepared for the final moment.
"I have no regret now. I am ready to face death at anytime," he told AFP. "I want my family to hold a cocktail party to celebrate my departure instead of mourning after I'm gone."
在倫敦，最有「英式味道」的酒店，你知是哪間嗎？相信十中有九會答Gloucester House。Gloucester House原址為英王喬治三世的兄弟告羅士打公爵在倫敦的寓所，1929年酒店在此正式開業……再好的酒店，也會老吧？經過為期4年、斥資數百萬英鎊的翻新工程，終於在今年以Grosvenor ...
Grosvenor
Frequency: (510)
(number of times this surname appears in a sample database of 88.7 million names, representing one third of the 1997 US population)
English (of Norman origin): status name for a person who was in charge of the arrangements for hunting on a lord's estate, from Anglo-Norman French gros ‘great’, ‘chief’ (see Gross) + veneo(u)r ‘hunter’ (Latin venator, from venari ‘to hunt’).
FOREBEARS: This is the name of one of the wealthiest families in Britain, which holds the title Duke of Westminster. They have been long established in Cheshire, with strong links with the city of Chester. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Robert le Grosvenor of Budworth, who was granted lands by the Earl of Chester in 1160. The family's fortunes were founded by Thomas Grosvenor (born 1656), who in 1677 married an heiress, Mary Davies, whose inheritance included Ebury Farm, Middlesex. This now forms an area of central London that includes Grosvenor Square and Belgrave Square.
- inheritance
- [名]1 [U][C]相続［継承］物件, 相続財産；（先祖・前代などから）受け継いだもの（▼文語的なheritageと比べて一般的な語） a quarrel over an inheritanc...
- inheritance tax
- [U][C]相続税.
inherit See definition in Oxford Advanced Learner's DictionaryLine breaks: in|heritPronunciation: /ɪnˈhɛrɪt/Definition of inherit in English:
verb
Origin
Middle English enherite 'receive as a right', from Old French enheriter, from late Latin inhereditare'appoint as heir', from Latin in- 'in' + heres, hered- 'heir'.
inherit
- 音節
- in • her • it
- 発音
- inhérit
- レベル
- 大学入試程度
- inheritの変化形
- inherits (複数形) • inheriting (現在分詞) • inherits (三人称単数現在)
- [動](他)
- 1 ［III[名]（[副]）］〈財産・権利・地位・称号などを〉（人から）受け継ぐ，相続する((from ...))；…を分け前として与えられる
- a . [= ]
- 父の称号を受け継いだ.
- 2 〈人の〉跡を継ぐ.
- 3 ［III[名][副]］〈物・事を〉（前任者から）受け継ぐ，引き継ぐ；〈体質・性質・顔つきなどを〉（…から）受け継ぐ((from ...))
- .
- 彼のウェーブのかかった髪は母親譲りだ.
- ━━(自)財産を受け継ぐ，相続する，（人の）跡を継ぐ；（性質・権利・職務などを）（…から）受け継ぐ((from ...))
- .
- 弟はおじの跡継ぎになった.
- ［後ラテン語inhērēditāre（in-中に＋hērēs相続人＋-āre）. △HEIR,HEREDITY］
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