COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

[Matthew Gates]

If the Earth's population were shrunk into a village of just 100 people -- with all the human ratios existing in the world still remaining -- what would this tiny, diverse village look like?

That's exactly what Phillip M. Harter, a medical doctor at the Stanford University School of Medicine, attempted to figure out. This is what he found.

• 57 would be Asian
• 21 would be European
• 14 would be from the Western Hemisphere
• 8 would be African
• 52 would be female
• 48 would be male
• 70 would be nonwhite
• 30 would be white
• 70 would be non-Christian
• 30 would be Christian
• 89 would be heterosexual
• 11 would be homosexual
• 6 people would possess 59 percent of the entire world's wealth and all 6 would be from the United States.
• 80 would live in substandard housing
• 70 would be unable to read
• 50 would suffer from malnutrition
• 1 would be near death
• 1 would be pregnant
• 1 would have a college education
• 1 would own a computer

The following is an anonymous interpretation: Think of it this way. If you live in a good home, have plenty to eat and can read, you are a member of a very select group. And if you have a good house, food, can read and have a computer, you are among the very elite.

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness...you are more fortunate than the million who will not survive this week.

If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation...you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.

If you can attend a church meeting without fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death...you are fortunate. More than three billion people in the world can't.

If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep...you are richer than 75% of this world. If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace...you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy.

If your parents are still alive and still married...you are very rare, even in the United States.

If you hold your head up with a smile on your face and are truly thankful...you are blessed because the majority can, but most do not.

If you can hold someone's hand, hug them or even touch them on a shoulder...you are blessed because you can offer a healing touch.

Count your blessings....

[JungleMan]

Originally posted by Matthew Gates:
COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

1...2...3...ah i have nothing

[SteveCRM]

Well theres an eye opener

[chrisjk]

seen it a hundred times in my inbox

[nabeels786]

yeah ive gotten that one at least 20 times.

its still interesting tho

[aknisely]

Count your blessings....

"Count my blessings" sounds either like religious dogma or luck, probably the former, and neither are true. I came to live like this because I work hard. And also my father worked hard. And his father. And all the way up the line. At the top of the line, we were poor and sick and starving, but we worked for centuries to get to where we are today. Religious "blessings" have nothing to do with it.

[5speed]

I don't see why people send these types in chain letters anyway. It's not like anything has really change world, there are still concentration camps (smaller size of course), mass executions with even the UN's help. People are ignorent, and if they want to learn they just have to turn off their tv's, throw away the newspaper and go talk to people and go on the net. There is no excuse why people are so ignorent considering when so many people have access to the net, and can get virtually every viewpoint on the subject. Whats sad is that people will read these chain letters, read in ad etc. Pause to reflect for a whole two seconds then continue on never to think of it again, and be shocked all over again when they read something similiar.