[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by egmcaninch

It irks me to hear people flippantly use "entitlement" for anyone. I started working when I was 14 years old and didn't stop until retirement. Many difficult times, but stuck with it the best that I could. For what little bit that I do have - I have worked very hard & have earned it.

Exactly. You worked hard for it. You paid for it. You ARE entitled to it. Enjoy it!

Some people misuse the term and try to make it a dirty word. Especially, people who weren’t prudent about their money and didn’t invest and spent money as soon as they got it, no matter what their income.

Plenty of people think they are ENTITLED to YOUR money because you have some and they don’t. That’s a different sort of “entitlements,” and Congress makes laws establishing those entitlements. I guess we could say that people who receive those sorts of “entitlements” are “entitled.”

There was once a Louisiana demagogue named Huey Long who wrote a song called “Every Man a King.” The song said, in one line, “if there’s something belonging to others, there’s enough for all people to share.” We hear that sort of idea these days coming from some politicians. It gets votes.

I think the real problem is the “sense of entitlement” some people have, and that often comes with having a lot of money. Some people think they are entitled to special service or treatment because of who they are or what they have. Nothing new about people doing that. It can be a problem. Being quiet about it is a good idea. Making a fuss about it causes hard feelings.

[robinsdw2]

I agree with you, the last time I checked I’ve paid for everything I have. I started working at 13 and never stopped until I retired and have honestly earned everything I have as well as put both our children through college.

[2newyorkers]

Yes we live in a bubble and isn't it grand!

[sallybowron]

Originally Posted by Joanne19335

Yes, we do. It’s called “Peyton Place for Seniors.”

o you mean people are fooling around, because I have lived here 11 years and have
seen none of this.

[bobnyce]

For argument's sake, assume we do. It is a bubble full of people from all over the country. Can't get more diverse than that! Most of us worked our entire lives but I have noticed many more younger retirees coming to the Villages! Times are changing. My two cents.

[talleyjm]

Originally Posted by alemorkam

What do you think?

Yes, living in The Villages is like living in a bubble. We chose The Villages because it is a bubble - an environment that is exciting, fun, beautiful, safe, and activity-rich. We earned this bubble by working hard our whole lives and being financially prudent. We are blessed. And grateful. We love our Village, our neighbors are great and we’re so happy we chose The Villages over the other retirement communities we visited. My son who lives in NYC calls it “Disneyland for Seniors”! He loved visiting here. He and his fiancé
took off early every day in our golf cart and had a ball
swimming, going to the fitness center, taking photos of the wildlife and sunsets. And if The Villages is a Peyton Place we must be moving in different circles because we’ve never seen any evidence of it. God bless the developers for creating The Villages❗️

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by davem4616

yes, we live in a bubble...and I like living in this bubble

it's very much like living in a yellow submarine

Hmmm maybe we will repaint our house a nice yellow and put a submarine mural on the garage.

[EviesGP]

My stepson calls it Candyland. I tell him to get in the cart, and go thru the chutes and ladders!

[kendi]

Depends on the individuals mindset. A person can live anywhere and be in a bubble. Or they can choose not to be. Imo it depends on how inwardly or outwardly focused they are.

[Dgizzi]

Originally Posted by Joanne19335

Yes, we do. It’s called “Peyton Place for Seniors.”

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Well said!

[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by alemorkam

What do you think?

Of course we live in a Bubble, in a Dome, in a sort of slightly-gilded ghetto (intending the original meaning of the term—a neighborhood where people share certain attributes, such as social level, or assumptions, or beliefs).

I read the online crime sheet every morning, and I almost never see crimes by villagers reported, apart from the occasional child of a resident who is using drugs or a DUI or sometimes abuse of one’s partner. There are cases of shoplifting in stores surrounding The Villages, but most of those doing it don’t live here. So this is a bubble that is essentially crime free—and illegal drug free.

We live surrounded by beauty, order, friendliness. We aren’t crowded. Most of us have little experience of life in, say, Brooklyn or the Bronx or south Chicago. For us, a protest march or a rally happens in golf carts with placards and smiles on our faces as we cheer on our friends, not with bitter speeches and destruction of property. That’s a bubble.

We live in a Bubble ethnically very different from the surrounding towns and cities. Many of us (including me) appreciate that. We like people to not look too different. Those who ARE of different ethnicities are very welcome because they can afford to live here, so they are one of us.

We live in a Bubble where—unlike America in general—there are hardly any children or even young people, unless they are here to serve us. The corollary is that in this Bubble, nearly everyone is old, even if we don’t always act our age. In a number of ways, we really don’t look like America in general. We love our country, but choose to live in a large enclave that is somewhat different from much of it.

We live in a Bubble where we can drive most places in little golf carts. We expect free entertainment in the town squares. (Yes, I know we pay for that.) We expect manicured golf courses and pristine swimming pools. We expect dog owners to leash their dogs and pick up after them. We expect all lawns to be mowed and all weeds to be pulled, and if we don’t get it, we complain. We can go to recreation centers and join clubs and easily make friends. This isn’t the real world. It’s life in the Bubble. Sometimes we forget this isn’t the real world.

But we are in this Bubble because we WANT to be, and we PAY to be. We could all buy homes of familiar sizes and quality in some surrounding town or city for HALF what we pay here. We are HERE and PAY to be here because we LOVE the Bubble, even if some people complain about their little peeves. They are free to move, but most stay. After all, where is it better and safer?

My favorite place to vacation is Hidden Beach Resort, an hour south of Cancun. Travel and one week there costs me what two months here costs me, including my large mortgage. Hidden Beach has 42 rooms. 84 guests. To get there an Escalade ferries me down a highway past armed guards. I’m not allowed near the resort without being checked for a reservation. The resort is behind high walls. Once there, I can lie in the shade on the beach and a servant brings me a drink whenever I want one. Delicious meals are provided by servants who remember my name from year to year. My room is cleaned, my bed made, by little Mayan women who are servants. I live like a king for a week. But of course it’s a Bubble. It’s not really Mexico. I see a little of Mexico from the highway on the way to and from the airport. It’s as much as I care to see. I’m surrounded by delightful Mexicans, but they are there to serve me. It’s a Bubble of peace and safety. It’s no more Mexico than the rides and sights at Disneyworld are Europe, or a mountain, or an enchanted tiki forest, Or a small world, or Pirates of the Caribbean, or a ride on a jungle river. It’s a Bubble. Disneyworld is a Bubble. The Villages is a Bubble.

I really like this particular Bubble, though. Let’s keep it that way!

[Marshaw]

Absolutely. Radio, newspaper etc is controlled. In many cases a nice bubble

[maryl]

Originally Posted by chriskean82

Yes we do and I love it! The infrastructure is incredible, the deed restrictions are great, and the large majority of people are awesome! If you want all the unrest, high stress, in your face opinions, leave the bubble. Take a few minutes and look or drive around and take in what we have. A safe, beautiful, clean, and friendly place to live!!

Not really People are getting sick of the bubble and all it’s chNges and it’s not the place to build apts which they are doing and am selling

[Darlene Lansing]

I Love the Bubble ‼️
I hope it never burst 😇

[bpascani]

Originally Posted by Villages Kahuna

Our son best described The Villages during his first visit. “Dad, this like going to college but not having to go to class.”

BUT, you can go to class, if you want, some are free, some a fee, though minimal! SO, if you choose to go to class, you don't have to worry about your GPA or homework!!