Extra Credit: NY Times
Oh the irony! Crazy how much we can relate to this article right now. Boy, does history have a way of repeating itself. With this global pandemic occurring right now, it surely puts things into perspective. In my eyes, this article speaks volumes about how important small businesses are, and how the 1% are still being ever so greedy, and getting the tax breaks they think they deserve.
Like the article talks about, the Ugarit and Mycenae, were now being hit with such turmoil after having been hit by a massive plague. The Ugarit and Mycenae were small kingdoms that thrived off of trade, like olive oil, local grains and artisans. Now during this time more than ever, we (as small business owners) can relate to this era more than ever. It is devastating to see such a drastic change can happen to these economies when hit with such traumatic events. It is imperative that we keep small businesses thriving otherwise us as a nation will fail.
"Cities were ruled by wealthy urban aristocrats who controlled trade, relied on various kinds of forced labor, and placed heavy tax burdens on their client states and agricultural villages. When times got hard, the commoners in Ugarit and Mycenae felt the squeeze."
Unfortunately, what we don't realize is that once the pandemic is "over" we will continue to see smaller businesses go out of business, while the wealthy 1% continue to thrive. Small business owners during Ugarit and Mycenae times would get fed up with all the natural disasters causing them to fail, and would just burn down their place of business. Suddenly, the Bronze Age started to lose everything, and Greece's population dropped by 50%. With that, I believe that we must see the pattern here. We must realize how much the world will change without small businesses. I think we take them for granted, and don't realize how much they help the economy-- which is also suffering tremendously. This article is very eye-opening, as we endure all the horrible events right now.
“Were they ever concerned about whether the king was adequately supplied with fancy jewelry and ostrich eggs from Egypt?” Ms. Murray asked. “I’d bet that they were not. If anything, the demise of the palaces could have made life easier for them.”
This quote speaks volumes. I think that we need to focus less on the "shiny" things in life, and focus more on what's important.
Like the article talks about, the Ugarit and Mycenae, were now being hit with such turmoil after having been hit by a massive plague. The Ugarit and Mycenae were small kingdoms that thrived off of trade, like olive oil, local grains and artisans. Now during this time more than ever, we (as small business owners) can relate to this era more than ever. It is devastating to see such a drastic change can happen to these economies when hit with such traumatic events. It is imperative that we keep small businesses thriving otherwise us as a nation will fail.
"Cities were ruled by wealthy urban aristocrats who controlled trade, relied on various kinds of forced labor, and placed heavy tax burdens on their client states and agricultural villages. When times got hard, the commoners in Ugarit and Mycenae felt the squeeze."
Unfortunately, what we don't realize is that once the pandemic is "over" we will continue to see smaller businesses go out of business, while the wealthy 1% continue to thrive. Small business owners during Ugarit and Mycenae times would get fed up with all the natural disasters causing them to fail, and would just burn down their place of business. Suddenly, the Bronze Age started to lose everything, and Greece's population dropped by 50%. With that, I believe that we must see the pattern here. We must realize how much the world will change without small businesses. I think we take them for granted, and don't realize how much they help the economy-- which is also suffering tremendously. This article is very eye-opening, as we endure all the horrible events right now.
“Were they ever concerned about whether the king was adequately supplied with fancy jewelry and ostrich eggs from Egypt?” Ms. Murray asked. “I’d bet that they were not. If anything, the demise of the palaces could have made life easier for them.”
This quote speaks volumes. I think that we need to focus less on the "shiny" things in life, and focus more on what's important.
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