Saturday, January 26, 2008

"Me-ism"-Why the Liberals Could Cause our Downfall

I think I will trademark the phrase. It refers to the modern phenomenon where many people think they are what my Mom used to call "the Bellybutton of the Universe." By that I mean, there are folks who think every condition of their waking and sleeping should meet their specific criteria of "good" even when that criteria is totally insane. I blame it to a certain extent on computers. It used to be that you logged on and the window looked the same every day. But then there came a time where people could change their window. They could personalize it-and so began the slippery slope. Now we can change our computer desktops, our cell phones even our charge cards to reflect the "real me". Is this a good thing or is this navel gazing taken to the extreme? I see this a great deal in schools. We get notes from countless students who all seem to have life threatening kidney conditions that require unlimited access to the bathroom. I am not making light of kidney conditions, but the number of kids with these types of access to hallways and out of the classroom are on the rise. What happened to self-control, or-horrors-going in the more than ample time between classes? There are similar issues with grades. First of all, deadlines mean nothing. If Johnny has a club soccer practice and tuba lessons, then we shouldn't expect him to do his homework-or so the conventional wisdom goes. And heaven help you if a student fails a class because it is never ever EVER their fault. It goes beyond the classroom. My kids work in a fast food restaurant. Grown people cannot give rational orders. And they quite frequently change their minds between the order and reception of the food. The result is the expectation that their every whim, no matter how outrageous or demanding, will be granted. My daughter quit her job recently after an event where a mother decided to pitch a fit because the fire laws forbade candles in the restaurant for her daughter's party. After bitching out my 22 year old and making two other servers cry, I have to wonder what this woman was trying to prove to her kids? Was she trying to prove that being a self-centered bully is the way to make it through life? I am thinking that is the case because we are raising a generation of children who have never been permitted to learn via experience. They are wrapped in virtual cotton, with parents hovering around them like putti surrounding a Renaissance creche. On a global scale we have things like Leo Dicaprio telling us how bad we are for not allowing Gore's message of obedience to the Kyoto Accord. While I think we should always seek more efficient and less destructive forms of industry, it would seem that in signing the accord, we would be the only ones in that position. Then there is the question of animal rights. Like it or not PETA, your unwillingness to allow domestic drilling for oil in ANWR has as much to do with this war we are in as anything else. It's easy to say "oh let's just not drive" but that is not reality. Heck, gas is over $3.00 a gallon and I still see folks sitting in the parking lots after school waiting for their kids with their engines running. And by the way, if we did all magically stop eating meat tomorrow, what would happen to cows, chickens and pigs? Are they so endearing that PETA members would willingly take a cow or two home to their Soho loft? Would Paris Hilton turn over her backyard to homeless chickens? Would Al Gore advocate pigs as a means of environmentally safe transportation? And by the way, the ethanol from corn that was crammed down our throats by Congress-it LOWERS fuel efficiency, it damages older cars and it forces the cost of corn-the main ingredient of livestock feed through the roof. And WHAT the hell did you expect to accomplish? Frankly, I don't know how anyone can look at one thing pushed through by liberals and still claim that they are a viable force. Oh sure, one might get elected, but mark my words, with a goofball Speaker of the House and an ultra liberal President, you will see riots, protests and possibly the biggest overturn of a Congress in history at the midterms. What will you do then?

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