A lot of Americans act like crazy people. We demand a free lunch and we’ll follow anyone who offers the best one. We swallow pills and allow people to burn and mutilate our bodies because we hope their ministrations will correct the damage we do to ourselves.
We are angry, sad, and confused. Our food supply is damaged – maybe beyond repair. The water contains toxins, drugs, and hormones. It has been announced that a popular chemical for weed control can cause infertility – and that doesn't surprise me at all.
Some of are so crazed that we take out our problems on other people – usually innocent people. We kill and maim and then pop a bullet into our own head. We go even further and blame the tools used in the mayhem for the mayhem itself. We refuse to search for underlying causes, preferring to focus only on the symptoms. We seem to not want solutions and cures. That in itself is completely insane.
We listen to talk show hosts yell and rail against whatever person or “party” they oppose. The politicians don’t seem capable of sharing a sidewalk with anyone from the other side of the aisle. Vast numbers of us struggle to survive and those we trust to help us are making millions of dollars and living the life of an emperor. “Love Thy Neighbor” seems to be lost on us.
We are angry about greedy company bosses, yet clamor for pay increases, benefits, and retirement packages – all paid for by others. Heaven forbid we save for our own future.
Some of us blame the politicians. I blame all of us because the elected officials are doing what we want them to do – make sure we can all have what we want, when we want it. If a few noisy people board a bus and storm the steps of power, laws get enacted that force the rest of us to meet the needs of the noisy few. That Pogo comment about the enemy being us is accurate down to the smallest tilde.
The shooting binges have a lot of us riled up and demanding that something be done. The politicians are trying to do something – while other groups insist their rights would be violated if but one control is put in place. Rights? Fewer today than at any time since the founding of our country – and vast numbers of us are willing to give up even more in the name of safety – which, by the way, does not exist and never will.
A friend told me the U.S. “experiment” will probably fall far short of the years the Mayan civilization flourished. He’s probably correct. They prospered for 800 years. On its present course, our republic will be lucky to make it 300.
What will save us; gun control, more taxes, fewer taxes, term limits, higher wages, earlier retirement, more vacations, shorter work weeks, more churches, cleaner energy? What? Name something and a thousand people will tell you ten thousand reasons why you’re wrong. There is but one thing that can turn the tide for each individual and that’s to be an individual. Each of us must take responsibility for our individual actions. We have to stop blaming others and stop expecting everyone else to protect us or make us happy.
Life is fragile and there are no guarantees for anything. Yes, we have tried repeatedly to guarantee or legislate goodness, yet we always fail.
I recall my mother warning me in a fretful way about doing anything that might scar me for life. For heaven’s sake, that’s what a scar is. The kid in “Christmas Story” was afraid he’d put an eye out and politicians fear not getting re-elected. Living in fear over things that might happen is silly beyond the pale. Things happen all the time and they are not always good. Except for acting with prudence, there is nothing else we can do to fully protect our crazy behinds.
That being said, is it time to toss in the towel? Of course not. As long as we are upright and not in a box six feet under, there’s hope. We have the innate, individual ability to find happiness, to get along with others, to help those in need, and to correct the sins of our past. Without drugs, surgery, or radiation, we can discover cures for disease and solutions for financial problems. We can figure out why some of us go on rampages and blast away at innocents. We've done it before on a regular basis. Some of us are doing it in our own small ways right now.
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| Hope I don't get in trouble for using Jessica Alba's smile here. |
Evidence? We have been slogging through some of the worst years in recorded history, yet most of us still get up in the morning, put on a happy face, feed our kids, got to work and church, and enjoy fine food and adult beverages with our friends and family. All we need to do is make ourselves aware that we are in good shape and that we can – individually – make everything better. I've already begun by writing this tome. How about you? What are you doing? However
small it might seem, it’s something. One extra smile each day is a big deal – to you and the person you give it to. It needs to be nourished and allowed to flower. When we all, individually, take that kind of approach to daily living, the entire environment will improve.
I certainly hope we beat the Mayans.
