How many of us have taken the easy way out? We're all looking to save time, energy, and money. It's really easy, right? It's easy to tell a young girl that she's not responsible for her actions because, really, she's still just a kid, right? She made a mistake?
It's easy to throw money at a problem and make it go away. It's easy to say to people that, no, it's alright, we'll give you everything you need to survive.
It's easy to take, take, take, than ask, ask, ask.
It's easy to tout "social awareness" and "social responsibility" when what you're proposing is Id-style thinking.
Money buys everything in this society, and I'm sick of it.
I've mentioned personal responsibility before. My parents instilled in me cause and effect, and that I will eventually have to solve my own problems.
Just like the overbearing big brother associated with pretty girls, the government is -- nominally -- trying to protect us and -- actually -- seeking to control us.
The ever-present "They" is trying to take away our responsibilities so we need never do anything for ourselves. We live in a world where instant gratification is the only gratification many young people know. We live in a world where oral sex is no longer considered sex by many young people, and where 'fisting' is an appropriate and safe alternative to penetrative sex.
Pardon my language, but are you farking kidding me?
Parents no longer have any responsibility: park the kid in front of the television, or in a daycare where they'll eat snacks and play mindless games all day, then bring them home for a boxed meal, and put them in bed by eight so that mommy and daddy can stay up, have a box of wine, and complain about how hard having children is.
What ever happened to parents -- I don't know -- actually taking an interest in their children's lives? When I was little, my parents would ask me about my day, ask me about homework, help me with my spelling, help me do maths... Heck, when my dad was home, he'd read to me before I went to bed. As I got older, my parents spoke to me as a person, and now my dad and I can have actual discussions about current events.
There are public service announcements on the television imploring men to be dads. If you're going to have children, take the time to take care of them. They're your kid, but they can grow up to be your best friend.
It's easy to blame one group of people, or technology, or the 'times' or whathaveyou. It's difficult to come up with solutions to problems.
What I've seen in my limited experience, is that Liberals and Progressives are more keen at throwing money at a problem to fix it, than to get down to the root cause of the problem. As any gardner, dentist, or English major will tell you: if there's something wrong with the roots, there's something wrong with the whole. The whole is a symptom of the bigger problem.
It takes thinking. But with however-many people there are in this world (seven billion, is it?), we're not coming up with many solutions. It's money and murder we're throwing at everyone. We're throwing our lives and money away on what we need to be devoting our time, love, and work ethic.
But with a Liberal majority in the House and Senate, we're throwing money at problems. I'm repeating myself, and I feel like a broken record, but I'll reiterate: money won't solve the problem. Money is part of the problem, and we, the American people, don't have enough left over to throw at these problems, anymore.
WE are going bankrupt and the politicians are getting richer off of our taxes.
Look, it's not easy to think for yourself. I guess that's why so many people are Liberals: they don't want to put in the effort to think for themselves and come up with real-world solutions to problems (including that porous border, our reliance on foreign oil, and the fact that our Fearless Leader kow-tows to every foreign dignitary to step foot on American soil, when our citizens are looked down upon by our government because we're mere plebes compared to the suits we put in office).
We're not thinking. All we're doing is parroting the opinions of those we place above ourselves in the social hierarchy so that we can sound intelligent.
I'm sorry, even when I'm playing dumb, I know better than to put anyone above myself that I've never seen without shoes.
So please, don't be easy.
Friday 4 June 2010
Thursday 3 June 2010
It takes a village.
I grew up in Hawaii. There would be those who would argue that I haven't grown up yet.
I think it's more than age or time that counts for "growing up" and "maturity".
We'll get back to that later on.
Let's talk about being an ousider.
In Hawaii, there is a very large population of immigrants from Asia, the Philippines, Samoa, Tonga, and... you get the picture. And, if you know anything about the culture of those places, you'll know that people are extremely welcoming. You know the song "Southern Voice" by Tim McGraw? There's a line in there: "Howdy y'all//Did ya eat?//Come on in//I'm sure glad to know ya". Many of the women I was priviledged enough to meet and get to know were that way. Many ladies who didn't know me from Adam would say "Oh, honey, come eat".
Even strangers: I was stuck at a bus stop and I started talking to a woman who stayed in Chinatown during the week and went back to Kailua on the weekends called me "baby". People are friendly, and it rubs off on you. You're allowed to hug strangers, and you're allowed to call someone you just met "honey".
Not so back on the mainland, I've found.
I'm white. I don't get the distinction of being 'Irish-American' or 'Anglo-American', or even 'European-American'. Nope, according to all the census forms, standardised tests, and financial aid applications I've filled out, I am white.
I was working at this restaurant in Guam before my family moved back to "the States" (as we called the US in Guam) and I was bussing tables. I loved the job, I loved the place, I loved the people. No problem. So I asked a gentleman how he was doing as I took his finished plates. He said he was doing well, and looked a little perplexed. He asked me if I was the owner's daughter. I said, "Oh, no... she's not around..." and then he asked me the question I had learnt to dread:
"Oh, are you a military dependent?"
There it was.
Yes. I am. My father has served this beautiful country for almost thirty years.
I told the man "Oh, yes, my dad's in the Navy. Er... How could you tell?"
Here it comes...
"Because you're white."
I looked down at my hands sticking out from the long sleeves of my black workshirt, looked at my coworkers in their tanktops, looked back at my hands and said "Really? I couldn't tell. Thank you!". Of course, I said it all in a very joking manner, and we all laughed because it was a pretty lighthearted moment.
However, it does speak back to generalisations and being the obvious outsider and that being really scary. If you go to a new place and you're the obvious "new girl" (a title I finished high school with, along with another girl, having moved the middle of Senior year), it can put your back up. It can make you wonder why you're unhappy.
Thankfully, I made some of the best friends ever the first few weeks I was there, and am proud to call them my fristers.
"It takes a village to raise a kid" is what "they" say. Yeah, it does, and it takes not knowing the steps to appreciate the dance.
That said: good gracious, this is all new.
I think it's more than age or time that counts for "growing up" and "maturity".
We'll get back to that later on.
Let's talk about being an ousider.
In Hawaii, there is a very large population of immigrants from Asia, the Philippines, Samoa, Tonga, and... you get the picture. And, if you know anything about the culture of those places, you'll know that people are extremely welcoming. You know the song "Southern Voice" by Tim McGraw? There's a line in there: "Howdy y'all//Did ya eat?//Come on in//I'm sure glad to know ya". Many of the women I was priviledged enough to meet and get to know were that way. Many ladies who didn't know me from Adam would say "Oh, honey, come eat".
Even strangers: I was stuck at a bus stop and I started talking to a woman who stayed in Chinatown during the week and went back to Kailua on the weekends called me "baby". People are friendly, and it rubs off on you. You're allowed to hug strangers, and you're allowed to call someone you just met "honey".
Not so back on the mainland, I've found.
I'm white. I don't get the distinction of being 'Irish-American' or 'Anglo-American', or even 'European-American'. Nope, according to all the census forms, standardised tests, and financial aid applications I've filled out, I am white.
I was working at this restaurant in Guam before my family moved back to "the States" (as we called the US in Guam) and I was bussing tables. I loved the job, I loved the place, I loved the people. No problem. So I asked a gentleman how he was doing as I took his finished plates. He said he was doing well, and looked a little perplexed. He asked me if I was the owner's daughter. I said, "Oh, no... she's not around..." and then he asked me the question I had learnt to dread:
"Oh, are you a military dependent?"
There it was.
Yes. I am. My father has served this beautiful country for almost thirty years.
I told the man "Oh, yes, my dad's in the Navy. Er... How could you tell?"
Here it comes...
"Because you're white."
I looked down at my hands sticking out from the long sleeves of my black workshirt, looked at my coworkers in their tanktops, looked back at my hands and said "Really? I couldn't tell. Thank you!". Of course, I said it all in a very joking manner, and we all laughed because it was a pretty lighthearted moment.
However, it does speak back to generalisations and being the obvious outsider and that being really scary. If you go to a new place and you're the obvious "new girl" (a title I finished high school with, along with another girl, having moved the middle of Senior year), it can put your back up. It can make you wonder why you're unhappy.
Thankfully, I made some of the best friends ever the first few weeks I was there, and am proud to call them my fristers.
"It takes a village to raise a kid" is what "they" say. Yeah, it does, and it takes not knowing the steps to appreciate the dance.
That said: good gracious, this is all new.
Tuesday 1 June 2010
A thank you.
Regardless of politics, Memorial Day is what we call Important. With a capital I. It deserves that capital, as well. Today is a day to remember those who gave their lives in service to this beautiful nation, and to pray for those overseas that they won't have to. It's a day to thank, and show appreciation for, those you know (and those you don't know) who have served.
I'd like to just say a huge thank you to the brave men and women serving in the military in the most beautiful country in the world.
And a thank you is not enough for those who gave their lives in service to this country, to protect the freedoms we hold so dear, and to keep us free.
I hope that today (and every day of the year) is peaceful, beautiful, and blessed, especially for these very much unappreciated heroes. God bless them and God bless America.
I'd like to just say a huge thank you to the brave men and women serving in the military in the most beautiful country in the world.
And a thank you is not enough for those who gave their lives in service to this country, to protect the freedoms we hold so dear, and to keep us free.
I hope that today (and every day of the year) is peaceful, beautiful, and blessed, especially for these very much unappreciated heroes. God bless them and God bless America.
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