Stop your whining America

A pair of related headlines today that really made my blood boil. First, from the New York Times, Millennials, Government and Mistrust (faith in government is collapsing among left-leaning Americans a poll has found), the second from the Washington Post, Americans hate Congress. They will totally teach it a lesson by not voting. (that’s sarcasm).

Are we raising a bunch of wusses these days? When previous generations of Americans were dissatisfied with the way things were going in America, they organized, mobilized and marched for a cause: for organized labor, for womens suffrage, for civil rights, and against unjust wars. People made sacrifices, they went to jail, they were beaten, and they were killed to achieve the rights that too many Americans today take for granted.

Have Americans today become so soft that when they do not get immediate gratification or worse, suffer a setback or disappointment (gasp!), they immediately give up and quit? “Oh, this is sooo hard and it’s taking sooo long, I give up.” Bunch of damn whiners! You need a swift kick in your ass.

Apparently too many Americans today have been brought up in schools where they don’t give grades, and play sports where they don’t keep score, and kids are told that “everyone’s a winner.” Well that’s bullshit.

The real world keeps score, and there are winners and losers. The winners are those who set a goal and do the hard work, they keep striving to achieve their goal even when they suffer a setback or disappointment, and they never give up.  It is a matter of principle, of pride, and character. It is what used to define us  uniquely as “American.”

So if you want to change the world, stop waiting for someone else to do it for you. Your Mommy and Daddy are not here to cater to your every selfish desire.

And I don’t mean some passive bullshit like signing an online petition and liking it and sharing it on Facebook. And I don’t mean posting some viral hashtag on Twitter that doesn’t accomplish a damn thing. If you want to change the world you are going to have to do actual hard work. It will require dedication, perseverance, and character.

The easiest, simplest thing you can do is to register to vote and actually take the five minutes it takes to fill out a ballot. You can even use a mail-in ballot and never even have to leave the comfort of your couch (except to mail it). Is that really too much to ask of you?

If you are feeling more ambitious, volunteer to work for a campaign, or assist with voter registration, or be a poll worker or election auditor. And if you are really feeling ambitious, get the education, training and skills needed to be the kind of candidate that you want to vote for and then run for office yourself.

But don’t give me this crap that you are giving up on democracy because you are disappointed with government, and you are quitting and not going to vote. Democracies die from indifference and neglect. The old saying that “the children are our future” should be a blessing, not a curse.