People Just Live Their Lives - Have people just given up?
INTRODUCTION:
Thanks to all who send me emails enjoying my MAy video blog post. The dilemmas we face often don't always require complicated solutions. We are now getting close to entering the summer months. Traditionally, over the past few years, the summer months have led to quite a bit of social unrest. Will this year be any better? Somehow, I fear it will not, and maybe be worse than others. Do you think that is a bleak view?
That is why I choose this topic to write about this week. I receive many comments on my social media posts stating, "Bring back the old days." Or "It wasn't like this years ago." Truthfully, it was not. Most often wonder why that is. Certainly, we cannot blame our first amendment right to freedom of speech, just as we can't blame a pencil for the words it writes.
We have become a society that places blames inanimate objects for our problems when the fault lies with the people. Inanimate objects are just a tool. Like any tool, how it is used makes it productive or destructive.
WE'VE ALL HEARD THIS:
So maybe I am a dinosaur. However, like many, I grew up during times when no one HAD to lock their doors. As crazy as it sounds, we knew when it was time to be home based on when the street lights came on. People helped their neighbors, not turn away from them. Families were closer. Maybe they even argued more, but it wasn't personal. People trusted one another. If you went into a store and forgot your money at home, you were told to drop it off later. Windows weren't boarded up on stores for fear of looting and riots.
You never heard anything about Christmas until the day after Thanksgiving. Stores were closed on holidays. People had more time to spend with their friends and family. The need to have it all didn't exist. You were happy with what you could afford and appreciated it. Men played in men's sports, and women played in women's sports. When we were children, we learned the basics in school: reading, writing, math, history, social studies, biology, gym class, and more. School boards did NOT play a role in how a child was raised. However, they were very active in the development of the child and worked closely with parents.
Sure, there was crime. There will always be crime. Always someone looking for the easy buck. But not like it is in today's society. And if you got caught, you were punished equally based on the law. Kids still got bullied and beaten up. But not murdered. It was kid stuff. Kids having fun was more about being mischievous rather than destructive. Kids were punished by their parents and had detention at school. There was discipline, morals, values, and respect.
However, there were downsides. People with different thoughts and ideas on the way they wanted to live had to keep their views hidden. They were not accepted by society otherwise. People were more closed-minded about progressive thinking. People were very stuck in their ways. This led to a form of rebellion in some children as teenagers. Over time, this rebellious activity has gotten out of hand and turned into what we see in today's society. VIOLENCE.
There is no time in our country's history when society or people were perfect, politicians were perfect, or the laws were perfect. Why? Because NOTHING IN LIFE IS PERFECT.
WHAT HAVE WE TURNED INTO?:
Everyone watches the news. This is where we hear the most ungodly and tragic news available. This is where we hear, day after day, month after month, and year after year, how the world has turned to crap. Mostly, it's true. I do not blame the news media for what society does. I think they tend to publicize some things too much, which can cause mentally disturbed individuals to get bad ideas. The good things to report are only mentioned once or twice. Therefore, they quickly lose their meaning compared to the bad things publicized for days and weeks. How can the good compete with evil?
People get so tired of hearing bad news that they do not want to hear it and live their lives. They believe it will never happen to them. BIG MISTAKE. We have turned into a society that worries only about ourselves because we feel that most of what we hear on the news doesn't affect our lives. What society doesn't realize is the increase in crime, murders, riots, and social issues do affect your life. Turning a blind eye to it DOES NOT MAKE IT GO AWAY. It never has.
ARE WE A SOCIETY IN CRISIS?
I guess that depends on how you define CRISIS. By definition, a crisis is a time of intense difficulty, trouble, or danger. Some people may say we are in a crisis, and others may not. In a sense, this writer believes we are. Crime is rising each year. Our economy and global standing as a country are also declining. School shootings are continuing to rise. Our justice system is a hot mess. Politically, we are the laughingstock of the world. People have had enough. So much so that society is accepting whatever is handed out to them.
People go to work each day and complain about their jobs; rather than be happy, they receive a weekly paycheck so they can pay their bills. As reported by Lending Club. As of 2023, 60% of United States Adults, including more than four in 10 high-income consumers, live paycheck to paycheck. Inflation is high, interest rates are on the rise to combat inflation, and government spending continues. Our country's education ranking is declining compared to the rest of the world. Our educational system is slipping through the cracks, and when the U.S. used to rank #1 in the world for education, we are now 14th. Of course, this number is across a broad spectrum of ages and consistently changes. However, it shows that we are missing something.
The pandemic did not help this situation. However, all these things are constantly in our faces and are probably reported by every media network. Some of which I'm sure is propaganda. However, we wonder why people throw their arms up, say I've had enough, and focus on their own lives.
IS THIS THE AMERICAN DREAM?
Somehow, I am going to go out on a limb and say that most people would agree it is not. We must ask ourselves how our youth can survive and achieve the American Dream. Take a look at this article by The Insider. The average monthly mortgage payment for a 30-year fixed mortgage is $3,048.00, and $3,976.00 for a 15-year fixed mortgage. How can our children afford these payments and raise a family? Then we ask ourselves, why are people fed up and just living their lives? The problem goes deeper than I can discuss in a basic blog post.
However, all of the above combined have taken our society to the brink of no longer caring. People try to make it through the present day. I remember a time when it wasn't easy to get a credit card. Today, you can file for bankruptcy and get a new credit card in 6 months. Have we made it too easy for people to get into a state of unrecoverable debt? Sure, we have. Then we ask ourselves, why are the credit card interest rates so high? Now our President wants to give people with lower credit scores better rates than those with a higher credit score. Why don't we promote the fact that it's better for you if you DON'T pay your bills?
Another value that has gone by the wayside. I was raised to PAY MY BILLS. PERIOD! In today's world, that's not important. Run up the debt, file for bankruptcy, and get more credit to do it again. Where is the AMERICAN DREAM? Then we ask ourselves, why don't people care? The real question is, WHY SHOULD THEY?
None of this is passing judgment on anyone. It is what society has created, what our government has created. People are only trying to survive. However, IT IS NOT WORKING. No one needs a Ph.D. in living to see that. According to THE MOTLEY FOOL, The average U.S. household carries $6,473.00 in credit card debt. Mind you that is an average. Some may only have 3 or 4 hundred dollars while others have 15 or 20 thousand dollars. That steadily rises each year. Although there was a drop in bankruptcy filings in 2021 vs. 2022, in 2022, there were 387,721 filed bankruptcies. Do you think the banks take that loss? Of course, not. They pass that loss to those who do pay in the form of higher interest rates. The bank is NOT in the business of losing money.
IN CLOSING:
As I stated earlier, this is just the tip of the iceberg. However, it relates to the topic of this week's blog post because society has had enough. Add the other social issues into the mix, and I have said this many times. EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO LIVE THEIR LIVES THE WAY THEY CHOOSE. I support that. I do not support when anyone person uses their beliefs to force them upon others or uses them in a way that is unfair and equal to others. However, that debate is for another post. I have received numerous emails to discuss such topics as men who identify themselves as women competing in women's sports. I have not written about it for one reason.
That reason is because that topic requires a tremendous amount of social, scientific, and biological research. Unless a post is strictly based on my own opinion, I perform a great deal of research and s cite websites and data to support the facts I write about, and I will not change those values now. Also, this is a topic where politics has played a huge role. A role that, in my opinion, they should not be involved with. These decisions are for the medical and sports authorities to decide.
With this present administration, politics has played a role in many issues they do not belong in. They are not qualified, nor is it the government's place to choose sides against one gender or another, biologically or by chosen identity. Their job is to run an efficient government and keep its citizens safe. Make the choices for betterment, improvement, and progress, for the benefit and the will of the people that elected them. All within the constraints of a fair and equal justice system. In my opinion, this administration has failed in every aspect of that, and anyone can look at the data on the internet and see that it is a factual statement.
People and society are not bad by nature. And those that cause these problems are very few when we look at the total population. I have faith in people and humanity. I also understand how people and society can become frustrated to the point where they turn away. That, my friends, is the real shame. Never give up, and never give in. God Bless America, and let's make this country great again.
Be safe, stay well, and focus on being happy. And remember to always:
Live with an open mind,
Live with an open heart,
Live your best life.
Best Regards,
Caesar Rondina
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