Logic/Common Sense

We have a major issue popping up, not just in America, but in the world. That is the loss of something that is supposedly common... sense. "Common sense is not common," is a line that I have heard way too much of recently. On top of that, when you make something idiot proof, what happens... we make a better idiot. Where has this appalling degradation come from? I say that is stems from us being spoon fed everything in today's society, and thus not being taught how to think for ourselves/not teaching us how to use logic.

Now, in some ways, our society is smarter than ever. We are currently teaching classes in high-school, that were, until recently, purely college classes. We are allowing high school students to take college classes, even before they graduate. Technological advances continue to come out at an exponential rate. At the same time, teachers of all levels are having to cater to more and more ridiculous 'requests' from parents and students, because of 'learning disabilities'. On that point alone, we are becoming lazy, and think that we should be given the answer to everything.

So, here is my solution. What we need is to start engaging peoples minds and making them work through problems. So, why don't we catch this problem early, and start having kids doing logic problems, sudokus, and playing games like chess, all at an early age. Also, we should be teaching them about everyday problems, and having them try to solve them, instead of using obscure examples that don't have any practical application. If we can engage kids early, we can teach them, not only to think for themselves, but to also understand the need for hard work. If we can get both of these into our kids, this world will be a much more productive place.

Wearing Your Emotions On Your Sleeve

This topic is one that honestly pisses me off, and thus one of the ones I probably will be ranting about regularly. With the travels that I have been on, I have come to find out that this is mainly a problem that the US faces, though it is now starting to effect the rest of the world as American culture spreads. This is the problem of people bottling their emotions and then going through life as if everything in their life is just fine.

 
 

You know what this breads: people that are so emotionally insecure and damaged that you can push them over with nothing more than a brush with an emotional feather. It is a ridiculous notion that everyone is so emotionally insecure that they could be shattered by a sideways glance, or a completely non-implying comment… Or is it? How many people do you know that you have to tread lightly around? Or are there topics with those people that you can't even go to because they will either blow up on you or break down? How many people do you know that need help, but will just not get it, and don't you dare suggest around them that they do or else it will be you that needs the help, medically speaking that is? How many of those people are us?

 
 

Now, why is it that we are so fragile? Our society has made us that way, is the answer. As Americans, we are taught to strive for the best, not to show any weakness, and to only take care of ourselves when the other 2 have been met. Because to let up for even a millisecond in our pursuits for success means that we are going to be trampled on, to not show any weakness because it is something that the next guy can exploit, but to not take care of ourselves, causes us to burn out. What happens to the man that strives for as long as he can, but ultimately succumbs to emotional and physical burnout? You get a 35-45 year old man that is trampled on and taken advantage of anyways. Is this what any of us wants.

 
 

I mentioned that this is really only an issue in the US. I spent several years living in Europe, Italy mainly, but I traveled around a lot. The thing that I found that caused the people there to last a lot longer emotionally is something that is a complete faux pas here in the US. Screaming, yelling, getting angry. It isn't uncommon to waking down the street and find two people yelling at each other over some small issue. Yelling is something we don't do in the US, especially not in public. We do that, we have anger management issues and need to get counseling. But tell me, what good comes of bottling all that hot air? Every time you bottle some of your anger, or other negative emotion, it is like adding another breath of air to a balloon. Eventually, the balloon is going to get so full that any sort of touch the wrong way is going to cause it to burst and not only effect the person holding it, but the person that touched it, and everyone else in the area that heard the explosion. Not a good outcome.

 
 

This rant all started with something that I see everyday. People walking around, minding their own business, but all the while I see anger, bitterness, hatred, sadness, jealousy, and a slew of other negative emotions right under the surface. Why do we let these things sit there? All they are, is the hot air inside that balloon, straining to get out. No matter who you are, eventually that balloon is going to break and ruin you life. So, might as well let it out. I may see those emotions as if they are being worn on the persons sleeve, but what would be the harm in putting it there for everyone to see. If someone offends you, let them know. They may not of realized they offended you and will try and fix the situation, or, even if they don't, you got it off your chest, which relieved some of that stress on the balloon. Maybe in the end, we will live longer, happier lives if all we do is yell a little more.