Sunday, April 26, 2009

does anyone care about right anymore?

Today's post is brought to you by the seemingly complete and utter disregard for law and order (and I'm not talking about the tv show) that 90% of today's youth seem to hold. They think nothing of breaking the law if it's a law they don't feel like complying with. They think "well, people are going to do whatever they want anyway, why should I bother trying to stop them (or talk to them, or convince them, or change their mind, or anything at all).

Today I was talking with my son about having knowledge that someone is planning to drive without a license or insurance and how it bothered me that that person thought it was ok simply b/c they didn't feel like dealing with those two things. They had no thought for the other people on the road who would suffer if the uninsured person hit them causing any damage to persons or property. They had no thought for the consequences that could bring to their current situation of being on probation and parole.

My son listened to me speaking so sincerely and so passionately about this, about the topic of doing what is right even if its not convenient for us, then expressed that the person would do what they like why should I get involved if I couldn't change that. I said "so should we just roll over and play dead about anything someone is doing that is wrong because we think the outcome may not change things" I can't live like that I can't give up on my beliefs because they may not change the world. And after hearing me again earnestly express my reluctance to give up and accept the situation, he replied to me "well, good luck with that Barney Fife." What a belittling and arrogant comment. It just drove home to me that the disregard going on is fairly universal in that age range.

Doing the right thing is something you either believe in or you don't. But I truly depair for the future of the next generation if no one cares enough to see it through. If everyone is only out for their own desires with no thought for others in society, or the rules and laws that keep us from a state of anarchy, then how will they have any semblance of a chance for greatness?

The generation before me was called "the greatest generation" - they grew up during WWII and learned to live through hardships, to stand up for right and wrong. They protested and marched in the 60s for civil rights, equality for all, and other social issues. They lobbied to change laws that weren't right for them.

My generation grew up in the 80s - we didn't have hard lives compared to generations before us. We still believed in things though and were raised with the concept of right and wrong. Some make choices to denounce those values but at least they were ingrained in us.

The generation after me has shown me apathy, disregard for structure, values, laws, and disrespect for those who try to impart to them the importance of doing what is right instead of what they feel like doing right now. I have said many times over the last few years - I fear for the future of this country because of everything I see about the group of people who will one day lead it. Because of shortcomings in their education, because of the general decline in values, morals, respect, law-abidingness (is that a word? :) I'm not talking about a problem with people believing in the same values, morals, etc. that I have - I'm talking about having any at all. I just want the younger generation to strive for something, anything worthwhile in living in a society and not in a free-for-all anarchy.

If you don't like a law - lobby to get it changed. Don't simply disregard it or blatantly break it because it's inconvenient for you to follow it. Do things the right way. Do the right thing. Do it because you know it's right. Don't ignore something that you know is wrong, simply because you might fail to make a difference. The act of trying in defense of justice and rightness is the difference itself. Everyone can make that difference, they only have to try.

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so in keeping with older posts (I can't believe it's been a year and a half since something made me mad enough to blog! :) - today's post adds a point to the same reason the last post from 11/07 had for IHEITW - "The downfall of civilization if we're relying on the youth of today" - that's at a score of 2 now.

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