Archive for October, 2010

I’m sick of the whole politically-correct movement. Everyone is being brainwashed by this politically-correct nonsense to be way too thin-skinned nowadays. If you ask the average Joe or Jane on the street, they’d tell you that this oversensitivity to every critique (and it’s getting ridiculous) is not doing anyone any good and only invites more of the same.

There’s pressure on Ron Howard to drop a joke in his new film, “The Dilemma” because, in one scene, Vince Vaughn’s character calls an electric car “gay”.  Ron Howard, to his credit, is refusing to, calling such an idea what it is – censorship.  It’s a joke…please!  Whatever happened to “sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never harm me?” Now, words have become so harmful in the past 20 or so years?  They’re only words!  C’mon people, grow a pair of whatever suits you, develop a sense of humor, and learn to roll with things.  Remember, a sense of humor goes a long way in this crazy existence.

One of my personal heroes, Clint Eastwood, laments the loss of old-fashioned humor in today’s society – saying that he should be able to tell harmless jokes about nationality without fear of people branding him a “racist.”  Clint agrees with me that modern culture has become humorless, and that people now spend too much time trying to avoid being offensive.

He says, “People have lost their sense of humor. In former times we constantly made jokes about different races. You can only tell them today with one hand over your mouth or you will be insulted as a racist.

“I find that ridiculous. In those earlier days every friendly clique had a ‘Sam the Jew’ or ‘Jose the Mexican’ – but we didn’t think anything of it or have a racist thought. It was just normal that we made jokes based on our nationality or ethnicity. That was never a problem. I don’t want to be politically correct. We’re all spending too much time and energy trying to be politically correct about everything.”

Amen, brother.

I was thinking this morning about how everyone rails against liberals, like it’s a dirty word. This started in the eighties with Reagan and Limbaugh, and continues today with Beck and other conservative pundits. I’d like to play Devil’s Advocate and mention some of the GOOD things liberals and liberal ideas have brought us. Here are just a few:

America declaring Independence from England, based on the
quintessentially liberal idea of the “Rule by Consent of the Governed”.
The Bill of Rights
The end of slavery
Women’s right to vote
The end of segregation
Civil rights for all
The 40-hour work week
Employment benefit packages
The end of child labor
Social Security
The end of workplace discrimination
Consumer protection laws against dangerous and fraudulent products

Not all bad now, is it? I disagree with the neo-cons and others that “liberal” is a dirty word. I’m a moderate, as were Eisenhower and Nixon, because in politics, as in life, there is no black and white, only shades of gray. Just a little perspective, folks.  Liberal ideas differ from the liberal establishment and lefty radicalism.  Also, liberal ideas differ from liberal government-up-my-ass policies.  I love my freedoms, including the right to bear arms.  As long as I’m not harming others, leave me alone to be who I am. Enough said – Spry out.

First off, a disclaimer – this blog isn’t directed at anyone, specifically. OK, it comes down to this – I’m extremely tired of people making excuses about their behavior and not taking responsibility for their actions, for one. You know, if you screw up (and we all do) just admit it and move on. Don’t try to lay your blame game trip on me, sister or brother. And while you’re at it, do us all a favor and stop wallowing in self-pity…DO something about it!

Where have real guts gone, anyway? Anyone who has any guts, whatsoever is chastised nowadays as some kind of loon. Most everyone, it seems to me, is getting a little soft in the middle. I know, I know, there are people who actually need help, and it’s never wrong to ask for help if you need it.  But what I like about the Brits is that they tighten their belts and keep a stiff-upper lip in the face of adversity. Americans are ubersoft by comparison. We medicate in the face of adversity.  I wonder if we could have survived the sheer onslaught of bombs that were dropped on London during WWII. We were damn lucky that we were a continent away at the time. And that generation was a lot tougher than this one!

I just think we’ve become too soft and lazy, and are afraid of tapping our true potential. If everyone woke up one day, still hungover from their “pity parties” of the previous evening, and really buckled down and got to work, doing whatever they truly enjoy, they would surprise themselves with what they’d be able to accomplish. So, in conclusion, two words – “Man up” (and yes that applies to women too). Let’s all grow a pair and be all we can freaking be!