"Everybody Knows...

The world is full of stupid people..." - The Refreshments, Banditos

I am so tired of the mentality that permeates society regarding actions and consequence. Just now I was watching ABC News – one of the only major network news broadcasts I can stomach – and there was a report on the mortgage crisis in our country. A couple people were highlighted who are experiencing the crunch because they got into a mortgage that was way over their head. One lady started crying because the bank told her a couple days before Christmas that the home was going into foreclosure. Some wacko in a bright yellow t-shirt said “The mortgage company got us in this situation and they need to get us out of it.”

Here in Atlanta we’ve been dealing with the Mike Vick situation. For those of you who don’t keep up with news, Vick has agreed to plea out to charges that include dog fighting (illegal), gambling (illegal), cruelty to animals (illegal), and other (illegal) conduct. There’s a stink being raised in some corners that it’s not fair Vick be subjected to these charges because people have done worse and the government is out to make an example of someone and this poor, misunderstood athlete with a $130 million contract is the victim of or prejudice society. Additionally, the Atlanta chapter of the NAACP has said that Mike Vick deserves a chance to play in the NFL after he serves his time.

Of course the illegal immigration issue rages one. Somehow it is the heartless, unwelcoming rich people that don’t want the illegal immigrants here; if the Statue of Liberty could cry she would because we are turning away so many poor and needy people. The same people who taxpayers foot the bill for when they become sick, when they have babies, when they need food.

AARRGGHHH!!!!!!

I’ve had it up to here (since you can’t see, I’m pointing to my receding hairline) with the sob stories of individuals who chose to engage in high risk behavior and then when it’s time to pay the piper, they through themselves a pity party and wonder why they are being picked on.

With the mortgage issues: Don’t blame the mortgage company because you decided to go with an ARM or an Interest-Only loan and now you can’t afford it. Is it the mortgage company’s fault you bit off more than you could chew? It’s not like it’s your house. If you had to borrow the money to buy the house, it isn’t yours. Live in an apartment; try a smaller house; it’s so awful you can’t live where all the ‘cool’ (outrageously in debt) people live next to the trendy shops you can’t afford. If you can’t afford it, DON’T BUY IT! Show some self-discipline and go with out. The mortgage company is a COMPANY. They are out to make MONEY. The only reason they care if you get a house is because it means that agent can bring home some cash so he can pay his own mortgage.

The Vick debacle: What Mike did was ILLEGAL. Have people done worse and not gone to the slammer (Ray Lewis – watched two people get killed and did nothing; Leonard Little – killed some folks while driving drunk; OJ Simpson – well, you know this one)? Sure. Does it change the fact Mike associated with the dregs of society, financed them and broke the law? No. And it’s not Vick’s right to play in the NFL again. The NFL is a business, a multi-billion dollar organization. Like any business, it’s their prerogative to decide who will be best able to further their enterprise. I don’t care if Vick plays again. If some owner wants to take that on, that’s his choice; but it’s not some obligation they should have. If I owned a business and someone told me I had to hire an individual that would damage my image, I’d kindly show them the door.

Illegal Immigration: For me it’s so much more than the financial or economic ramifications of illegal immigration. Tell the 3000+ people who lost their lives on 9/11 that illegal immigration is okay and their no threat to our nation. There’s no hating on Hispanics – those who make up the majority of illegal immigrants in the US – with this. It’s about security. There are people out there – and thanks to our porous borders and jacked up system, in here – who wouldn’t hesitate to do you or I harm simply because we were born in the US and we support the Constitution. The Fort Dix Six are the perfect example of illegal immigration problems. The unwed teenage mothers at the high school Paula taught at who go to the clinic to have the baby they can’t afford…who foots the bill? You and I.

The fact of the matter is all men aren’t created equal. Sorry. They aren’t. Some people are attractive, some are ugly; some are fat, some are skinny, some are perfect; some are intelligent, some are dumb as rocks; some people are lazy, some people work hard; some people have handicaps, some don’t; some people are rich, some are poor. It’s the way it goes.

That being said, everyone starts out with the right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. That doesn’t mean it’s our inalienable right to be happy; it means we all – short or tall, dumb or smart, rich or poor – have the right to pursue what is called happiness. It doesn’t mean you get it. It doesn’t mean that despite participating in illegal activities, making foolish choices or leaching off the system we still get to be happy. It doesn’t even mean that because we are good, hard-working, upstanding people trying as hard as we can that we’ll be happy. Happy is a state of being, not a position or pay scale. Sometimes life is just a kick in the pants. My hat is off to those who obey the law, build up people and society and still don’t have everything they want but choose to be happy rather than play the blame game.

That’s all. I’m done. I’m apologizing in advance for any grammatical errors as this was written in the height of emotion.

I blame Microsoft for not having a better grammar and spell check.

Bill Gates started this problem and he needs to fix it.