IS AMERICA GOING SOFT?

The root of the question is a view expressed by many who are angry at just about everything.

They contantly attempt to remind us about the many threats we are facing from the actions of Muslims, Hispanics, Big Government, and Jenny Craig .

They argue there are too many of us who don't really care what happens to our country and they manage to do this without wearing tie-dyed clothing. Mom would be happy to hear again that "we're going to hell in a hand basket."

These critics often describe senior's action plans as: "Just don't disturb our status quo. - we've fought all the good battles - we're now officially pacifists." ( If true, one assumes they surveyed the ones who pulled their money out way before the most recent market collapse and they definitely don't read my blogs.)

This blogger disagrees with their conclusion for a bunch of reasons.

One is that I am a strong believer in the "plateau" theory addressed in a previous blog. This is the argument that one never "plateaus": we either move forward or backward - up or down..

Thus, we conclude seniors aren't "plateauing". All of us have an opinion we are willing to share with any homeless person we might happen to trip over, as well as the anonymous plane passenger, seated beside us to whom we reveal what weird Uncle Ernie really did on the farm.

It reminds one of the Fred Neil/Nilsson song, "Everybody's Talking." The irony has not escaped me that the theme of the song was the speakers desire to retreat from other people to the ocean."(What, the Gulf isn't as good?)

I also disagree becaused of moving fulltime to Florida. Here I engage in "wheel to wheel" combat every day in our little corner of the world and will willingly move off the road - even park on the grass - upon observing a senior driving a red painted vehicle anywhere within a 1/2 mile radius.

Folks, neither pacifity nor acceptance are likely words to be associated with these folks.

It's actually more like all those seniors who adopted that whole delayed gratification thing when younger are now upset and more than willing to fight back - even if they may not always recall the source of their displeasure.

There may be a reasonable explanation why a Preacher in Gainesville, "Florida," with a congregation of at best 40 to 50 people, is causing such a rumpus worldwide.

In Pittsburgh 40 to 50 was the size of the annual clean-up crew at the church. Another saving grace is that we were content to merely mispell the Quran - rather than attempting to commit fratricide.

Yep, "passive-acceptive" is not what I'd use to describe America's seniors as well as most of it's inhabitants. I recently read a few "letters to the editor" that support my conclusion. (Darn Harry, you're right again.)

One writer - a flight attendant - was defending the members of her trade. She used as examples: parents allowing their kids to ring call buttons to place orders for fast food and men who demand food be served to them while the attendants are preparing for landing.

My favorite example was the one about women complaining they can't sit by the window because they just had their hair done. (please, no more misogynist letters.)

Another non-pacifist - a restaurant owner many times over - complained that the plight of the economy as seen by the restauranteers is the result of last year's raise of the minimum wage to
the astronomical sum of $7.25 per hour. One assumes the other stuff such as smaller portions, higher prices, rude help, failing to negotiate well with Sysco, and the general shape of the economy had no impact.

The third writer is decrying the possibility that all of us attempting to purchase new vehicles in the future will be forced to put out extra for a "cost additive auto warning device" because a few folks seem to overlook the presence of their children in the car when they depart the car to do whatever.

This guy I like. It's obvious his parents spent considerable time teaching him the merits of "delayed gratification." I'll wager he never married.

Finally, one "wannabe" blogger was upset over the lack of responsibile spending in government. His cure was: "the only way to stop runaway spending is for American voters to put into office people who will attack - out-of-control spending today, not tomorrow."

Oh darn, there goes the high speed train from Tampa to Miami.

But, as my good friend Alfred E. Neumann once told me, "What, me worry?"

Luke 12: 22-34