When sifting through the day's top headlines, I am reminded of a quote from the book "Atlas Shrugged" by Ayn Rand, which I am currently reading. One of the major characters, Francisco D'Anconia asks another key character, James Taggart, "When are you going to understand James, that words have meaning?" This conversation takes place while both of these characters are children, after Francisco has shown up James in something, (I want to say it was swimming if memory serves me correctly.) James is complaining that Francisco shouldn't act as if he is better than he is, simply because he is more successful. Without going any more into the novel, I will simply say that James goes on to become quite the progressive, and has a major part in bringing the country to it's knees.
Words have meaning. I can't help but think that this oversimplified statement is being forgotten on a regular basis. At what point did we as a people forget that words have meaning, start to be dismayed over consequences of actions, and abandon the concept of thinking things through logically before speaking? It certainly isn't that our culture lacks words; but we seem to be caught up in a never ending black hole of pseudo intellectualism and shallow, silly phrases. Just turn on the radio and you will hear Eminem singing about how he is "not afraid to take a stand." Go to your nearest college campus and you will see plenty of students with false senses of righteousness and superiority wearing "live strong" bracelets. What has eminem ever taken a stand on? As far as I can tell, nothing. Yet it is constantly being talked about as an inspirational song. Why do these students wear "live strong" bracelets? Do they mean it literally concerning their health? From their constant diet of institutionalized food and beer we know that's not true. Have they faced major adversity? Well, with the government paying for so many people's school now, and the vast majority of these kids not being Vets, we know that isn't true either.
I remember shortly before Obama won the nomination for the Democrat Party, Dennis Kucinich telling the media that the word "change" wasn't just a word, that it had meaning, and that too many people were getting caught up in it. He pointed out that the word itself had neither positive or negative implications. Needless to say, the media didn't take very kindly to him clearly referring to their favorite, Obama, but it would have done them some good to consider what the man was saying. Not being a Kucinich fan, I must at least tip my hat to the man for acknowledging that what we do and say has consequences. Now today, the first rig in the gulf has taken off for Egypt, starting the inevitable decline in jobs there. One can see first hand that words have meaning. Denouncing oil companies and prohibiting them from doing their work has had an effect. It is no longer something which environmentalists, progressives, and liberals can rally around and get the warm fuzzies over; it is something which has caused consequences which they must actually deal with.
And yet, more and more people forget that words have meaning, and that it would help their own cause to think things through rationally and logically before opening their mouths. Minutes ago I got off the phone with my good friend and fellow Marine, Gary Grant. As we are both students our conversation turned to our experiences at our respective colleges. We found that both places have a prevailing attitude of thinking that it's the cool thing to come from a poor family, a family with only one parent, a bad neighborhood, and most of all, a family that has no white collar workers in it. When did America stop thinking rationally so much, and begin to think that one is actually expected to be more proud of an unsuccessful background than one that is full of success and triumph? When did it become OK to disrespect a family with a doctor or a businessman as the head of the household, which includes a happy marriage and financial security, and yet expected to revere and to champion the household of financial irresponsibility, crime, dependence on welfare and lack of marriage? Even in the military, an organization which I love, I witnessed the tones and glances of a few people saying, "heh, you're from the suburbs" or "yeah, you had money didn't you?" My answer was always a proud, "YES!" Of course this surprised people who were raised to think that I would be ashamed of my parent's or anyone's success.
I would be willing to bet, that if I were to ask these students and these military men who had come from a more humble background than I, if they wished to be successful or unsuccessful they would choose successful every time. I very much doubt that their goal is to end up living in the projects or the ghetto, that they wish to enter a life of crime, or to end up on welfare. I am sure they would rather have money than being constantly strapped for cash. I am sure the college students hope to have decent jobs and to provide for their future children with the degrees they will attain from the university. I am sure the few guys I came across in the Marines who had the attitudes I just wrote about, will strive for promotion, and work hard in their field to provide for their families, or use the skills they've attained in the military for future jobs in the civilian sector to do so.
So why then, is it becoming common for so many people in America to say these absurd things, and to embrace this bumper sticker ideology and shallow liberal drivel? I think the answer is clear. They have forgotten that words have meaning.
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