In general,
when people are faced with choices, they will take the one that will be of most
benefit to themselves. It doesn’t matter if it’s considered a ‘good’ or ‘bad’
choice-if it works, we do it.
In the good
old days, your life and your choices were pretty much all ready set for
you. Whatever your parents did, you did.
Women were expected to marry and have children and men were expected to work to
keep their families fed, housed and clothed.
This is how the world worked for many thousands of years without much
variation.
Since the
advent of the Industrial Revolution, and again in our time, life is changing at
an ever increasingly rapid pace. Take anyone from a regular background in the
mid 1800’s and throw them into today’s life, and you would see the equivalent
of the deer in the headlight phenomenon-absolute inability to process any of
the information coming at him or her.
In many
ways, we ourselves are not really that different from our visitor from the
past. As a species, humans are very adaptable, but it seems that the pace of
change has become such that most people have lost essential parts of themselves
in the process of adapting. We have become less tolerant of others, less open
to variety, less able to cope with our day to day needs while keeping the big
picture in mind.
We can see
perfect examples everyday in something as simple as driving habits. Where I live we have round-a-bouts in several
major intersections. Very few people
know how they work and there are countless accidents and near misses daily
because everyone wants to be first. I’m not sure exactly when this “me first,
screw everyone else” mindset became so widespread, but it has become ingrained
in our daily lives and reinforced by media, politics, and even popular
religion. We can’t blame others for this
either-all of us have had a part to play in the degradation of common manners
and morals. American society especially
has seen a rapid decline in those ideals we once held in common. There used to be a time when the majority of
people looked out for those unable to care for themselves; when we were
champions of the downtrodden; when life meant more than the stuff we could buy
and the money in our bank accounts. The
Baby Boomers grew up and many realized that the peace and love of the sixties
was not going to care for them in their old age, so they turned into the people
they once scorned. Most of the people in
the succeeding generations have been raised the same way since.
So how does
this figure into decision-making? In a
time of no clear choices, moral or otherwise, many people prefer to simply keep
doing what they’ve been doing regardless of the effect on their physical or
mental health. They have developed an
attitude of superiority over others that is heartbreaking in its lack of
character, dangerous in terms of their health, and dangerous to others’ health
as well.
In order to
make good decisions everyone must have a solid personal code of conduct. Regardless if it is religion-based or not,
certain core ideas need to be reexamined today-minus all of the bullshit and
drama inflicted on us by those that consider themselves morally superior to the
rest of us. What follows is my own collection
of ideas-I’m not saying that this is “THE WAY” to live-they work for me, and I
try to keep myself acting in positive ways generally. These ideas are food for thought if nothing
else.
1.
Above
all else, try to keep from harming others, physically or emotionally. This one is pretty self-explanatory.
2.
Have
an open mind. What works for one person,
doesn’t always work for everyone.
3.
Live
correctly-by this I mean that you treat others with respect; you don’t lie,
cheat or steal. Ever. No Exceptions.
4.
Treat
yourself with respect as well. You are
not a doormat for others to walk all over.
Be brave and stand up for yourself.
5.
No
decision is ever irreversible. You are allowed to change your mind and your
attitude.
6.
As
a human, your journey to grow and learn is never over. Keep learning new things, critically examine
everything you see, read, or hear.
Research. If it doesn’t fit
reality don’t accept it.
7.
Finally-I
am no better or no worse than ANYONE else.
I am who I am, as Popeye used to say.
Those that claim moral superiority over others usually have ulterior
motives-especially if they are popular.
Be cautious about following others without examining their motivations;
be especially cautious if they say that theirs is the only way to
live/think/act.
Well,
this turned more ‘sermony’ than I started-but it’s Sunday, so I guess that’s
okay.
Next
up will be a return to decision-making!
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