The United States of America is a country founded on Christian ideals. One nation under god, remember? Obviously you do not remember, that was almost two hundred and fifty years ago. Jefferson, Adams and some guy Washington, the man who sits on a dollar bill to some folks, were Christian, god fearing men, who put their blood, sweat, and tears in creating this wonderful nation. Whether you believe in God or you do not, that is not the issue here. What bothers me is that the United States, created by our Christian forefathers, has people in it who are offended by individuals who for instance say Merry Christmas. Saying Happy Chanukah or Merry Christmas to a friend or neighbor is now worse than walking down the street with the old big middle finger in the air. We might offend someone by expressing holiday cheer. We have become not just a politically correct nation but an oversensitive one.
All in the Family was one of the funniest shows on in television history and arguably one of the best shows of all time. Can you imagine a network looking at a pilot with Archie Bunker in it today? All in the Family was ground breaking for its humor, tackling the politics of the time, racism, and so much more. The underlying theme of this sitcom was to show how ludicrous bigotry really is through humor. The corporate executives at the networks would see the show as too controversial in today’s market if it was presented today. One of the greatest shows in television history would never air in 2009 because people would not see the humor and the teaching principals that the show would bring. Activists would crucify the show and the networks would buckle to the pressure.
Name calling has always been like a national pastime in my family especially between my brother and me. My brother can not go five minutes without calling me some type of name. Trust me I love him dearly and I do find it fascinating how many ways he can call a moron. He has always made me laugh and time and again he has got it right back with my irresistible charm and wit. We have gone to many an event where our needling has been overheard by bystanders. Laughter is the best medicine and if we are only offending ourselves why should it matter to anyone? We are only insulting each other for laughs and we certainly are not insulting others.
We can not debate anyone anymore in this country without offending someone or being put down for our beliefs. Look at the town meetings over this health care debate. If you voice an opinion and it goes against the main stream you are vilified. People who protest for a cause should be able to without worrying about someone who is sensitive about what is being protested. Our forefathers again believed in debate. Debate is healthy and positive in this society.
Look at the way history books are now being re-written. How can we re-write history? How can we teach what really did not happen because people are sensitive to the events and mistakes of our nation’s past. History should teach us a lesson and to correct the mistakes of the past. Changing the past changes the lessons learned from the past.
I was driving in town a couple of weeks ago and in the center of town was an anti-war protest. My first reaction was to open the window and shout out that our troops are protecting all of us. When I thought about it after awhile I realized our troops fight for us every day so we can be free to say what we feel and to express those feelings in a lawful way.
Tolerance to others is why we thrive as a nation. Freedoms of speech and protections of speech is our right in the constitution. Over and over people have used that right to shoot down things that have been in our lives since our grandparents’ grandparents. Freedom of speech goes both ways and I am a proponent of that right. What I am not a proponent of is how people take that speech and take it the wrong way. I do not like saying Happy Holidays, I like saying Merry Christmas and Happy Chanukah. I also believe that everyone has a right to their own opinion regardless of what those opinions are. Political correctness has gone so far overboard that we no longer express what we are really thinking or really believe. In these times losing our humorous ways will drive us to being robotic and who wants that?
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