Things I think are wrong with this country

[oceanman]

I would hit it.

[Guest Jules]

[isadorah]

Seems calculated to me. When's the last time anybody gave much of a shit about Ellen DeGeneres?

 

 

when was the last time a pet adoption agency had legal footing to enforce its return to sender policy? someone should tell Ellen that she could go to court and get the dog back, i'm guessing easily, animals are considered property in practically every state and the adoption contracts people sign with shelters/rescue groups are legally thin.

[JUDE]

Why do you hate dogs?

 

[Sir Stewart]

That kid has puppy dog eyes!

[bjorn_skurj]

when was the last time a pet adoption agency had legal footing to enforce its return to sender policy? someone should tell Ellen that she could go to court and get the dog back, i'm guessing easily, animals are considered property in practically every state and the adoption contracts people sign with shelters/rescue groups are legally thin.

Didn't this happen in California?

[deepseacatfish]

Things that are wrong...

 

More interest in convenience/cheapness than anything else whether it be in products, services, or anything.

Less investment in cooperative interests than personal interests.

 

 

In my mind most things stem out of that, if this country thought more cooperatively we wouldn't have issues with universal health-care, homelessness, and likely crime as well. There are more things I'm sure, but I just think it's a quality that isn't nearly stressed or reinforced enough.

 

Convenience can be a good thing, but I think it also leads people to be lazy. Not buying local foods because Wal-Mart makes shopping cheaper--and "easier" is just sad, companies willing to outsource work to foreign countries to provide cost-cuts and therefore cheapness to their consumers, convenience in not having to walk to a bus-stop when you can just drive yourself. Being thoughtful about how money is spent and moved and how your time is spent is important, but I think the general cultural message of American spending is cheaper! convenient! Sometimes taking extra time or paying extra money results in a better quality of life. Jeez.

[Tweedling]

Convenience can be a good thing, but I think it also leads people to be lazy. Not buying local foods because Wal-Mart makes shopping cheaper--and "easier" is just sad, companies willing to outsource work to foreign countries to provide cost-cuts and therefore cheapness to their consumers, convenience in not having to walk to a bus-stop when you can just drive yourself. Being thoughtful about how money is spent and moved and how your time is spent is important, but I think the general cultural message of American spending is cheaper! convenient! Sometimes taking extra time or paying extra money results in a better quality of life. Jeez.

All U Can Eat

Ben Folds

 

Son, look at all the people in this restaurant

What do you think they weigh?

And out the window to the parking lot

At their SUV's taking all the space

 

They give no fuck

They talk as loud as they want

They give no fuck

Just as long as there's enough for them

 

Gonna get on the microphone down at Wal-Mart

Talk about some shit that's been on my mind

Talk of the state of this great nation of ours

People look to your left

Yeah, look to your right

 

They give no fuck

They buy as much as they want

They give no fuck

Just as long as there's enough for them

 

Son, look at the people lining up for plastic

Wouldn't you like to see them in the National Geographic?

Squatting bare assed in the dirt eating rice from a bowl

With a towel on their head, and maybe a bone in their nose

 

See that asshole with the peace sign on his license plate?

Giving me the finger and running me out of his lane

God made us number one because he loves us the best

Well he should go bless someone else for a while

Give us a rest

 

(They give no)

Yeah, and everyone can see

(They give no)

We've eaten all that we can eat

 

Call me a pinko, but I believe everyone should have the same level of health care, excepting plastic surgery. You want that shit, you pay for it yourself. Do poor people automatically get less clean water or broken sidewalks? (They do, a lot, actually, but I think they shouldn't.) The problem with running a society totally on profit motive is what we're seeing happening today - a development of a very small class of very rich people, who have more money than they can possibly use, to the detriment of everyone else, lower class and, increasingly, middle class.

There for a minute I thought you were talking about mexico.

[yermom]

When watching "Over the Hedge" with my daughter, I really enjoyed the (reworked) lyrics to Ben Folds' "Rockin' the Suburbs"

They touch on a lot of things that bother me in this country and they're funny!:

 

Let me tell y'all what it's like

watching "Idol" on a friday night

In a house built safe and sound

on Indian burial grounds

Sham on

 

We drive our cars everyday

to and from work both ways

So we make just enough to pay

to drive our cars to work each day

Hey, hey

 

We're rockin' the suburbs

around the block just one more time

We're rockin' the suburbs

'Cause I can't tell which house is mine

 

We're rockin' the suburbs

We part the shades and face the facts

They've got better lookin' fescue

right across the cul-de-sac

 

Hot real-estate - rising stars

'get rich quick' seminars

soap opera magazines

40 thousand watt nativity scenes

 

Don't freak about the smoke alarm

Mom left the TV dinner on

 

We're rockin' the suburbs

From Family Feud to Chevy Chase

We're rockin' the suburbs

Numb the muscles in our face

 

We're rockin' the suburbs

We feed the dog and mow the lawn

Watching Mommy bounce the checks

while Daddy juggles credit cards

 

(William Shatner talking)

 

We're rockin' the suburbs

Everything we need is here

We're rockin' the suburbs

But it wasn't here last year

We're rockin' the suburbs

You'll never know when we are gone

Because the timer lights the front

and turns the cricket noises on

 

Each night - yeah, yeah

we're rockin' the suburbs

yeah, yeah

[tongue-tied]

They've got better lookin' fescue

right across the cul-de-sac

 

[isadorah]

[quote name='JUDE

[Lammycat]

Kids are over-protected. Too many soft parents. Every kid gets a medal for participating and they grow up thinking life's unfair when they find out they're actually not as good at something as the next person. That's what's wrong with this country. And people trying to pass off Canadian bacon as real bacon. I shouldn't have to state "not Canadian" when asking for bacon.

[stooka]

Kids are over-protected. Too many soft parents. Ever kid gets a medal for participating and they grow up thinking life's unfair when they find out they're actually not as good at something as the next person. That's what's wrong with this country. And people trying to pass off Canadian bacon as real bacon. I shouldn't have to state "not Canadian" when asking for bacon.

 

 

The Age Of Entitlement.

[austrya]

Kids are over-protected. Too many soft parents. Every kid gets a medal for participating and they grow up thinking life's unfair when they find out they're actually not as good at something as the next person. That's what's wrong with this country. And people trying to pass off Canadian bacon as real bacon. I shouldn't have to state "not Canadian" when asking for bacon.

 

This does piss me off, not the Canadian bacon thing but the kid thing.

 

I hate going to a little league game where they don't keep score and everyone gets to bat.

[Lammycat]

I hate going to a little league game where they don't keep score and everyone gets to bat.

I agree. Losing with pride and dignity is as good a, if not better, lesson than winning/everybody's a winner.

 

My 7 year-old started Little League last spring with these rules. After the second/third week it was lame. I realize that it's introductory (it was softer balls but coach-pitched) and "fun" is the main deal and all, but they ignored teaching fundamentals like base-running and even let the kids stay on base if their pop-up was caught, etc. Weak.

 

A new league next year for the kid.

[Mr. Kinsley]

It pisses me off that they aren't teaching fundamentals more than the everyone wins thing. At 7 - whatever - but come 8 it's time to play for keeps. Well, as long as the coaches aren't treating it like they're in the major leagues. Your point about learning to lose (as well as win) with pride and dignity is definitely the key. I've seen more than a few rogue coaches in my day and they're rather disgusting. And also probably the reason for the "everybody wins" league.

 

EDIT: For how long does the we all bat and win stuff go on for? Until they're 8? 9? 15? If it's one year that might not be the worst thing ever. My little league didn't start until 8.

[austrya]

Where we live it's t-ball through machine pitch, so until they are going into 3rd or 4th grade. That's a long time not to teach them what outs mean, ya know. Plus, it doesn't give the kids any incentive to try harder.

[plasticeyeball]

Maybe you should all have your kids play soccer instead. I mean, after all, baseball is for pussies.

 

 

I don't think you should sweat the non competetive sports thing. It all ends soon enough. The theory is to be able to let all kids, (all meaning even if they suck) play different sports to see what their interests are. You know, see what they like and what they are good at. If you start weeding out the weak ones at 5 or 6 years old, you have a much better chance of having kids quit before they even know if they like something. Lammy, your a teacher. I would think you would see that the benefit of a little extra self esteem can carry over into other important things. (like school)

 

I don't know, maybe I'm just a little sad at how quick they grow up anyway. I could be totally wrong about all this, except the baseball thing.

[Lammycat]

Maybe you should all have your kids play soccer instead. I mean, after all, baseball is for pussies.

I don't think you should sweat the non competetive sports thing. It all ends soon enough. The theory is to be able to let all kids, (all meaning even if they suck) play different sports to see what their interests are. You know, see what they like and what they are good at. If you start weeding out the weak ones at 5 or 6 years old, you have a much better chance of having kids quit before they even know if they like something. Lammy, your a teacher. I would think you would see that the benefit of a little extra self esteem can carry over into other important things. (like school)

Good points, but even the kids were complaining about it. It's not a big deal and the baseball example is but an analogy to the bigger issue, as I see it. Kids are over-coddled (in general) and there seems to be a prevalent feeling to protect them from the reality that life has it's "downs" to go with it's "ups." I still think kids need to learn early to take their lumps with a grain of salt and move on.

 

Self esteem is built through accepting shortfalls, dealing with them in a healthy way, and moving on, as well as getting the pat on the back and the praise for a job well done

[Sir Stewart]

Ben Folds.

[plasticeyeball]

towels? wha

[plasticeyeball]

I still think kids need to learn early to take their lumps with a grain of salt and move on.

 

we tripped our kids alot as they grew just for this reason. plus cause it's fun.

 

 

Good points, but even the kids were complaining about it. It's not a big deal and the baseball example is but an analogy to the bigger issue, as I see it. Kids are over-coddled (in general) and there seems to be a prevalent feeling to protect them from the reality that life has it's "downs" to go with it's "ups." I still think kids need to learn early to take their lumps with a grain of salt and move on.

 

Self esteem is built through accepting shortfalls, dealing with them in a healthy way, and moving on, as well as getting the pat on the back and the praise for a job well done

 

 

Everybody's different and has different feelings and experiences. My viewpoint comes from when my oldest was 5 and we let him try everything. He played T-ball which was a joke and although he liked the one time he could hit the ball every half hour the rest was a drag and he realized the game involved alot of sitting around.

 

so he and his twin sister played soccer, which he liked alot and at that age was a no score keeping clusterfuck of kids kicking each others shins. ( which is funny)

 

Then he tried pop warner football, which at 5 was flag football, no pads. Man, that shit was sooooo competetive at 5 that I had a bad taste for kids sports that I was afraid I'd never shake. In that, they kept statistics and kept score and there was alot of praise for the winners and the kids that did good and alot of shame for the losers and the kids that just weren't that good at football yet. Yes, just like you'd think, the parents had alot to do with it because all of them were asshats but what struck me was how much I really and truly disliked the kids. They were so competetive and mean spirited, hell bent on fucking with the kid who screwed up a play that I realized that I didn't want any of my kids turning into or even hanging out with these so called "kids".

 

So, we settled for soccer. They keep score. It a tough sport. It's competetive but very team oriented. (although my oldest has been our keeper for the last 2 years which is 4 seasons so when they lose, he takes it a little personally.) They can both play on the same team which helps for scheduling. And most importantly, I like it and can watch it without ever getting bored.

[a.miller]

I get the feeling there is a growing acceptance of irresponsibility in America. People use less and less common sense and make poor judgments; making no reservations about pointing a finger at someone or something to blame when things go wrong.

 

Case in point: the Internet. I watched a news program last night where some creep coerced a 16 year old girl to meet him after talking with her in a chat room. A kidnapping and terrible line of events occurred. The girl was thankfully found alive. Her parents blamed the Internet, not their daughter's poor judgment. They said there needs to be "cyber police" to look out for people when using the Internet.

 

How about this: Use your brain and some judgment. If some idiot came up to me on the street, told me he knew me and to come over to his house, the last thing I would do is go there.

 

People not taking responsibility for themselves or their actions is something that is wrong with this country.

[austrya]

Allowing middle school girls to get birth control pills without their parent's consent is another thing I'm worried about.

 

I forsee infertility problems for these girls one day and also horrible, horrible periods when they stop taking the pill after however many years. Plus, what 11-13 year old girl is going to remember to take the pill every day, at the same time?

 

Instead of handing out the pill, they should find out why these girls are having sex in the first place. I can pretty much guarantee at that age, it's not because it feels good. It's more about getting a boy to like them. That's really sad.

[Guest Jules]

Allowing middle school girls to get birth control pills without their parent's consent is another thing I'm worried about.

 

I forsee infertility problems for these girls one day and also horrible, horrible periods when they stop taking the pill after however many years. Plus, what 11-13 year old girl is going to remember to take the pill every day, at the same time?

 

Instead of handing out the pill, they should find out why these girls are having sex in the first place. I can pretty much guarantee at that age, it's not because it feels good. It's more about getting a boy to like them. That's really sad.

I'm never letting my daughter leave the house.