MONDAY MANIA

I'm Becoming a Pessimist, and I Can Prove It.

This week starts my attempt to adhere to a blogging schedule. Today the resource for my pessimistic rebuttals is Reader's Digest. I love RD and subscribe to it yearly, but while reading one of their upbeat articles,I realized how the state of affairs has affected my outlook. I refer to "It's a Wonderful Life." I'm not going to type the entire content, rather paraphrase the ten reasons stated for finding thankfulness.

They advise...Count your blessings. It's suggested we take stock of all that's good in our life. I can do this, and do, frequently. In fact, I'm a big advocate to look for the good rather than the bad...
BUT
When the newspaper and TV headlines, radio talk shows, and Internet all reek of havoc, panic, unemployment, discord, stupid spending, and the unfairness in the Middle East, I tend to forget what I'm supposed to focus on. Here's what they suggest:

1. FREE TIME: RD states that Americans have more free time than they've ever had--more than five hours per day more...
BUT
When you can't afford to go anywhere or do anything because gasoline has soared out of control, your family members are unemployed and you're trying to help keep them afloat, it's really hard to be thankful for all that free time. Nothing is really free, is it?

2. PEACE. RD cites the 6.7 billion people living in peace...
BUT
Why then do we have military absent from their families in a country where we really shouldn't have a vested interest. Why do we keep sticking our noses into everyone else's business, and why is Hamas still lobbing bombs into Israel after they declared a ceasefire? If I lived in the inner city where gangs roam the streets and home invasions are a common occurrence, I really don't think this would rank high on my list. Thankfully, I don't, but I sympathize with those who do.

3. A ROOMIER AMERICAN DREAM: RD cites the increased square footage of homes today over years ago. Since 1950, more people own homes, and even the third that lacked complete plumping, now enjoy indoor comfort. Where once single story homes were the norm, we now have two-story homes sporting more than 2200 sq. ft.
BUT
Aren't we always reminded about saving resources (electricity, water, etc.). It seems to me that building bigger homes that require more natural gas or electric to heat/cool, acreage to water, and lumber to build, is a direct nose thumbing to those who concern themselves with the environment and the ecosystem. Not to mention how many of these homes have been foreclosed on.

4. THE READER'S REVOLUTION: Okay, so there are more literate people today than were in 1970, and libraries offer bigger selections to the masses...
BUT
This doesn't change the dismal fact for those of us published with internet companies. People still want to feel real books in their hands and haven't gotten on the techno wagon yet. Yes, the Internet as RD states, offers more selection and books are less likely to ever go out of print, but more and more authors join the ranks every day, and the competition is tough. Despite hours of promotion, you can't teach an old dog new tricks...really, you can't. I can really whine about this one. :)

5. THE HORN OF PLENTY: This blessing concerned the abundance and variety of food over yesteryear...
BUT
Every day there is a new study that tells you what you're eating is going to kill you, cause a debilitating disease, or adds you to the rolls of those considered Obese!

6. MORE WILDERNESS: Open space and peaceful forests beyond the sprawling burbs...
BUT
That's only because developers haven't found a way to reduce them to rubble. And again...who can afford to travel?

7. THE MODERN AUTOMOBILE: Ah...the sound of GM and Chrysler grinding to a halt and extending an upturned palm. Oops...this was supposed to be the positive part where we've progressed beyond horse drawn carriages and gas guzzlers.
BUT
The cost of autos has increased so dramatically, people are incurring a life-long debt when they buy one. The union has demanded so much in return for shoddy work, and substandard products, that foreign car sales have driven the American companies into the ground. People still cry, Buy American, but cry even more after they do. That is if you can even find anything that's made in America to begin with. I saw that was going to be an amended part of the stimulus package. Not only would that hurt our foreign trade, it would virtually turn everyone into a nudist. Try to find a selection of clothing that isn't made in China, Pakistan, Taiwan, or some other third world country.

8. THE PLATINUM AGE OF TELEVISION: True, we've come a long way since the 50s, with hundreds of channels and selections...
BUT
It's not like they drift into your house for free. As a matter of fact, $650 of the stimulus deal is going toward covering the shift from analog to digital. So besides paying for Comcast, Dish or Direct, we'll be footing that bill, too.

9. RETREAT FROM ARMAGEDDON: RD cites that 90% of the 50,000 nuclear warheads in existence during the Cold War have been eliminated...
BUT
What about Iran and South Korea. Those aren't tinker toys they're boasting. Seems we looked in the wrong place for the weapons of mass destruction.

10. MEMORIES: This wasn't what I expected. Longer life and accompanied memory loss is being improved by the development of memory-enhancing drugs. Also cited as blessings are digital photos, videos and cells phones to help us capture our most precious moments. It all sounds so...so stupid.
BECAUSE
People driving with cell phones are killing off people before they even have a chance to make any memories, and the FDA is approving new drugs without really researching the side affects. If you listen to a TV ad for any medication, the fast-talking announcer spends most of the airtime spouting off what might happen should you take the med. I don't want one of my memories to be my being hauled out a casino because my Restless Leg Syndrome pill drove me to a new habit. *lol*

Really...this was an attempt at humor, and I do encourage all of us to count our blessings. In times like this, we sure can't count our money. *smile* I'm still a "glass half-full" person, and always will be. I refuse to let the turkeys get me down.