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Watch Out for those Despair Dogs!
By Al
Ruechel | 07-22-02
I can think of no emotion more deadly to
the human spirit than despair. If you want to break a child’s spirit
just keeping telling them how rotten and worthless they are. If you
want to kill worker productivity just keep holding their jobs over
their heads and keeping reminding them they can be replaced. If you
want to ruin our economy just preach the gospel of corporate hate
and distrust. If you can’t find a reason to vote for a candidate
then create a reason to vote against another candidate.
Does this all ring a little too close to home? After September 11th
our nation was in mourning and the sadness we felt was tempered by
our desire to comfort those afflicted and punish those responsible.
We were all told over and over that it would be a long, difficult
task. We all knew going in the economy was in for a tough ride. And
we should have known that no single individual or institution would
be able to correct all of these problems at once. None of that
mattered because we were focused on the good of our country and not
on ourselves.
So what’s happened to change this? For some reason many of us have
begun to despair. I’m not talking about having a bad day. I’ve been
meeting and talking to more and more folks who just don’t see an end
to their woes. They almost seem to delight in their perceived
misery. They’ve started to believe we are never going to see an end
to terror in the world. Everyday they wake up and turn on the TV
expecting to see another suicide bombing in the Middle East. They
think the stock market is going to keep tanking. They are just
waiting around for the next company to take advantage of us. They
think the world is going to end and global warming will bring an end
to this planet if the magnetic poles don’t reverse themselves and
wipe us out sooner. They are completely miserable at work and
generally unpleasant to be around. These are the kind of people who
can’t wait for you to ask them how they are doing just so they can
list their encyclopedia of physical maladies.
Now here’s the part that ticks me off even more. I think some
politicians in Washington are seeding some of this despair. These
chicken littles are manipulating our emotions for personal gain and
the sole purpose of trying to win seats in November. If you would
have told me six months ago that any political party would
deliberately skew the truth in order to gain political advantage I
would have suggested you visit a shrink. Then again, I’m pretty
gullible; the perpetual glass is half full not half empty kind of
guy.
I have huge problems with some of our elected officials who seem to
be taking great delight in the market’s fall in order to blame the
President. They are the same folks who implied the President knew
about the September 11th attacks and did nothing. All they can see
is the upcoming elections. It’s all about which party wins, may the
welfare of our country be damned. My granddad would call these folks
the dogs of despair because they are constantly nipping at our
heels, never quite close enough to sink their teeth into our ankles,
never quite near enough for you to give ‘em a good kick in the
teeth, which is what they deserve.
I have two partial solutions for these dilemmas. To deal with lying,
cheating, jaw-dragging, politicians you get yourself a mailing list
of all the jerks that occupy capitol hill and you send them a short
note which reads as follows:
Dear Senator or Congress ___________,
I’m watching you! I don’t care who you think you are. You are
supposed to be a servant of the people and not some kind of King or
Queen. The next time I hear you dragging my country through the mud
just to feather your party’s nest or your chance of getting
re-elected I’m going to hold you personally responsible. Not only
that, I will do everything within my power as a voting American to
make sure your stay in Washington is ended as soon as possible. You
aren’t God. You don’t have all the answers. If you can’t do or say
something constructive please keep your mouth shut. I vote for
candidates based on their demonstrated merit. And right now the
merit you are showing is mighty slim.
Yours sincerely,
One very pissed-off voter!
The second solution is a little easier. I want you to take a week
off away from all forms of the media. I don’t want you to watch FOX,
or CNN or ABC, NBC or any other TV program. Pardon me, Glenn, but I
don’t want you to listen to talk radio or NPR or surf the web or
read any commentaries. I want you to spend some time with your
family or your wife or your kids or a fishing pole. Spend some time
in the Bible and try to get your spiritual house in order. As you
know I just spent a couple of weeks tuning out to the world and
focusing in on the recovery of my daughter from spinal surgery. What
a difference it’s made in me. My little tit-a-tat with despair has
been wiped away with an even greater appreciation for my family and
my own health. I choose to believe in the good and live my life as
if everyday is perfect.
You see, despair is essentially an imbalance in perspective. It’s
like looking at an ant through a magnifying glass where everything
appears larger and more ominous than it really is. When your mind
becomes saturated with the daily garbage on the news you start
thinking this is the norm. Hear something repeated often enough and
you end up believe it even if it’s a lie.
The truth is out there and its simple. Most people are living very
happy and productive lives. The sun rises and sets and babies are
born and folks are making correct moral choices everyday and God is
in His heaven. Ninety-four-point-six percent of us have jobs and we
will live to see our children have their own children. What goes
down will come back up again! You may not be a millionaire but if
you are grateful and humble what you have will be enough. With our
without a Republican or Democrat party democracy will survive
because the desire to be free runs deeper and stronger in our blood
than the chains of any dictator or the maniacal ranting of a
religious zealot like Osama Bin Laden.
Perspective my friends, perspective! If you are living and breathing
you don’t have to let the despair dogs keeping nipping at your
heals. Take a break from their barking and re-evaluate and smell the
roses. Then, when you are all bolstered up have at it again. And
this time, when the dog starts nipping at your feet slow down a bit
and kick that dang hound in the teeth with a foot full of optimism.
Al Ruechel, copyright 2002, all
rights reserved
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