Todays winners were yesterdays and will be tomorrows losers.
San Clemente, once a sleepy surf town at the southernmost tip of Orange County, California has become a hotbed of controversy. Neighbor against neighbor, children ordered to avoid their friends, grown people throwing feces at the house next door or committing misdemeanors in the name of politics. Not what you would expect in an otherwise small friendly town populated with college-educated professionals and business owners.
What Happened?
What is it they say about”One Bad Apple?” So many of us aspire, or pretend to aspire to the idyllic ideals of the 60’s phenomenon. We sell ourselves on the idea that we support and live by selfless priority. Our actions indicate otherwise. In fact, not many of us consider the greater good in daily decision making. If we did, we’d all take the bus or ride a bike to work. We’re extremely selfish in deed and dangerously manipulative in practice. Yet we want to think better of ourselves so we tout the ideals of an era that came as close as any to actually caring about global peace and the world as a whole.
Under the social microscope in relation to larger metropolitan areas, San Clementians appear to be small fish in a small pond. Easily fooled by demagogues. Yet more troubling through it’s transparency here is the apathy on one end of the spectrum, and blind faith on the other. Our forefathers risked life and limb so you could speak your mind. In fact, our soldiers are still fighting to the death so that you can choose between McDonald’s or Burger King.
Let me put it this way, our nation will fail if we, as it’s citizens do not participate. Our country was built on your right to choose. That freedom comes with a responsibility. If we are not willing to honor that responsibility, then we will most certainly lose. If you say “My Vote Doesn’t Matter”, then you are part of the problem, not the solution.
Here’s the dig. YOU NEED TO PAY ATTENTION!!!
Use your own eyes and ears to absorb the information. Use your own mind to parse the data. Trust your instincts. The messages often are convuleted or corrupted by the messenger. Get a sense about the messenger. Manipulating emotion is standard business practice, designed to trick you into making decisions without actually thinking it out. Don’t allow others to manipulate your emotions. They know you, they know how to flip you, don’t let them.