Rejecting The Woe Is Me Nation

Tiffany Silverberg's recent article here at Freeople, "The Tyranny Of Convenience", reminds me of an article I wrote back in April for Liberty Maven that shares a very similar theme. It is a bit Ron Paul centric but the overall theme applies to the general topic of Tiffany's article. It is reprinted below.

As a young boy I had a deep belief that I was special in some way, that I was destined for great things. As I now approach middle age I wonder if every young person has similar thoughts. It certainly could explain the blameless “woe is me” attitude of young Americans today. Believing you are inherently special suggests that you need not put forth much, if any, effort to achieve success. It suggests that you are owed success. That in order to achieve happiness requires little more than breathing. Ultimately, it suggests that bad things happen to you rather than because of you.

Deconstructing the Ron Paul phenomenon reveals the essence of individual liberty and with that liberty comes responsibility. Your freedoms are equal. You have the freedom to succeed or fail. You have the freedom to harm or help yourself. You have the freedom to worship or denounce. The common theme is that everything is up to you because you are the sole arbiter of your own reactions to events. Unfortunately, today the push is towards the opposing philosophy of eternal victim-hood. We are becoming a “woe is me” nation.

We live in a time where blame is always found in other entities rather than within one’s self, where complacency is more prevalent than curiosity, and where apathy expands and action contracts. There are examples in the news every single day: Suing McDonalds because you are fat or you burned yourself spilling coffee on your lap; Holding your nose and voting for one of the media anointed candidates for public office instead of the candidate who shares your views; Not taking the time to know which candidate shares your views; Getting caught up in the routine instead of seeking the extraordinary.

This is becoming what we are as a country. The Ron Paul movement is fighting this mindset. The idea is fundamental human liberty. You are responsible for your actions and your reactions. You make mistakes and you learn from them. Relying on the government to coddle you fulfills the once delusional promise that you are special for special’s sake. Fight that feeling. Don’t let the government tuck you in at night.

You are only destined for great things if you work to attain them. If you fail you try again. These are the principles our founding father’s practiced and preached. Why are we letting them wither away?

John Lennon was being too general. Socialism is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. Fascism is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.

Freedom and liberty are what happens to you while you are putting your plans into action.

Take a lesson from Ron Paul and reject “woe is me” and embrace “I am doing”. Today is a good day to start.