Out with the Old and In with the New

Responsibility. Honesty. Integrity. The Dodo bird. All extinct. As I observe the constant strugglings between different factions of people I can't help but wonder how things would be different if we could just bring back those fundamentals. Especially the Dodo. But it seems that convenient replacements have been found for each of the aforementioned items which have been shown to provide much more profitable and immediate results.

Responsibility, for example, has been replaced with fairness. Fairness is easier to regulate. If one group has an advantage over another then of course the rules must be changed in order to benefit the less advantaged. Traditionally those who have been more fortunate are expected to bear the responsibility of helping those who may have been given a more troublesome lot in life. In this way everyone prospers, but it's hard to enforce responsibility. On the other hand, it's gratifying and easy to heap on regulations that level the playing field. The fact that more rules only hinder the ones who act responsibly to begin with is simply a regrettable circumstance that can't be avoided.

In place of honesty we now have equality. When all things are equalized then there is no more need for honesty. Think about it, we lie in order to get faster gain over one another. The situation is resolved by compelled equality. So even if your lie works, and you get more than somebody else, it's going to be taken away and spread out equally. Again the inherently honest are the ones who suffer most from absolute equality since they are the only people who's full worth will ever be revealed. But telling the truth is silly and outdated, it can never work in modern society. We have progressed far beyond that point.

Integrity has historically been the cornerstone of stability. It is a combination of honesty and responsibility. It has been the driving force compelling individuals to achieve great things. Not any more. Integrity, it seems, has been replaced by wealth. Money, to be more specific. What a beautiful thing. All you have to do is wave a few dollars in front of people and all of a sudden anything is possible. Growth built on integrity is slow and uninteresting but growth built on the desire for money is lightning fast and extremely entertaining. Our tenacious hunger for more money has even become a money maker in itself, such as in the case of Las Vegas or more recently Washington DC. Flashy lights, smoke filled parlors, pleasures galore! What more could a person want?

Then there's the Dodo. He never did anybody wrong and his reward was utter annihilation. Never fear though, he has been replaced by a much more desirable character who is entirely more befitting the name. I like to call him the news analyst / talkshow host. The one who can take any situation and remove all relevant information in exchange for a pitch of their own ideals. There can be no fairness and equality without a news analyst or talkshow host to decry the unfairness and inequality which still exists. Only then can we define what is fair and equal.

It's a new world we live in and we must not stand in the way of progress. So repeat after me, "my life is harder than most, I have next to nothing and the Dodo says I need to kick out all of the foreigners so that I can get all the free stuff they're getting." That's all you need to remember.