A.. Is it that we have electricity and
running water 24 hours a day, 7 Days a week?

B.. Is our unhappiness the result of
having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter?

C.. Could it be that 95.4 percent of
these unhappy folks have a job?

D.. Maybe it is the ability to walk
into a grocery store at any time and see more
food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?

E.. Maybe it is the ability to drive our
cars and trucks from the Pacific Ocean to the
Atlantic Ocean without having to present
identification papers as we move through each
state?

F.. Or possibly the hundreds of clean
and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter?

G.. I guess having thousands of
restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough either.

H. Or could it be that when we wreck
our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.

I.. Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home.

J.. You may be upset with knowing that
in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of
trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames, thus saving you, your family, and your
belongings.

K.. Or if, while at home watching one
of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or
prowler intrudes, an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss.

L.. This all in the backdrop of a
neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90% of teenagers own cell phones and computers.

M.. How about the complete religious,
social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world?

Maybe that is what has 67% of you folks
unhappy.

Fact is, we are the largest group of
ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever
seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S. , yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don’t have, and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.

I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to
get us out? The president who has a measly 31
percent approval rating? Is this the same
president who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession? Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks? The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me?

Did you hear how bad the President is
on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn’t take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad? Think about it……are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the ‘Media’ told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day. Make no mistake about it.

The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have
volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have
died for your freedom. There is currently no
draft in this country. They didn’t have to go. They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ”general” discharge, an
‘other than honorable” discharge or, worst case scenario, a ”dishonorable’ ‘ discharge after a few days in the brig.

So why then the flat-out discontentment
in the minds of 69 percent of Americans?

Say what you want but I blame it on the
media. If it bleeds it leads and they
specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts How many will
watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for-profit corporations. They offer what sells, and when criticized, try to defend their actions by ‘justifying’ them in one way or another Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he didn’t kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way……Insane!

Turn off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as country. There is exponentially more good than bad. We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative.’

I’ve been thinking about it, and I did lose sight of the forest for the trees. Stepping back, this is the best time in history, and it’s just getting better. It’s not evenly distributed yet, but nearly every place on earth is better off than it was even 50 years ago. The stats gathered by the UN back this up, as demonstrated so clearly by Hans Rosling.

I think my reaction/feeling about the state of the world is clouded by my own short-term thinking. I’m working on that. Looking at things over the longer term (comparing to 50, 100, 1000 years ago) it’s clear that things are much better. As populations gain economic strength, they increase their health and wellbeing. Means to an end.

@Sam: I agree that it’s largely an information processing problem, at a global scale. Individuals might be better equipped to deal with the torrent of information and communication, but populations and nations have difficulty – it’s harder to turn quickly at that scale – but I think we’ll develop strategies for that as we all mature in this as a society.

hey Sam—a lot of what you consider de facto, many don’t; also, most of your examples were much bigger problems than they are. are current generations too self-involved to see human history more clearly?

feel free to see the glass as half empty—i agree there’s room for improvement—but ignoring, (or worse, obfuscating), the bigger brighter picture will mire people in paranoia and paralyzing depression more often than stir them to action.

today’s jobs are purposeless? socially, morally, psychogically bankrupt?! reeks of hot air.

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