Laws??? Are You Kidding??

I am trying to remain positive. As I was driving around our fare city the other day it occurred to me that I was a very small minority of people actually following traffic laws. As this observation sank in, it made me wonder about our society in general. Now before anyone gets defensive just forget it. I don’t care if you’re a new driver or a seasoned citizen you all, with small exceptions, ignore most basic driving laws. So to me the deeper question is why?

Have we become a society that is so self absorbed that everyone and everything else takes a back seat? What I am getting at are driving laws the only laws we ignore? I think it’s a good question. I think it is a matter of both respect and of integrity. I have a deep respect for the law and the people that are charged at enforcing the law. Do you?

Do you respect and consider everyone else in this world? I’m not just talking about driving and really I pose these questions about our human behavior in general. Go to a public location and watch how people react and interact with strangers. I think we are sliding into an impersonal and inconsiderate kind of society. We would rather e-mail the person two cubicles away then actually talk to them and we actually KNOW them to some degree. What does this say about us?

I don’t go to theaters a great deal anymore and it is because, you guessed it, inconsiderate people. Go to a store and just try to talk to anyone you don’t know. Often you are scanned with a lack of trust about your actual intentions for just a friendly conversation. Even our house of worship is a place where we must really intentionally reach out to newcomers and it is work for many of us because we just don’t do it anywhere else.

So back to the driving observation. I try to stay within a modicum of the speed limit. Can you imagine that? I drive our beltline and I don’t care when it is people fly by me with absolutely no regard to any sense of danger they may be causing. Do they not care? Many of these people are probably your neighbors that you think a great deal of and that begs the question why do they drive the way they do?

It may all come back to the old adage about how it is so much easier to look at others and not at your own mirror. I really think for some people that behavior has become so habitual no matter what type of behavior that they are completely clueless about whether it is a good behavior or bad one. Don’t get me wrong. I have faults. Plenty of them, however, I just have to wonder if people actually care about anything but themselves any longer. The more serious question is can this type of behavior be changed.

You may have guessed it but I don’t have answers to these questions. The only way I see to make any change is one person at a time. I will continue to obey the speed limit to the annoyance of so many and who knows…perhaps someone else may take a step back and say hey….I guess I was breaking the law.

Things

It’s been a while since I’ve written anything but thought I would write a few thoughts about things going on in my life and around me. The first thing is I’ve been involved in something I had not considered I would be for a long time but here it is; I am officially on a job search. My company has made the decision to exit the security business so along with that exit is my position. I took a while for me to accept this fact and although I have slowly been ramping this effort up I will now begin a full out assault on finding a position. I don’t feel sorry for myself as I really feel fortunate to have been given the opportunity to stretch and learn many new skills. That said, job searching and all of the peripheral issues that go along with that course of action is hideous. I liken this to learning someone you love has cancer. Until you actually fill those shoes you are unaware just how so many are affected by this setback. So anyhow, I ask for your prayers and support in my latest life endeavor. I am confident that this is only a temporary hindrance for me and I know the right fit is out there and I will find it.

On a more positive note, my lovely woman is approaching that 5 year milestone of being cancer free! She has always told me that although the label survivor is attached to this success she considers herself to be a liver of life and not just a survivor. This lady is special and she would be the last one to know it but she is an inspiration to so many around her. One of my true gifts in this world was to meet Linda and I am continually reminded each and every day how much of a gift she is in my life. So to suggest she is just a survivor would be a disservice to what she means to me and to anyone she touches…she is a gift.

I have dialed back the political rhetoric and opinions. There seems to be a very bulky supply to go around already. I am boycotting the last debate. These debates become more just commercials for each candidate and less issue and fact driven and as Forrest Gump would say that’s all I’m gonna say about that!

While I could continue to write and rant about bad drivers, unruly children, lack of personal accountability by some, etc….I will close for now. I need to focus my energies on the more important issues in my life….