"It's all about me... just give me something."
Politics
| April 9, 2007
| Tim
People and corporations who view the government as their personal bank account are a serious problem. But it's not surprising today (given how we've raised them) to see such narcissism among our college students:
I need to be able to look to my leader and see words of encouragement, words of hope. I need to be able to trust that person. I need to be able to know that I'm going to be grow [sic in transcript] in a world that's not going to be full of hate and prejudice and racism and to know that I matter, that I wasn't just dumped in this world for no particular reason whatsoever.
I'm busting my ass in school, I work 25 to 30 hours a week, and it's just me and my dog. So what can you do for the people that are in my situation, that are trying their damnedest in school, wanting to go to grad school, is going to be hit with the loans -- and, uh, I have no idea what I want to do when I grow up. I don't know what I want to be when I'm an adult. But I'm 22 right now, so people are like, "Honey, you are an adult." You know what? It's about me. It's about me voting for you or supporting somebody who's going to be the next president. So it's all about me right now. Just give me something.
Good thing there were adults in the room to set her straight!
Mr. Edwards: God bless you. If I were choosing a president, uh, that's what I'd be doing. I'd be looking for the specifics of what they want to do, because that matters, but I would also be judging them personally, because we need to trust our president.
Mrs. Edwards: I want to say something, too. I was really impressed with you, Jenny Ballantine, and I think probably everybody in this room was, and I want everybody in this room who believes that Jenny Ballantine is going to be able to do it to give her a round of applause.
It is, after all, quite a feat to demand that the world revolve around "me."
It's sad to see this young lady looking to a political candidate to find her ultimate meaning in life. She's so spirtually improverished that she's asking John Edwards to, through politics, assure her she "wasn't just dumped in this world for no particular reason whatsoever."
When you don't go to church, you want to turn the government into one.
Hmmm.... where to start. Well for starters what a sad soulless world we live in when you have to rely on the government to tell you what your purpose is in life. As children we fought our parents tooth and nail for the right to be and do as God made us (and how we wanted to be). When did our values get so messed up that we need a presidential canidate or any one else in our partially functional government to do exactly what we didn't want our parents to do. It used to be that 22 was old enough to be an adult. That you were old enough to make responsible decisions for yourself. This girl is clearly still living in her teenage years. She seems to have taken all the priviledges and none of the responsibilities of being an adult. When I was 22 I was working 40+ hours a week and taking a full load of classes. I got all the lovely loans to show for it too. But I really listened to myself as opposed to some politician to find my direction and place in life. I can't help but think that somehow God guided me to exactly where I'm supposed to be in this world (a very good place I might add). It's not the governments job to tell me or anyone else what their "purpose" in life is. The government needs to focus on the welfare of the country as a whole and not just on me or any other individual. This give me, give me garbage and what will I get out of it is ridiculous. It's selfish and I see it starting at a young age. When the kids in my after school program let me know that they expect to get a "prize" for cleaning up a mess they made themselves (which they are always upset in the end because I, unlike some teachers do not bribe kids to take responsibility for their messes), I worry about what people really think about the world (and the government). Let the government look after the country as a whole and that does eventually help me as an individual. It might not get me a mercedes, but the government is actually taking care of what it's supposed to do and making my world a little rosier in the process. Vote for someone who's going to do that. All you need to do to find your way in this world is to listen to yourself and have a little faith that God will get you where you need to be.
(Michelle's my wife, ain't she cool!)
This morning when I first read this, I think something in my brain snapped. It could be because of the fact I couldn't sleep last night, that Michelle's car is in the shop having thrown a rod bearing, or maybe just because I have problems or something, but after reading this article I almost went into convulsions. It wasn't what the woman said, it was the fact that she got a standing ovation.
Anyway, after a frustrating morning, I finally got the chance to relax over lunch, and one of my favorite political passages of the Bible came to mind, giving me much more a sense of calm.
1 Samuel 8 from The Net Bible
In his old age Samuel appointed his sons as judges over Israel. The name of his firstborn son was Joel, and the name of his second son was Abijah. They were judges in Beer Sheba. But his sons did not follow1 his ways. Instead, they made money dishonestly, accepted bribes, and perverted justice.
So all the elders of Israel gathered together and approached Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons don’t follow your ways. So now appoint over us a king to lead us, just like all the other nations have.” But this request displeased Samuel, for they said, “Give us a king to lead us.” So Samuel prayed to the Lord.
The Lord said to Samuel, “Do everything the people request of you. For it is not you that they have rejected, but it is me that they have rejected as their king. Just as they have done from the day that I brought them up from Egypt until this very day, they have rejected me and have served other gods. This is what they are also doing to you. So now do as they say. But seriously warn them and make them aware of the policies of the king who will rule over them.”
So Samuel spoke all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, “Here are the policies of the king who will rule over you: He will conscript your sons and put them in his chariot forces and in his cavalry; they will run in front of his chariot. He will appoint for himself leaders of thousands and leaders of fifties, as well as those who plow his ground, reap his harvest, and make his weapons of war and his chariot equipment. He will take your daughters to be ointment makers, cooks, and bakers. He will take your best fields and vineyards and give them to his own servants. He will demand a tenth of your seed and of the produce of your vineyards and give it to his administrators and his servants. He will take your male and female servants, as well as your best cattle and your donkeys, and assign them for his own use. He will demand a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will be his servants. In that day you will cry out because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord won’t answer you in that day.”
But the people refused to heed Samuel’s warning. Instead they said, “No! There will be a king over us! We will be like all the other nations. Our king will judge us and lead us and fight our battles.”
So Samuel listened to everything the people said and then reported it to the Lord. The Lord said to Samuel, “Do as they say and install a king over them.” Then Samuel said to the men of Israel, “Each of you go back to his own city.”
"Don't worry Samuel, it's not you they rejected, it's me." I guess we shouldn't worry ourselves when heathens do things like this. No matter what we say, they're going to try and find another king, simply because they've rejected God. We can look at this when we feel like a voice crying in the wilderness. They're blind, and we should just pray that God opens their eyes.
One thing this reeks of though, is the empowerment logic. I'll have to write more about my discoveries on that in my blog later... (It's one of the evils plaguing this country.)
I don't think the moral of the story is that heathens reject God's rule, I think that its illustrating that we all do, that its in Human nature to do so. Read it again, these weren't Pagans rejecting God as their King, it was his own people whom he had raised up into a nation and brought out of slavery. I read that story and think to myself, "In what way do I act like the Hebrews in Samuel's day? In what aspect of my life do I look for worldly comforts, security, or leadership and forget about or reject God's authority?" I don't think about things like that nearly enough, usually only when I read passages like that.
Oh, no, Troy, I do agree with you on that. It is Sin. However, I was trying to illustrate that people without Christ are blinded, so we *really* shouldn't be suprised when they do that. We shouldn't be surprised when other Christians do it either, or ourselves. It's part of our fallen nature. Thank you for making me clarify that.
Misc responses:
This girl is clearly still living in her teenage years.
I'm not trying to just bash "liberalism", but I'm honestly convinced that much of it is just a failure to grow up and make the hard trade-offs.
Yes, it'd be lovely if the government could give us all everything for free. If it was all centered around my needs -- or this student's.
But there are hard consequences, and sometimes things which we think will "help" us actually hurt everyone, and our future children.
When the kids in my after school program let me know that they expect to get a "prize" for cleaning up a mess they made themselves...
How sad! As if all obligations are TO us, and none (like cleaning up our own messages) are FROM us. As Kennedy said: "As not what you can do for your country, but ask what your country can do for you!"
Edwards ain't no Kennedy. :-/
Michelle's my wife, ain't she cool!
Well, that's a no-win question if I've ever heard one. :-)
BTW, that is one of the most politically instructive bible passages I know of. Love of big government comes from a rejection of God. The left is so fond of finding a demand for minimum wage in some obscure passage in Isaiah, but miss huge chunk of political teaching like that one.
I don't think the moral of the story is that heathens reject God's rule, I think that its illustrating that we all do...
I agree, and reacted to that too, Troy. The people in the story weren't gentiles, who knew nothing of YHWH. They were Jews, who'd been exposed to his teachings, laws, and leadership -- and yet preferred to go with "world opinion" and emulate what everyone else was doing.
In the same way, there are many in churches who preach that God wants us to have a big government with high taxes which will bring our salvation and liberation.
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Hmmm.... where to start. Well for starters what a sad soulless world we live in when you have to rely on the government to tell you what your purpose is in life. As children we fought our parents tooth and nail for the right to be and do as God made us (and how we wanted to be). When did our values get so messed up that we need a presidential canidate or any one else in our partially functional government to do exactly what we didn't want our parents to do. It used to be that 22 was old enough to be an adult. That you were old enough to make responsible decisions for yourself. This girl is clearly still living in her teenage years. She seems to have taken all the priviledges and none of the responsibilities of being an adult. When I was 22 I was working 40+ hours a week and taking a full load of classes. I got all the lovely loans to show for it too. But I really listened to myself as opposed to some politician to find my direction and place in life. I can't help but think that somehow God guided me to exactly where I'm supposed to be in this world (a very good place I might add). It's not the governments job to tell me or anyone else what their "purpose" in life is. The government needs to focus on the welfare of the country as a whole and not just on me or any other individual. This give me, give me garbage and what will I get out of it is ridiculous. It's selfish and I see it starting at a young age. When the kids in my after school program let me know that they expect to get a "prize" for cleaning up a mess they made themselves (which they are always upset in the end because I, unlike some teachers do not bribe kids to take responsibility for their messes), I worry about what people really think about the world (and the government). Let the government look after the country as a whole and that does eventually help me as an individual. It might not get me a mercedes, but the government is actually taking care of what it's supposed to do and making my world a little rosier in the process. Vote for someone who's going to do that. All you need to do to find your way in this world is to listen to yourself and have a little faith that God will get you where you need to be.
Posted by: Michelle on April 9, 2007 02:31 PM