scottsimpson.net

I realized last evening, while munching on my delicious barbecue chicken from L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, that everything I dislike about the American ethos was summed up in two groups that were operating near me. To my right, at a set of Starbucks tables loosely cobbled together to accommodate a group of about ten people, were those sort of people who couldn?t seem to manage to keep their voices down or their opinions to themselves. This isn?t necessarily bad, but in this case it was. But that?s beside the point. As I mentally eased into their strident conversation, it became clear to me that these people, while they were discussing travel, had never actually traveled. The fat man with the bad moustache (Never! Never! No one looks good with a moustache!) was opining to his clan that when he and the lieutenant flew down to Fort Worth that one time, it was a [x] long flight and they should have got a [x] meal, [x]. Later it was noted that they flew Southwest, and I wanted to get up and smack the man with a glove or something. Aspect of the American ethos I dislike #1: expecting to be served.

The other group, located behind me and a few storefronts down, was the group of strikers in front of the VONS store. Now, in my opinion, trade unions have seen their day in the sun where they were not only useful, but vital. But that day is over. The original food-scanner-people strike may have had a legitimate purpose, but it quickly lost my support when I started seeing signs that said things like ?VONS Employees on Locked Out? ? if a movement cannot find someone in their ranks that cannot properly use the English language, they lose my support. It?s as simple as that. There are so many simple ways to make that sign work grammatically, it?s not even funny. Anyway, the people were standing in a circle between the two entrances, making no motion to stop people from entering the store. They were listening to a man who looked homeless explain why the corporate structure was out to get them, and how the man (he turns up everywhere, doesn?t he?) could end their careers with a phone call. They were so focused on being scared by a homeless man that they were forgetting to do their jobs of disrupting commerce. I?ve heard that unions pay people when they?re on strike ? does this seem at all odd to you? People generally strike for higher wages, or more bottom-line money in their pocket. These same people pay mandatory dues to trade unions that pay them to not work? If it didn?t have such a big following, I believe that qualifies as an extortion racket. The strikers characterize another portion of the American ethos that I can?t stand ? the idea of making a problem when there doesn?t need to be one. In military settings, it?s called sabre-rattling. Bush calls it pre-emptive striking or something equally inane. It?s patriotic when we do it, but the darkest of evils when someone else does.

In addition to making problems for no reason (the latest strike is over $15/week for health care coverage that was previously paid for by the store and is mostly subsidized by most companies), the strikers in front of VONS apparently were under the impression that they somehow had a right to interfere with other people?s lives. A socialist or a utilitarian would tell us that we should be concerned for the plight of our fellow man (don?t even start ? I?m saying man and I?m not going to be politically correct about it) as in the words of John Donne, ?no Man is an Islande, intire of itself?. But as a Libertarian and a rational person, I reject the idea that because someone is kvetching about having to pay $15 a week to have health insurance, when the vast majority of the health plan is subsidized by the company, that they somehow have a right to interfere with where I shop for what I need to live. Screw you, food-scanner-person. I?m not standing in front of the barber shop, asking people not to go in because my tuition went up again. There?s this thing called cost of living, and it tends to increase. Deal with it. I know a great place you can get a helmet.

I believe it is for many such reasons that citizens of other nations dislike the United States. I have to agree, I see the merit in their claims, all except for a few: