Why I Can’t Take You Seriously

I know that there are times in my daily life that call for me to put on a hat, play a role, or basically just “fake it.”  I have become a pro at smiling and nodding when my mind is actually somewhere else.  However, the hardest times are when people are trying to actually make me believe something that I KNOW is just ridiculous.  You may be truly convinced of what you are saying, but I can’t take you serious because

1)      You are talking just to get a response.  You are looking for what I have coined the “Caesar Crowd Response.”  You want a round of applause for the garbage you are feeding to the people who are listening.  Recently, a close friend of mine went to hear an executive level bank employee speak on technology today.  Coincidently, I worked as a Business Systems Analyst at the same bank for over 11 years.  My friend came back from the speech filled with quotes and information that he felt armed him with a good picture of how major industries see our youth today.  I will refer to the speaker as “Fakexecutive.”  Fakexecutive proceeds to give an example of the state of our youth.  He challenges the crowd to give him a young adult with a degree in programming and he has a great job for him.  He then wants society to give him a young adult with an associates degree in liberal arts.  He has a job for that person too. He does clarify that it will not be the paycheck of the programmer but it will be a great job with good pay.  Finally, he challenges the crowd to give him a young adult who is fluent in the areas of social networking.  A person who is good at Twittering and Facebooking and he will show them the door.  Of course this rousing moment was met with applause and cheers.  And this response was probably from people who are not utilizing any of these networks on a regular basis.  All I could do was just look at the person who was telling me this.  He was truly convinced now that he had a qualifier for his lack of knowledge in social networking.  I can’t take you serious! Are you nuts? First of all, you took all of the programming jobs in my old department and moved them to India.  Are you going to give this young person with a technology degree a passport too?  Secondly, you are laying off every other year.  I would hope that this young person with the liberal arts degree is working on their plan B anticipating your lack of appreciation for the hard work that he/she puts in.  And most importantly, the bank that you work for has multiple official Facebook and Twitter pages for various departments.  So while you were out speaking, someone hired the dude who knew the ins and out of network marketing. 

2)      You are looking for personal gain.  I see you at all of the political events, social events for various demographics, and the basic events that would get you into Charlotte’s who’s who.  You definitely participate in charitable functions.  You encourage others to do the same.  Meanwhile, the areas that need the most attention are not there.  What is your true purpose again?  I hate when people just don’t come out with it.  True humanitarians don’t look for the spotlight; they look for the blessing from God.  If it brings attention and notoriety then that is a good side effect.  A few years back, my mother needed a handicap ramp at our home because she was no longer able to get down the front steps.  I was checking around getting estimates when I received a phone call from members of Hickory Grove Baptist Church, which neither she nor I have ever attended. The lady informed me that she was given my mother’s name from the CAP representative and knew that she needed a ramp.  Part of their service at that church is to assist the elderly.  Not just their members, but the elderly in the overall Charlotte Mecklenburg community.  I was floored.  A group of about 6 people came out here and build a ramp at the front of our home.  Not just a diagonal piece over our stairs.  I am talking about a full ramp from the porch to the sidewalk.  The charge? Absolutely nothing.  Of course I gave them a donation to their church but I can assure you my donation was not what it would have cost me to get a contractor to build a ramp.  And for those of you who are in the contracting industry, yes it is built to code.  Now this is true service.  There was not an article in the paper about my mom’s ramp, nor was there a ribbon cutting in our front yard attended by the Mayor.  But God was there and I am sure he is speaking at their awards ceremony.  If you are looking for exposure, then do just that.  Just let people know that you want to attend to be a vessel for others to serve.  That is a good way of saying; I just want to be here for exposure.  I have accepted that with this world and all of its titles come requirements.  And some of those requirements involve attendance and participation in events, social clubs, and activities that are mandatory if you want to achieve personal gain.  We have put so many other stipulations on people in order for them to excel at what they do best.  However, don’t try to convince me that you are not wearing the mask.  Just put it on and wink your eye at me through the peephole.  It’s all good.  I can assure you that convincing me of your compassionate spirit isn’t going to fly.  I know that on any given day when you are speeding through town to get to a humanitarian event where you are going to give $50.00 and a speech, you are driving past homeless people, a homeless shelter, housing projects, and schools with a high percentage of impoverished children.  But these are the people who are not big voters; these are not the people who spread the word about your hard work. These are not the people who just so happen to have a video camera to tape their encounter with you.  Again I say, just wink at me from under the mast, it’s all good.

3)      You are a hypocrite.  Why do you attend church again?  So everyone knows that you are there?  So you probably attend one of the area mega churches and give a good bit in tithes and offerings.  However, how have you worked in the church?  People tell me all of the time how they went to church and got such a wonderful word to get them through the week.  They tell me that it was like the minister was talking to them directly.  What about the Sunday when he was talking about helping people and working in the church to help it to build and grow and spread the word of God?  What about the Sunday he talked about being an example to others?  What about the Sunday he talked about the church not being just within the walls but being out there in the community spreading the word of God?  He was talking about you then too? It was like the minister was talking to you directly on those Sundays as well.  We love to treat church as if we are a customer.  It is like a bank.  We go and put our money into the church and expect good service.  The only difference is we get word back instead of money.  We go to church with mental withdrawal slips and only submit one to the minister when it is a word that doesn’t require work.  We should look at ourselves not as a customer, but as an employee.  We should work hard for God all week and then go to church to collect our paycheck.  Getting a paycheck is a lot different than making a withdrawal.  There is no decision making on when or how much to get paid.  It’s coming every Sunday.  So every message is meant for you.  And our tithes are our taxes, not our deposits. 

4)      You are an idiot. I think I am one of the most politically tolerant people.  That is because I truly appreciate the fact that I live in a country where I can have a political opinion.  We are not going to agree on everything.  You can watch any good high school debate and see that both sides of a topic can have great points.  A great debater really can argue any side of an issue as they are not speaking on what they actually believe, but on what supports the point.  If you give me an opinion different than mine that is based on logic, I can respect that.  However, please do not come to me with political points that have absolutely no basis.  This healthcare issue is a huge example.  I turned on the television and actually saw people screaming in the streets upset over the healthcare bill.  Signs reflected the point that the government needs to stay out of our business and people do not want to pay for the healthcare of others.  All I could do was just shake my head.  Can someone please provide me with a valid reason this bill should not go through that is not based on ignorance, lack of compassion, and the real stats?  The ignorance is the fact that people have actually convinced themselves that everyone in America has equal opportunity.  This is simply not true.  Everyone has a unique starting point.  From birth, there are factors that impact your success that you have no control over.  The financial status of your family, the inclusion or lack of two parents in your life, the level in which your parent(s) are able to or are willing to  participate in your education, the level in which your parent(s) are able to or are willing to participate in your moral training, the positive or negative role that your siblings, grandparents and other close family members play in your life, your accessibility to items that enhance and expand your level of learning, and the list goes on for days.  Life experience is as unique as DNA strands.  Even if two people grow up in a neighborhood next door to each other, attend the same school, play the same sports, and are in the same classes, their view on life as well as their opportunity can still be increased or reduced based on additional factors.  Once people realize that everyone is not on the same playing field, they will actually figure out that everyone who is unemployed, homeless, or just plain broke is not there because they are lazy and don’t want to work.  All homeless people are not alcoholics and drug addicts.  Not everyone chooses to live in low income housing.  Not everyone Black person that passes you in the mall is about to steal your purse. What I hate the most is when people point to one person who rose from a bad situation to be successful and tries to make them either the example everyone needs to follow, or uses them as the example that all things are possible.  I believe if that sunk in with everyone, they would understand that there are good hard working people out here who cannot afford healthcare.  There are people out here who work all of their lives and end up capping their insurance due to a serious illness.  It is not the government’s fault that the insurance companies decided to put impossible rules and stipulations on healthcare coverage.  Or make it so expensive that not only can the lower income or jobless person not afford it; they also drove up the price of medical procedures and prescriptions so it is virtually impossible to pay for them out of pocket.  Oh wait, did I turn this into a healthcare rant? It is just way too easy for me to use any subject as an intro to discuss healthcare.  The point in all of this is that some people take an opposing side just to be opposing.  A lot of people get caught up in hating a political party or candidate and migrate to any bandwagon that can be used as a form of dissention. A lot of people don’t like their own situation so they find dumb reasons to justify why their situation is the result of other people getting favors.  Way too many people get to a certain financial status and feel like anyone else who worked as hard as they did could get there too.  Please do not misinterpret my words.  I do not believe in excuses and not working hard.  I do fully appreciate and respect people who have come from hard times to good times and I know that their story is a good source of inspiration for others.  But I am just not fooled that everyone who works hard is going to get the same result.  And the bottom line is that some people just do not want to be inconvenienced.  If you are trying to argue a point with me and it is actually based on the fact that you personally do not want to be impacted, then call it for what it is.

Wow, I didn’t realize I had all of that in me.  I guess there is just so much that I can’t and won’t take seriously.  I also can’t take you seriously if

1)      You try to use “cool” and “in” language just to get a point across when you actually sound like an old fool

2)      Your pants are hanging off of your hips and the topic of our conversation is first impressions

3)      You are supporting healthcare reform but you are currently insured yet never go to the doctor

4)      You are over 30 and still lingering around the club at closing time to see if you can holla at the drunk girl
5) You go out and talk to others about mentoring kids but the entire time you are out mentoring, your children are home alone on myspace, twitter and facebook