We are too entitled!

Something occurred to me this morning on my way to work.  I was listening to political commentary and noticed the Rush Limbaugh controversy was still making its way into the top five minutes of the commentary.  It completely blows me away how much hang time this is getting, but I think it points to a bigger issue in today’s media complex.

If I have not previously stated anywhere in this blog, I have a real problem with the way information is transmitted to people from the media.  No one tells a whole story, and everyone spins a story.  Then, we the consumers of this broken and incomplete information engage in debates at water coolers or on social media websites based on the spin they heard in a thirty second sound bite.   We get polarized and defend our positions, but never really get to talk about the root issue.

It seems the biggest tragedy of this controversy is the real message got lost.  The message isn’t Rush calling a law student a slut.  The message isn’t even about contraception or any supposed “war on women” being waged by the Right.  The thing everyone in the media seemingly marched right over is this prevailing attitude of entitlement that is infiltrating our culture.  Even Fox News spent little time talking about it.

We have changed from a country of hard working people into a country of people expecting hand outs.   When my grandparents came to this country from Italy in the 1940’s there was no welfare.  My grandmother came here and worked as a seamstress.  The shop she worked was what we would call a sweatshop.  She was paid by the piece.   She lived with family and sent her earnings back to Italy to pay for my grandfather and uncles to come and join her.  They worked hard for what they had.  They endured ethnic stereotyping and poor working conditions.  They did not complain, or put their hands out expecting Uncle Sam to give out food, shelter, clothing, medicine or any of the entitlements that we have seemingly become so dependent on today.  Further, they were free to earn their own part of the American dream without the government telling them what they could and could not do, how to raise their children, or even what they should think.

Do I think we should immediately and unconditionally end the entitlement systems that are in place today?  No.  There are too many people who have become completely dependent on these programs and their lives would be destroyed if they were cut off.  I think it is important for our government to help those who really need help. We are the richest country in the world, with the largest economy in the world and no child should be hungry and no one should go without medical care.   

 But – Uncle Sam can’t and shouldn’t be the primary care taker.  Think of it this way – Uncle Sam is spending $1 out of every $4 we produce as a nation.  (Government spending is 24.33% of Gross Domestic Product)  Can we really afford to be as entitled as we have become?

The second point is individual liberty.  Why should Uncle Sam have the right to tell any private business what they should and should not pay for?  Further, what gives Uncle Sam the right to tell church based organizations they have to do something that is against their beliefs?  Why do we think it is acceptable for any of this to take place in a country that was supposed to be founded on the pursuit of liberty?

I encourage us all to read past the headlines, past the mudslinging and decode what the media is hiding in plain sight.  It’s not about birth control pills or Rush Limbaugh.  It is about dressing up another entitlement program in a nice fuzzy 30-second sound bite so people will accept it.

Your thoughts and comments, as always, are welcome!