ignorance-a rant about american stupidity

i find it slightly disturbing that so many take so much for granted here. i've lived overseas and where i was, most people thought americans are glutenous, selfish, ignorant people who are incapable of recognizing what we have here. education is not free everywhere. clean water is not free everywhere. mosquito nets are not just for decoration everywhere-in some parts of the world they are an integral part of disease prevention. as a nation, we are supposed to be world leaders in so much-medical innovation, technology, research... but we can't even produce students who can tell you the difference between an asterisk and an ampersand or do long division. swear to god, had a girl in an UPPER LEVEL course who couldn't calculate blood alcohol concentration because she didn't have a calculator and couldn't remember how to do long division. so these are the students we're not only passing through a BASIC education, we're handing them COLLEGE DEGREES and then we wonder why the rest of the world looks at us with total and utter disgust. the average 'middle class' home where i lived in the carribean was a two room shack which may or may not have indoor plumbing. a carton of orange juice was $14 Bajan which is $7 US. these people call cable tv 6 or 7 channels, half of which will be in a language other than one you understand. sure, it's a tropical paradise, but work is hard to find and everything is rediculously expensive. and i know it gets a lot worse than that in other parts of the world.

and yet, so many americans walk around like they are entitled to so much. but they shouldn't have to accomplish anything. of course not. 'i'm not going to college so i don't need to know how to do basic algebra or understand the scientific method or know any proper grammar.' sorry, a house or apartment with air conditioning and cable and electric is not owed to you simply because you were born in the states. health care and wellfare checks are not owed to you because you were born in the states. i can understand and sympathize with people who need help getting back on their feet or really, truly can't do it on their own. if you make no effort to improve your situation, you don't deserve a thing. if you are unwilling to learn the skills necessary to hold a stable job with a livable salary, you have no right to bitch about being stuck in the ghetto. there are opportunities and resources available to those who really want to find and utilize them.

it's the people like the girl living on my couch (and her ex boyfriend) who really piss me off. she's 20 and he's 22. they live off of his unemployment checks. both are more than capable of working, yet neither do. he's 'going back to school' and mommy and daddy pay for everything. she quit her job in august and has been living in my living room and watching mtv all day for the past two months. nobody owes them a goddamned thing but they still love to cry about how hard life is. while both of my parents may have serious faults, both have (and have instilled in us) a tremendous work ethic.

i am not afraid to work for what i want and i am proud to give back to organizations that make a difference in kids' lives.