Things worked pretty well for thousands of years: civil societies were guided by moral principals, a code of right and wrong: the Ten Commandments \u2013 The Golden Rule \u2013 Hammurabi\u2019s Code. Then the politicians added an 11th commandment \u2013 \u201cThou shall not change thy mind!\u201d Once a position is taken it can never be reversed. You won\u2019t hear a senator say, \u201cThat\u2019s a good point. I never looked at it from that angle; I\u2019ll have to reconsider my position.\u201d If a politician said that, the media would come down hard, \u201cSenator Smith flip flops on the international trade bill!\u201d The talking heads on the cable channels would be even harsher, \u201cSpineless Smith caved! He broke with his party. The American people should be outraged!\u201d<\/p>\n
The 11th commandment has Washington on its knees. Dysfunctional. We don\u2019t elect individuals any more; we elect party members, who are expected to adhere to the party\u2019s position or suffer the humiliation of a \u201cflip-flopper\u201d label. Republicans versus Democrats – Sunnis versus Shiites \u2013 southerners versus northerners \u2013 city folk versus fly over country folk, ours is a tribal species. We have an uncontrollable need to clump up with like people. It\u2019s a family thing first – the clan. The next level is the neighborhood \u2013 \u201cThe west side is the best side!\u201d kind of thing. Our tribal allegiances are many. Some are tightly knit, others are loose, but tribes they are. And, most rigid of all, are the political parties, which unfortunately are totally dominated by, and adherent to, the 11th commandment: Thou shall not change thy mind.<\/p>\n
The only tribe exempt from the 11th commandment is the Old Coot Society, of which I\u2019m a member in good standing. In fact, last year I won the coveted Old Coot of the Year Award. Oh, we\u2019re not going to change our minds either, but not because of the 11th commandment. We\u2019re governed by a totally different set of rules.<\/p>\n
First and foremost, is the requirement to complain (loud and often) about how bad things are today compared to \u201cback in the day.\u201d Second, say what\u2019s on thy mind with no filter (\u201cWow! You sure got fat!\u201d). Third, ask for, no demand, a senior citizen discount. Fourth, eat dinner between 3:30 and 5 p.m. Fifth, drive in the passing lane with thy left turn signal blinking. Sixth, wait at a stoplight until the driver behind ye blows thy horn. Seventh, move thy pants up, changing thy waistline so it falls just below thy rib cage. Eighth, never tell a story without pauses to remember the name of a person or a place, even though it has no meaning to the listener. Ninth, start, and maintain, a collection of sugar, ketchup and mustard packets stolen from fast food restaurants. And, lastly, the tenth, constantly complain about the high price of EVERYTHING. \u201cCan you believe it? $7 for a hamburger. That\u2019s outrageous!\u201d<\/p>\n
You notice no mention of an 11th Commandment. We change our mind at the drop of a hat. Especially if it means a lower price, a free sample, or some kind of handout. We have to or we\u2019d violate our third commandment.<\/p>\n
Comments, complaints \u2013 mlessler7@gmail.com.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Things worked pretty well for thousands of years: civil societies were guided by moral principals, a code of right and wrong: the Ten Commandments \u2013…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"\n