What is the difference between “reasons” and “excuses”? We’ve all used them. “Reasons” are merely an explanation, whereas “excuses” are an attempt at justification. Excuses often seem to be used more as a tool of avoidance. Reasons, when given, seem more legitimate and are more easily accepted by others. Reasons add a better understanding and depth. When Sally gives excuses why she can’t be at the birthday party, it is more likely others attending will roll their eyes and believe she just didn’t want to be there. If Sally were to give a reason, others in attendance will probably only say they were sorry she wasn’t able to attend. We don’t intend to get into some sort of psychobabble debate over these two words, but we mention them just to set the stage for our topic today. When you have used either of those words, only you know in your heart and conscience if your action is one of expressing explanation or an attempt to justify your avoidance. What we would like to do today is to cause each reader to honestly, circumspectly, evaluate your actions in response to our blog today.
Do you often wish for life when times were simpler? We remember attending the Spokane World’s Fair in 1974. One venue there emphasized how the many technological advances would make life much simpler, allowing for more free time. What ever happened to that? The workforce in our Nation today has been touted as one having the highest productivity per person. The question begs asking, has that been due to the advances in technology alone, or because more has been asked of the individual worker, having less time off, and working more hours to maintain the desired standard of living. Manual widget making was slow, making one item per unit of time, but now machines can make multiple widgets at the same unit of time, but it still takes one individual to oversee the mechanized process. As costs of rents, utilities, gas, insurance, and taxes rise, the need to keep financial pace forces individuals to work harder and longer to maintain the desired status quo. As interest rates rise in conjunction with inflation, wages are falling behind. The status quo is no longer attainable or maintainable. These are just the financial aspects of being OVERWHELMED.
Let’s look at other ways the individual or family unit is OVERWHELMED. Covid brought its own set of complications. We won’t get into the problems with vaccinations. We’ve already covered that in previous blogs. But Covid impacted people in ways not common or routine. Take children’s education for example. Many schools were unnecessarily closed for extended periods of time, and remote learning placed an enormous burden on parents and guardians. Rotation of school/home days, and lunch or meal schedules were adjusted or cancelled. Parents and guardians had to juggle work, transportation and babysitting schedules. If home schooling was chosen, an enormous task was assumed by those responsible for the child’s education involving the establishment of study times, course development, and in-person assistance and grading. On top of this, the proficiency of students has been on the decline, and younger students were not developing communication or social skills because of forced and unnecessary masking. Suicide, drug use, and truancy rates were all increasing, all adding to the worrisome burden of parents and guardians.
Other mounting issues OVERWHELMED many individuals and parents. During Covid, churches were closed, and virtual services negated personal fellowship. Employees had to figure out ways to work from home if at all possible. Shopping became an adventure, and healthcare become a chore. After the supposed threat of Covid subsided, challenges remained. Children still had afterschool activities that needed parental or guardian support. Parents and guardians still had social clubs or activities to support. The attempt to maintain a normal schedule of activities, including vacations, normally scheduled and anticipated events like holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, entertainment, and right-of-passage events, all added to the seemingly endless list of tasks and responsibilities laid upon the average American. It was easy for many in our Nation to ignore the onslaught of National structural, political and economic changes being perpetrated upon us by government, corporate, and woke elite progressives. Many were just simply too busy and not even aware, and in many cases, just too busy to even care, let alone get involved and add even more to their OVERWHELMED state of life.
Many in our Nation were too busy to even notice or care about our disastrous retreat from Afghanistan. Too busy to care about the executive orders being issued by the current occupant of the White House stifling our energy production and independence. Too busy to realize how this had disastrous effects upon our shipping and transportation infrastructure. Too busy to do anything about our higher gas and food prices. Too busy to notice the invasion at our southern border. Too busy to care about our weakened and pathetic role in world affairs, and how other nations were taking advantage of the ineptitude in our current National government. Too busy to realize that food production will be down in the next year due to high costs of fertilizers, and the running of farm and factory equipment. Too busy to notice that foreign governments are infecting our political structure, and even buying our land for yet unknown purposes. Too busy to notice that our electrical grid system is deteriorating, under duress, and vulnerable to attack. Too busy to notice the fraud within our voting machines and systems. Too busy to notice the value of our dollar and our savings are being devalued by the constant government push to print and spend more money. Too busy to care that morality and decency are being trampled on the streets of our major cities by thugs who thumb their noses at law enforcement, and who find no guilt in taking another person’s property or life. Too busy to notice the attack on those who have a Constitutional right and privilege to freely speak counter narratives in all avenues of media and communication. Too busy to notice that our blind lady of justice has been corrupted with a two-justice system, one that favors those in power, and one that attacks those in opposition. Too busy to notice the burgeoning drug deaths of our youth due to lax and ineffective interdiction by the current government. Too busy to care about the growing sex-slave Cartels creeping across our borders. Too busy to know what our Constitution says, what our Bill of Rights are, and of the FREEDOM and LIBERTY we are sacrificing each and every day.
So, you tell us. Do you care about the direction of our Nation? Are you concerned that your FREEDOM and LIBERTY are being pulled bit-by-bit out from under your feet? Do you care what kind of a Nation you want to give to your children, and their children and grandchildren? If you do, then you need to take action. Get involved. Speak out. Speak freely and forcefully. Focus on those things that are most important right now. Do not allow yourself to be OVERWHELMED, as this is an evil tactic, employed by evil, for evil intent, to the destruction of our Nation, to the destruction of self.