Goodbye, 2011

It has come to this. Two Thousand-Eleven is drawing to a close. This is the last Tuesday this calendar year will ever see. To commemorate the closing of this chapter as it prepares to be catalogued into the annals of history I present some thoughts I hope will take root in 2012 as well as some thoughts I HOPE won't follow us once the ball has dropped. 

What I have seen this year is a nation concerned. Everything that happens seems to affect our hearts one way or another. Revolts and uprisings around the world spurred a disdain for the status quo and certain appearances of unfairness in our own society. Foreign policies and entanglements caused military families and their friends to reevaluate stances concerning these issues. The almighty dollar has taken ill and is struggling to find enough faith in the general public to maintain his lofty position as the driving force of life. 

Each of these events has triggered thoughts in the minds of people across the globe. These thoughts have spawned critical ideas, musings, temperamental feelings and, above all, a desire for something better than what is currently available. The apathy that once reigned is beginning to give way to the tide of dissatisfaction sweeping across the masses. I truly hope that this hunger for stronger ideals follows into the next several years. I pray that the yearning for something concrete, righteous, and pure spurs fellow pursuers to reach for the lofty goals of holiness and noble character that have long been abandoned. I long for the days when peace, faith, love, honesty, and similar virtues are commonplace and not just an obscure spectacle to behold...

What I hope dies with 2011 is the attitude of subjectivity. My favorite syllogism is the argument that "we can't possibly know for certain" anything regarding truth. (I don't even know who I'm quoting; let it stand as a general statement embodied in the nature of the attitude/argument I'm opposing.) When this argument is turned to the realm of science it creates skepticism which can be a useful tool for even more critical analysis before blind acceptance of perceived facts. BUT, when this concepts purports to take on spirituality, philosophy and religious realms, it simply serves as a smoke screen for those who can't handle accountability. 

To say with any certainty that "there's no way to be sure," one must first be certain that there, indeed, is "no way to be sure." In finding certainty, the statement is self defeating. (Same logic applies to finding absolutes and atheists claiming there is no God.) In order to make claims regarding the absence of absolutes, one must know absolutely, objectively, omnisciently... (A characteristic commonly and solely attributed to God.) No, the argument of certainty is simply a scapegoat to the weak-willed, shallow conscienced individual who would rather pin the blame on ignorance and deny truth than to accept something as obvious as the nose on their face (which may or may not exist... along with their brain. No one can know for sure, right?).

I sincerely detest the failing that has occurred in our country the past several decades. In our pursuit for self-esteem and convenience, we have whored out our once thriving intellect for the comforts afforded by entertainment. More people know the intimate goings on of our national celebrities (Madonna, Britney, Miley Cyrus, Justin Beiber [who really isn't even that popular...], and others) than they do about the founding fathers! They know more about pop-culture, movies and music than they do about where they come from... You don't need to hire an fortune teller to figure out why the majority of our nation's kids don't have a future! If you don't know where you come from, there's NO WAY to understand where you're going!

Knowledge is at our fingertips in ever-increasing measures yet the information we have continually chosen to assimilate and digest has no nutritional value to our minds!

"Schools are to blame!" the parents chant. The nation rallies to fix the problem with more funding. More organization, more programs, more efforts... People... the failing is not within the schools. The failing is with people! Parents haven't instilled the love of knowledge into their children. Children haven't learned to function within the parameters of society. The failing isn't on the uneducated, but on those who HAVE been educated.

Those who are educated either don't fight to win the battle of ignorance, OR they fight the wrong way and allow for the polarization effect to greaten and create an unpalatable situation between themselves and the very people that NEED the knowledge the former boasts. We casually accept the degradation of the English language without struggle. We idly allow a plethora of foul language, debase humor and unintelligible noises become the standard of comedy and literacy. We refuse to RAISE the bar, rather we lower it as to not offend the lowest common denominator... All in the name of popularity. Folks, if you continually lower the bar, why fool yourself with the nomenclature of "standards" at all? Why even have the bar? You will not EVER be able to raise it back without violent protests (probably with shoddy yet catchy rhymes).

I pray that the desire to once again capture the bright hope of enlightened education surges in the hearts of Americans. I long to see the day when a kid's dream is not simply to achieve a new high score on their playstation or scrounge enough money for a new tattoo, but that they'll take pride in having memorized Shakespeare and the Bible. I wish for the time when people could be contemplating astro-physics in line at McDonald's while choosing from the dollar menu, or engaging in a fast-paced game of chess over fries instead of pushing buttons on a brightly lit LED screen. Most of all, I long for the day when we cater to developing brilliance rather than coddling the dim and dull... simply saying "it's ok... you're still special." All the while our lies tack in another nail on wisdom's coffin. We stroke our egos while slowly poisoning our minds...

Truly, I pray for 2012 as a rude but necessary awakening. I desire the pompous pseudo-intellectuals to wake up! That they utilize the tools they claim to have learned to better mankind instead of building their own bubble of warped philosophical deludedness. Being smart doesn't make you BETTER than anyone else... It simply gives you the greater responsibility to extend and perpetuate the light from the bulb that appears over your head and ignite the dim and flickering bulbs of those around you. Illuminate 2012. Don't idly let it burn out...

My New Year's Resolution is to let my light shine before men both Spiritually and Intellectually. I want that people should become illuminated just from being near me. 

What's YOUR New Year's Resolution? You only have a few days to figure it out!