Are Americans Wusses or Just Fond of Trash Talk?
by Jeffrey Zaslow in Wall Street Journal
[Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell belittled the NFL for postponing an Eagles-Vikings football game because of a snowstorm. "We've become a nation of wusses," he said.]
[Gov. Rendell says he was stunned by the interest in his comments, but on reflection, he now understands why his words stung. “Our country was founded by incredible risk-takers," he says. They were an army of farmers and shopkeepers, and they fought knowing that if they lost, they'd be hung. We seem to have lost our boldness."]
[The United States defined itself by its pioneer spirit. "We were the brash Paul Bunyan nation with a don't-tread-on-us culture," says John Strausbaugh, author of the 2008 book SISSY NATION.]
["We're now a culture focused more on safety than freedom," says Steve Olson, a 41-year-old IT manager in Savage, Minn. He dates the change in America to sometime between 1984, when "baby-on-board" signs were first seen on minivans, and 1988, when the Consumer Product Safety Commission banned lawn darts.]
[Ms. (Lisa) DeNoia was bothered by coverage of Gov. Rendell's remarks. In a letter to him, she wrote: "We're not a nation of wusses. We're a nation of fearless, bumbling morons in pickup trucks who like to drink beer, go shirtless in the freezing cold for football, and drive in blizzards." She argued that true leaders are mature enough to make unpopular decisions to protect the public's safety.]
[Gov. Rendell says he was stunned by the interest in his comments, but on reflection, he now understands why his words stung. “Our country was founded by incredible risk-takers," he says. They were an army of farmers and shopkeepers, and they fought knowing that if they lost, they'd be hung. We seem to have lost our boldness."]
[The United States defined itself by its pioneer spirit. "We were the brash Paul Bunyan nation with a don't-tread-on-us culture," says John Strausbaugh, author of the 2008 book SISSY NATION.]
["We're now a culture focused more on safety than freedom," says Steve Olson, a 41-year-old IT manager in Savage, Minn. He dates the change in America to sometime between 1984, when "baby-on-board" signs were first seen on minivans, and 1988, when the Consumer Product Safety Commission banned lawn darts.]
[Ms. (Lisa) DeNoia was bothered by coverage of Gov. Rendell's remarks. In a letter to him, she wrote: "We're not a nation of wusses. We're a nation of fearless, bumbling morons in pickup trucks who like to drink beer, go shirtless in the freezing cold for football, and drive in blizzards." She argued that true leaders are mature enough to make unpopular decisions to protect the public's safety.]
"Did you just call me a wuss? Meet me back here then in 20 minutes, I need to get my gloves, my mouthpiece, headguard, my inflatable body suit and my Chuck Norris SAFELY KICKING ASS, THE WALKER TEXAS RANGER WAY manual. You are getting a good old fashioned butt whipping today, my friend!"
Have we gone too far in America? Have we swung too far to the side of trying to make everything as safe as humanly possible that we actually have become weaker? Safety is good, don't get me wrong, but have we taken it to the point where we are worried more about complete prevention from bad things rather than preparation for bad things. We work to completely prevent the bump on the head, the cut on the arm or being bullied in school but we do not work to prepare ourselves and those we love to deal with these things.
We will fail, we will lose, we will get hurt. These things are all part of life and part of living in a great free society as we do. We need to be prepared to deal with these things so that we may learn and move forward as better individuals and society.
If we give everyone a trophy, we basically give no one a trophy.
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