Just found this draft that I had been working before and never got around to finishing. I'll go ahead and post it as is and hope to get back to it later .....as soon as I remember which nail I was getting around to driving.
Probably the greatest aspect of our country, at least in my mind, is the stated belief that all persons are born with the inate rights of free expression of personal beliefs regardless of ones race, religion, political ideals, physical status, gender, sexual orientation...the list goes on. All are "created" or born equal!
But that's a tough one to live up to in the real world.
For purposes of this post, when I speak of some aspect, idea, cultural belief, etc as being "better" I will not mean more worthy of respect but simply easier in our society to attain success. For instance, it is "better" to be tall than to be short, at least for a man. Tall men command more respect, are listened to more, and get promoted faster than short men. Just a fact of life. Tall men are not necessarily "better" at their jobs or smarter or even more pleasing to be around. But it is "better" to be tall, all other things being equal. Even so, short folk deserve the same basic human rights and the same dignity as tall folk. Is a short man just as good as a tall man? Definitely yes! Is it just as good to be short as it is to be tall? Definitely NO!
So...the "ideal" person (the best thing to be) in our current society is a tall, white, straight male, attractive of features, having an above average IQ, BMI between 20 and 24, with moderate political and moderate Christian religious beliefs, and born of a well-to-do family.
Obviously, very few Americans meet all ten of those qualifications. (And those are only a random ten.) I don't even meet half of them. Therefore, if we want to have any kind of civilized society at all we have to learn to accept the differences of others and be willing to accomodate said differences. This does NOT mean we should be blind to our own "better" aspects or that we should try to emulate the differences of others. It means that we should first of all we willing to accept ourselves for who we are, good and bad...or desirable and undesirable if you prefer... There is no need to be ashamed of our "good" traits. We certainly wouldn't try to change them just to make others feel more comfortable. Nor should we refrain from trying to change our "bad" traits where physically possible.
Some things just are and can't be changed. Some things CAN be changed. Some things are modified by environment.
There is scientific evidence that alcoholism is a genetic trait. Some people are born to be alcoholics. That does not mean they have fewer rights than others. It just means they have to work harder to overcome their handicap. Non-alcoholics need to understand what factors make an alcoholic what he is and work toward treatment rather than condemnation. But that does not mean that non-alcoholics must embrace the behavior of alcoholics.
And just because some who abuse alcohol are genetic alcoholics, it doesn't follow that all who abuse alcohol have the same genetic trait. Many, and I would submit most, alcohol abusers abuse alcohol as a learned behavior.
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