I don't usually involve myself in politics. I'm more of a casual observer. However, I was listening to NPR this morning, and I heard that 5 million people between the ages of 16-25 are attached to neither work nor school. 5 MILLION people just in that age range alone. I also heard about how college educated individuals are having trouble finding jobs not only within their desired field, but just jobs in general. The NPR interviewee pointed out that it's like a game of musical chairs. The "higher ups" get the high-paying executive job with room to move up the ladder, which leaves fewer jobs for college graduates, who in turn take jobs at say, Starbucks, which then leaves fewer jobs for the individuals who would normally be those working in such jobs. So, like in musical chairs when the music stops, there isn't a place for everyone. When there are fewer jobs than people who need jobs, there's obviously a problem. This isn't news to me. I've seen it with my own eyes. So when I get to work and hear someone say the minimum wage shouldn't be raised because people who make minimum wage are those who have made bad life decisions, I had a difficult time keeping my mouth closed. How is that the case when college educated people can't find a job? It is shoved down our throats as Americans that going to school, getting a degree, maybe even getting another degree is the ticket to success. You get your degree, you climb the ladder, you succeed, you live a happy life. That isn't the way it works, though, is it? Sometimes, you get your degree, you try to climb the ladder, and your foot slips right off the second rung.
I hate to end on a sour note, and that's not what I'm trying to do. My point is, don't make sweeping blanket judgements without taking some of the facts into consideration.
End rant.
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Friday, April 18, 2014
Let me take a moment.
April 19, 2014 marks the 19th anniversary of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. There are tragedies from time to time in the world, each one raising sorrowful feelings in me, but this one was so unexpected and so close to home.I have spent the morning thinking about that day, where I was, what I saw.
I was just a kid when the bombing took place. I had turned six years old in March, just 20 days before the bombing. On that day, I remember seeing little kids like me, some younger even, hurt or confirmed dead. I didn't fully understand what was happening. I only knew that my heart hurt because I couldn't fathom why someone would or could do something so awful to people and children who they didn't even know, who hadn't done anything to deserve what happened to them.
Now, nearly two decades have gone by. I've grown. I've seen hate in the world. But the same hurt remains in my heart. The same lack of understanding lingers because I just can't imagine how someone could be so malicious. We, as a people, as a state, as a nation, even, have rebuilt. We have banded together, cried together, started to heal together, and remembered together, year after year. This year, undoubtedly, will be no different. Though it has been 19 years now, it is fresh in our minds.
As we think back to that day, 19 years ago, we will remember the lives taken, the families affected, the survivors made, the men and women suddenly forced into heroism by their brave actions, and the feelings we felt as we watched the fragile veil of happiness crumble with the building. But let's also remember the incredulous feeling, the complete disbelief that something so awful could have happened. Let us remember the confusion of how such a day, such a cruelty could exist, so that we can remember that there's still good in the world. So that we can remember there is hope.
I was just a kid when the bombing took place. I had turned six years old in March, just 20 days before the bombing. On that day, I remember seeing little kids like me, some younger even, hurt or confirmed dead. I didn't fully understand what was happening. I only knew that my heart hurt because I couldn't fathom why someone would or could do something so awful to people and children who they didn't even know, who hadn't done anything to deserve what happened to them.
Now, nearly two decades have gone by. I've grown. I've seen hate in the world. But the same hurt remains in my heart. The same lack of understanding lingers because I just can't imagine how someone could be so malicious. We, as a people, as a state, as a nation, even, have rebuilt. We have banded together, cried together, started to heal together, and remembered together, year after year. This year, undoubtedly, will be no different. Though it has been 19 years now, it is fresh in our minds.
As we think back to that day, 19 years ago, we will remember the lives taken, the families affected, the survivors made, the men and women suddenly forced into heroism by their brave actions, and the feelings we felt as we watched the fragile veil of happiness crumble with the building. But let's also remember the incredulous feeling, the complete disbelief that something so awful could have happened. Let us remember the confusion of how such a day, such a cruelty could exist, so that we can remember that there's still good in the world. So that we can remember there is hope.
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