Thursday, March 15, 2018

My thoughts stated perfectly by Ambulance Driver:

Kelly Grayson said this elsewhere on the web today, and I could not have said it more perfectly myself:

On kids protesting gun violence and demanding our leaders do something about it:
BRAVO.
Welcome to Citizenship 101, high schoolers. It is your birthright, and your DUTY to exercise your right to free speech and actively engage in influencing, and in a year or so, CHOOSING your political leaders.

Keep on doing what you’re doing. I’ll support you 100%.
But don’t expect me to actually buy your arguments, because you’re naive, ignorant of the subject, and have all the perspective of the world that you’d expect from a... high schooler.
And remember that, when the people who came before you felt it necessary to commit civil disobedience to make their points - and walking out of school, disrupting government proceedings and the conduct of business IS civil disobedience - they also suffered the consequences of that disobedience. They stoically (well, most of them) took their punishment, however unjust, and swayed public opinion with their courage. They eventually changed society.
You want to impress the people who think you’re entitled, pampered little snowflakes? Don’t ask for special snowflake treatment when you get into trouble.
And if you’re a parent, using your child as a sock puppet to advance your own political views? Shame on you for your cowardice.

3 comments:

Old NFO said...

Yep, that one wins! Problem is, nobody is listening...

Kim Carney said...

Sorry to have to disagree with someone I love so dearly. ;)

phlegmfatale said...

I am sorry ever to disagree with one I love so dearly as you, too, Kim, but on which point do you disagree? I think it is good for kids to be involved and to stretch their legs and learn how the process works, but I also don't believe they should be immune from consequences such as missing classes. I also think parents and teachers should not proselytize young people, but should teach them the process of reasoning, and trust that their child's intelligence will work with their moral sense and let them govern their own behavior by the time they are adults. When I think of people who indoctrinate their children, I'm thinking of people of every political stripe, and also of people who teach their children to hate groups of people. And I think this applies across the board.