Monday, December 14, 2009

Stolen from my pal Bart:

The economy is now so bad that kids are actually asking department store santas for socks for Christmas.

And check out this fucking anecdote:

"Sometimes even the best training can't keep Santa from being caught off guard. Mike Smith, who works as Santa at the Polaris Fashion Place in Columbus, Ohio, says a 5-year-old girl wearing a Dora the Explorer sweat shirt last month hopped in his lap and asked, "Can you turn my daddy into an elf?" "Why?" he asked.

"Because my daddy's out of work, and we're about to lose our house," she said.

The girl's mother, standing by her little brother's stroller, burst into tears. A stunned Mr. Smith asked the girl if her father was good with a hammer, and the girl said yes. "I didn't know what to say after that, so we just took the picture," he says with regret."

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So, see - most of us have nothing AT ALL to bitch about. I think everyone who reads my blog has socks. If nothing else we aren't five year old kids who are about to deal with their parents losing their house.

Seriously, whatever is making you sad today, put it in perspective. I don't care if your boyfriend dumped you or you woke up with the flu or your boss is being a dick or your husband farted in the bed.

All of us have it pretty fucking good and there are a lot of children out there who have it pretty fucking bad.

And the thing is, they are the fucking victims here. They are victims of the banks that made mortgages thew knew would cost people their homes. They are victims of parents who took out mortgages that they should have known they couldn't afford. They are victims of a health care system that can bankrupt their parents if they get sick or have an accident.

Worst of all, they are the ones who are going to grow up and have to pay the bills for the mistakes grown ups made. There will be less job opportunities for them. Their chances of affording a good education will be lower. A lot of the options and opportunities we took for granted won't be there. Fuck, there may not be a middle class by the time they grow up.

Just think about it - in one generation we went from telling kids they'd get socks for Christmas if they were bad to kids praying they'll get socks if they are good.

If that doesn't make you feel ashamed, I'm not sure what will.

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