Brave New Scary World

Remember the book Brave New World? That book, along with 1984 and similar tombs, portray a future that none of us want to experience. I don't really think we're heading toward Huxley's version of anti-utopia, but there are shades of Brave New World, 1984, We, and maybe even Animal Farm erupting which are far more scary than what those authors imagined. Why? We're living them, not reading them. We can't put the book aside and pick up another lighter story.

We're being driven there by a government that "says" they want to take care of everyone and make sure all are treated well. Unfortunately, their idea of making sure all are treated well seems to be that those who work should pick up the tab for those who don't so everyone is "equal". We're dangerously close to having more have-nots in need of a hand out than producers. We all know that when those with their hands out vote they'll support the ones who make the best promises.

We're in a litigious society which to me is a symptom more of the "I don't want to work for my living" sickness than greed. Those who hire the attorney to fight for more than they deserve want to hit the jackpot. Everyone sues these days. Whether it's vengeance, anger, hurt, or another emotion that starts the ball rolling, ultimately it becomes a quest for money. Tort reform would be fantastic, but it's going to take a re-shaping of the free-world's thinking to truly reform the court system.

Hmmm, a thought... would I trade the current nationalizing of our health care system for nationalizing the court system. Oh, shudder, no. Banish that thought. Tort reform it is!

Similarly, we're going way, way too far in trying to make sure everyone feels good about themselves. Did anyone read that short story by Huxley (I think) where the world had evolved to a point where no one was allowed to excel? I remember a scene where the main character is watching a ballet at the theater. The ballerina's are all wearing various weights on their legs or encumbered somehow so that none dances better than the other. It's been a long time, but it seems that one ballerina ditches her weights and soars, giving everyone a glimpse of true beauty.

No one is bad these days.... as long as you're not a conservative or part of the 9/12 or Tea Party movement of course.  Everyone whines about their civil rights being violated and the government steps in to protect, or sue, or threaten. You as an American citizen are not allowed to think less of someone or create something that isn't equally good for all. If someone out there can't use your product, the government will step in to make you change it...

It really does get ridiculous sometimes as illustrated in the following article. Where are we headed? 1984? Atlas Shrugged? Brave New Scary World? Soylent Green?

Byron York - Why did feds claim Kindle violates civil rights?

Did you know the Justice Department threatened several universities with legal action because they took part in an experimental program to allow students to use the Amazon Kindle for textbooks?

Last year, the schools -- among them Princeton, Arizona State and Case Western Reserve -- wanted to know if e-book readers would be more convenient and less costly than traditional textbooks. The environmentally conscious educators also wanted to reduce the huge amount of paper students use to print files from their laptops.

It seemed like a promising idea until the universities got a letter from the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, now under an aggressive new chief, Thomas Perez, telling them they were under investigation for possible violations of the Americans With Disabilities Act.