Author: Wick

Saw a surprising story on the local news tonight. A local police officer at Stephen Decatur Middle School tased a 14-year old student. Of course this is going to make headlines, probably even beyond our hometown papers.

Is this just Decatur, IL? My guess is it’s something larger? That a 14 year old student looks/acts like the twenty-somethings he sees in the entertainment industries; not so unique. That he doesn’t respect adult authority, again – not unique.

But that the situation escalated to the point where he was tased? 14 year old? On school property?

I’m sure over the next several weeks/months, as the parent no doubt files suit against the police and the school itself; we’ll learn more. I don’t know enough about the situation to say whose side I would fall on….but it seems nuts on both sides.

Granted – totally better than shooting him. God bless non-lethal technology that allows us to silence and subdue any rebellious 14-year old we want…..eh?

It’d be great if this story was a wake-up call for many of the issues involved here. For the parent (and parents of teenagers). For the school systems. For the police. For the culture that promotes/raises teens like this daily.

But it smells like the beginning of a long legal battle, where the wounds will get even deeper for all involved. And in the midst of it all, a 14 year old boy, barely a young man. A mom who has lost the ability to trust her sons care to “the system”. A police officer whose split-second decision will not be forgotten anytime soon…even by him.

As a youth pastor….who spends a lot of time praying/ministering to the 14-year olds’ generation in this community; as well as an adult who wants to help better the society my daughters are growing up in….this is one of those situations. Prayer is needed for every person, and the community involved. I just pray, God….use this….please.

In brighter news, the local paper has finally discovered the gourmet hot dog stand I blogged about way back when…check the article out here, it’s worth more of your time than who’s being tased lately. 🙂

I love hockey. A few years back, the finances of the NHL were crumbling. Poor financial decisions were being made, and the ones with the most money were ruling the League. Changes needed to be made. Leaders couldn’t agree. There was a lock-out. They threatened to bring in cheaper players. Eventually it was decided…a salary cap was put in place. (small picture of a much larger story)

There’s another professional sport that people haven’t even realized exists yet. The sport of business/corporate success. There are team names/logos. There are HUGE fan bases (stock holders). People watch from the sidelines, and cheer on their team, and boo the competition. There are busy seasons, slow seasons, successful seasons, and seasons of failure. There is merchandise and advertising. There is public image. The players are changing on a fairly consistent basis…and the ones that have been around the longest, demand the highest pay.

How it’s gone on unregulated for so long is surprising. But it’s probably, in large part, due to the elements I posted yesterday. How dare we define for someone else what “happiness” is, right? If someone who determines their own salary decides they deserve several million dollars a year in order to be “happy”….they’re allowed that freedom, right?

I say nope. I’m not talking about government regulation as a puppeteer, or even government-owned business…Lord knows our government can be just as corrupt as the corporate heads themselves.

But I think it’s about time there was a salary cap for the sport of business/corporate success. Probably even entertainment industries while we’re at it. The same elements exist there as well. The focus is no longer on serving humanity, and changing the world and communicating through art. It’s on selling, growing, climbing, and building empires/idols to ourselves.

A salary cap is needed. And if they cry about what they’re entitled to, bring in other people who CAN do the EXACT same job for much less, be quite happy to do it.

There. Probably a simple-minded suggestion from someone who doesn’t understand enough about the economy to even speak a worthwhile sentence to those actually in charge. And I realize that no, this will NOT “fix” the economy. Neither will either president getting elected. Neither will if the American people “try really hard”, etc. There are fundamental changes in what motivates us as humanity – world-wide – that need to be different.

Lord help us.

It’s surprising how surprised so many people are about this whole financial crisis. “What, the people at the very top of selfish corporations are just as selfish as the people trying to get to the top?” Is it so surprising, in the world we’ve allowed ourselves to become, with the selfish motivations, and the rewards for selfishness found throughout the business world….that those who arrive at the top feel entitled for certain “perks” for having achieved the “success” they’ve been taught to seek their entire lives?

In my brief 2-year stint in sales-type positions, I would guess that 99% of the people I worked with…if they somehow became a “higher-up” in the company…would have nothing but their own interests in mind. They would arrange to get the highest salary they could (because they’re entitled to it), and live accordingly. But that’s all they ever heard from the top anyways. We had an 8 day training in Atlanta, GA…where we learned about the products and the company. But we were also shown all the promises that success within the company would earn us. (even though the main “success” speaker was over 40, and divorcing because she wanted a family and her hubby didn’t)

It’s not uncommon to meet someone who feels they are “entitled” to something. Many Christians even, that I’ve met. If we experience difficult times at a point, or for a period of time in our lives, and then tables are turned, we usually soak up as much of the “good” or “success” as we can. We figure it’s God “rewarding us”, or somehow “making it up” to us for how rough we had it previously. Our lives can become quickly very selfishly motivated when we have this view…even if we throw a few bones to those who continue to suffer.

So what ARE we entitled to? According to famous documents, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”…but I think at the root of many of our issues, we find a discrepancy in what “pursuit of happiness” means. For the sake of the future, perhaps that term should find meaning in the broader happiness/wellness/justice of all humanity; as opposed to simply “my” happiness.

Coming tomorrow: How to fix the economy. 🙂