Pro-Choice or No Choice?

With over one hundred stations available on the radio, I spend more time listening to the comedy stations than the music stations. It’s similar to the grocery store where there’s a wall of cereal options—and we choose corn flakes. Consider the customer who chooses vanilla at the ice cream store, ignoring the other thirty exotic flavors.

A magazine survey reported that the majority of people (36%) only want around ten TV channels, and 22% want five or fewer. So why are we drowning in hundreds of choices?  We didn’t ask for them. Companies offer them. Here’s what happens with too many choices:

                                              https://youtu.be/7wEPSDX908Q

If two choices confuse us, imagine what hundreds will do. We hate confusion! So we take short-cuts by eliminating options and focusing on the necessary few. That’s fine for radio stations, cereal, and ice cream, but not for important decisions.

Graduates, life-changers, seekers, we owe it to ourselves to thoroughly explore decisions that matter. Rather than blindly following the advice of family or friends, dig in to find the answers that matter. What decision do you pledge to give careful consideration?            

Nothing’s Wrong with Curly Fries

Have you listened to kids sing songs? It’s funny when they make up phrases and change the lyrics to whatever the words sound like to them. Adults do it, too and unless someone corrects us, we’ll continue singing nonsense for years. There’s a gospel song on the radio by Mary Mary called “Go Get It.” When my kids hear it, they’ll sing the right words until they get to the song’s bridge. Now the real lyrics include the words “qualified, mercy multiplied and certified.” For some reason, my kids insert “curly, swirly fries.” How does food make sense in the context of that song? Oh sure, people can have strong cravings for a good basket of curly fries, but I doubt that has anything to do with the “go get it” in this song.  

Twenty years ago the distinction between right and wrong felt as unmistakable as the difference between black and white. With our changing societal norms, grey is the new black and white and  the culture is redefining the rules of ethical behavior. Maybe that’s why people respond like this when asked about values and ethics:        

                                       http://youtu.be/ZIaHxC7BT0A

In last week’s post, I asked you what kids should learn in school. I’d put critical thinking skills on the list because it’s never too early to learn to defend our views of right vs. wrong. Regardless of how our culture changes, what’s the one thing everyone will always believe is right?