BITTER MEDICINE IS FOR FOOLS

By Domenick J. Maglio Ph.D.   Neo Traditionalist

Our mothers were dead wrong when they told us that we had to take bitter medicine to get well.  Our country has learned better ways to deal with not only personal but also national problems. We have progressed to artificial flavor to bribe children to consume more expensive cures of questionable effectiveness. The price of the remedy is not the issue as long as we can delay and suppress the symptoms long enough for everyone to be relieved. The sick persons and the people around them will not have to deal with the old process of worrying and hoping for recovery.

The recent death of Michael Jackson, the King of Pop icon, has advanced our culture. Michael was a man who made billions of dollars but spent more to meet every one of his instant desires. Even with being in debt $400 million he had the class to rent a modest 20 room home for only $100,00 a month. He was found to have his own professional staff monitoring his use of exotic sweet drug cocktails to reach total ecstasy.

Michael was a model for all of us. He transcended gender and race and he stood for whatever you wanted. His gliding moonbeam moves epitomized style. He was a metaphor for the wonderful way our nation is dealing with our problems and the world’s.

The Pop Culture has been victorious. There is no reason to delay our gratification for a better future. We are in a wonderful world where anyone can get credit regardless of his or her ability to repay. One’s personal reputation and job performance are irrelevant. Past behavior is not an indicator of future success. All of us have a right to a perfect existence.

Living in high style above our means is much better than saving for a rainy day. When the rain starts to fall, the only things we have to do are take out our “plastic” and purchase an umbrella or a new home. There are some pathetic losers who stayed on the sidelines as the housing frenzy took off. Flipping homes was a great way of increasing one’s wealth on paper by just exaggerating one’s assets and income while under reporting one’s financial obligations.

When the merry-go-round came to a grinding halt, the smart compulsive homebuyers had already gained wealth on paper. The upside-down mortgages they ended up with were either bailed out by the government mortgage program or the homes merely went back to the bank. In this new big government era the modern risk takers knew the government would insure their investment.

There is no right or wrong in reaching your dreams. Addicted homebuyers, druggies and spending government politicians understand if you can get a “fix” then you can remain in permanent ecstasy. There is no reason to face the brutal reality of the past as long as you can connive staying a step ahead of our latest Ponzi scheme. There is no future, there is only today.

Michael’s inspired grassroots movement of throwing caution to the wind was so innovative that the federal government decided to follow this ingenious path. The Federal Reserve Bank and the U.S. Treasury realized that instead of suffering the bitter taste of a recession, all they needed to do was print money night and day.

The mantra taken directly from the counter-revolution handbook of the 1960s is: live for today and screw everyone else. It has become the guiding light of the modern existence. Politicians, celebrities, CEOs and even average citizens are learning how to apply these principles to become an instant though short-lived success in this new era.

Big Daddy government has the resources and power to meet our every desire. All personal missteps or questionable government policies can be corrected with the simple strategy of throwing money at it. Ridding us of the old concept of hardship, savings and responsibility ushered in the new self-indulgent credit card and big government caring-for-all-of-our-needs lifestyle.

We are in a new, non-judgmental era where no poor soul has to suffer consequences for poor choices epitomized by Michael Jackson’s death. Being responsible for one’s actions or the government for it’s actions is harmful for everyone’s psyche and economic well being. The only people attempting to hold onto the values of persevering, sacrifice, respect while confronting pain and problems head-on are rigid morons. These people have not transcended antiquated patterns of the past. They do not understand that modern thought has advanced to the level where we can use our persona to resolve our own and national problems.

Let us enjoy every moment of our fantasy pop culture. History buffs are shouting we are duplicating the devastating German Weimar Republic. So what? We will not take the depressingly bitter remedy to save our future. La La land is a much better place to be than having the aggravation of succeeding in the real world. At least we have the fantastic Michael Jackson video clips and our personally promoted glories of our former artificially inflated life style. 

We might live a self-absorbed and purposeless life to the detriment of future generations. At least we are not hypocrites and fools who are trying to be positive role models of the past. Our 15 minutes of fame beats taking the bitter reality-medicine of the past.

Dr. Maglio is the author of Invasion Within and Essential Parenting.  He is a psychotherapist and the owner/director of Wider Horizons School.

Visit: www.drmaglio.com.