FAZE GUEST COLUMNIST:
Bif Naked, queen of Canadian punk scene (and former Faze cover girl)
I am here to complain about complainers. Complainers suck. I guess complainers are, ultimately, whiners. They are the same. They are both weak.
We live in a victim culture. We are encouraged and expected, by society, by our parents, and by the media to complain and whine about any grievances we have. If we feel we’ve been wronged or slighted in any way, we get to use that as an excuse to be lazy. “Oh, she got bitten by a classmate in the nursery, so now if she doesn’t want to eat her vegetables, go to soccer, talk to humans, read books or refuse to sleep in her own bed… she doesn’t have to.” Get over yourself!
Ever heard of the Sudan? You don’t know what hardship is. Our so-called issues perpetuate our unwillingness to move forward, rise above adversity or work hard. We are coddled like infants. And, what’s worse, this is preferred to hard work.
It is your responsibility as a global citizen to educate yourself and gain a perspective about issues affecting the world. How can you possibly appreciate the rad new DC skate shoes you are wearing, when it does not occur to you that most kids your age, everywhere else in the world, aim-not to be rich or cool-looking, but to be safe.
Let me remind you that more than 840 million people in the world are malnourished and 1.2 billion people in the world live on less than a dollar a day. Somehow, our problems with getting the car for Friday night seem extremely shallow and unimportant. Why not feel lucky to be alive instead of thinking that we are more important than anyone else? Our society has raised us to believe we are unique and special, in the same way it encourages us to hold and cling to our “victimization.” We aren’t special; we’re lucky to be alive at all. Make up your mind.
What a society of weaklings we are! We should be ashamed of ourselves! We need to stop living in the past, clinging to our inflated perception of our little, fragile, so-called important selves. We should, instead, strive to be leaders. Strive to become strong, confident, and competent people who are happy and healthy, and contributing to better the world.
Our ability to cope and rise above is probably a direct reflection of our intelligence which cannot always be measured in the standard grading system. Take, for example, Individual A, who gets straight A’s but behaves like a whining, sniveling, and immature ingrate. Individual B squeaks by on B’s and C’s, but feels happy and satisfied because they are trying their very best, and, not surprisingly, giving their 100% effort to all areas in life (school, family, exercise, nutrition). Which person do you think is enjoying a better quality of life?
Making more of an effort to be a happier person creates infectious positivism. It will affect every area of your life. Increasing your efforts will create habits and increase self-esteem that will stay with and help you for the rest of your life. Besides, TODAY IS THE FIRST DAY OF THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!
Bif Naked’s Favourite Activism Sites
www.ruckus.org
The Ruckus Society provides environmental and human rights organizers with the tools, training, and support needed to achieve their goalswww.earthfirst.org
Earth First! is a front-line, direct action approach to protecting wilderness
www.researchpubs.com
Your essential counterculture library, which seeks to maximize creativity and freedom in a world of consumerism and control
www.greenpeace.org
As a global organization, Greenpeace focuses on the most crucial worldwide threats to our planet’s biodiversity and environment
www.thehumanist.org
A zine of critical inquiry and social concern
www.idealist.org
A directory with more than 33,000 non-profit and community organizations in 165 countries
Photo courtesy of Hype Music and Her Royal Majesty’s Records
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