Is it cool?

 The FDA wants to ban menthol cigarettes. That's because it entices kids to smoke. That's their explanation. Just like vaping, banning the flavors young people like. The thinking is to take the candy out of the store. In my estimation it will be as effective as banning assault style semi-automatic rifles to prevent mass shootings. The reason is simple one to understand really, if you just think about it and are honest with your answers. The reason most kids start smoking. It's cool, everyone is doing it. Vaping, that's cool. Having an AR-15, or any assault style rifle, super cool. No different than the desire for the new sneakers, records, clothes, cars or anything else that's cool. And that is the truth 99% of the time. Why else would you pay fifty, sixty dollars for jeans that are in shreds? They are cool. Holding a minimum wage, part time job while carrying a 1200 dollar I-phone. Hey, I need that. 

 If you want to change any of that, it has to be cool. Just how you go about that is something I can offer no advice on. I know, rarely do I not have some idea. But I never got a really cool nickname or was up on the latest fad or fashion. When I did learn of the latest fad or fashion I didn't always comply. I was taught to make my own choices and stand by them. Obstinate is what some call that. I call it committed. A man's word is his bond! That was central to my upbringing. If you said it, back it up. Something that in todays' world isn't always viewed in a positive way. We have television shows based on the premise of back-stabbing, lying and cheating. The ones doing that the "best" are the winners.

 In years past much of that was accomplished through religious training. We went to Sunday school. Some of us went to Parochial schools. There we learned the value of honesty, integrity and doing the right thing. It was a method to deal with the shortcomings in your life. Yes, life isn't fair, but we are all equal in death. That was the subtle lesson learned. Studies confirm that the vast majority of us will acknowledge that at some point in our lives. Might be a few days before the end, but it will be recognized. Even those that never attended a single service in their lives were aware of that. It permeated everyday life. Much of that has been removed over the years, in the interest of commerce. That's my feeling anyway. Mustn't let any of that interfere with a profit or progress. Progress means more money, more luxury and fewer restrictions on behaviors. It's all cool! 

 Seems to me the things that are cool are those things we have been told that we shouldn't do. Grow our hair long and shaggy, listen to specific types of music, wearing certain clothing, participating in certain behaviors. Mostly I think whatever previous generations determined were wrong. The difference today being the "moral" compass is missing. Nowhere in our religious teachings where we taught it was wrong to wear certain clothes, listen to music and all that sort of stuff. Yes, I know some religious organizations have all those restrictions. I'm just saying in a general way the Christianity America had ingrained in our everyday lives centered on moral actions and doing the right thing. That was the lesson. It was also taught there were consequences for not doing so! That's what the compass is for, to keep you going in the right direction. The founding fathers wrote this: 

“For the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the Protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” They acknowledged and upheld a Judeo-Christian, Bible-based view of God as actively involved in the lives of human beings. A moral compass. Free will and freedom to choose. What are you basing your decision on? What's right or what's cool? Or, is it all cool?