Too Many Fish And Not Enough Fishers

While unlimited t-ball strikes and curving grades so everybody can pass may seem like a kind and humane thing to do, it does absolutely nothing to prepare children for the competition of the real world where the fittest go the farthest and the also-rans head into a one way street of mediocrity where they'll spend their lives never understanding why the other guy got the promotion.

Giving 15-year-old girls a check every month for having a baby and a bigger ones for having another one may sound compassionate, but in reality, those policies have created three ever-growing generations of government dependents who are now convinced that it is society's obligation to send them a check every month for as long as they live.

When people are taught that there is reward without effort or responsibility, that one size fits all and that everybody should make the same salary regardless of work ethic or productivity - when you take competition out of the equation - it dulls motivation, kills innovation and initiative and fosters an attitude of doing just enough to get by.

Being competitive means you're willing to do whatever it takes to get it done. It means you're always trying to do a better job of whatever you do whether it's sitting behind a desk or playing professional basketball.

Competition is what created the vast industrial infrastructures, what built the railroads and skyscrapers. Competition put a man on the moon, launched the communications satellites and perfected the wonder drugs.

The competitors are the burners of the midnight oil, the travelers of the extra mile, the first ones to get there and the last ones to leave, the purveyors of excellence, finders of solutions, blazers of new trails, people who never give up and don't know the meaning of the word quit.

Competing keeps you sharp and on your game, puts an edge on your thinking and a spring in your step and keeps life interesting and exciting. It doesn't mean that you're a smarter or stronger person, just that you refuse to settle for the mundane, that you want more out of life and you're willing to put out the extra effort to get it.

Being competitive doesn't mean that you have to be Omni-directional or a man for all seasons by being competitive in everything, it means you find your field and your God given talent and serve notice that you're in the game to stay, that you're going run with the big dogs at the head of the pack.

I found out early on in my chosen career that I was in a highly competitive business. When I played in clubs I knew that there was another band right down the street that was trying to attract the same customers I was trying to attract. It meant being aware of that fact every time you went on stage, to keep in mind that if the people on the dance floor didn't like the music our band was playing, they could walk out the door and go down the street and if that happened enough we were out of a job.

And it never ends; as you climb the ladder you're always competing for space on a radio playlist, for the best publicity and for the fans' recognition and acceptance.

For every play you see a player participate in on a football field, he has spent untold hours in the weight room, watching game films and practicing that play over and over, being competitive with the hundreds of kids out there who would love to have his job.

When you hear that some airplane manufacturer has won a contract, it means that designers, engineers and number crunchers have gone all out to pull the elements together and come up with a competitive bid.

Our national mentality has erred toward too many fish and not enough fishers, of claiming to level the playing field and actually tilting it, of convincing people they're not capable of fending for themselves, of discouraging competition and in this fast paced, highly competitive world that's downright dangerous.

What do you think?

Pray for our troops, and for our country.

God bless America

Charlie Daniels