Unfair 122015

I recently suffered a personal loss that demonstrated the five stages of grief were publish or perish theory, and not my reality.  On hearing the news I went directly to an angry response of “It’s not fair.”

It wasn’t fair, but my mind slipped quickly from the cliche “life is not fair” to all the unfairness of today.  Partly this is an analytical mind distracting itself from pain.  It was also a reach for solidarity with all the others struggling against the unfairness of it all.

It’s not fair that protection under the law has evolved to shoot first and don’t ask any questions.  It’s not fair that the legal shooters can’t even hit their seven-foot target despite filling the air with hundreds of bullets that take out innocents as bad guys strolls away.

It’s not fair that voters are subjected to a two year comedy of horrifying electioneering that will throw them twisting into a purgatory of regrets for four more years.  It's not fair that politicians spend more time electioneering than governing.  It's not fair that they spend more money to gain power than they can hope to honestly earn in a lifetime.

We can live with “good guys finish last,” but it’s not fair that the bad guys always finish on top.  How about a President who took great pride in getting away with lying to the public.  Or the academics who manipulates research to support political biases for government grants.  Then there are the public persecutors who railroad the innocent for political advancement and deny redress to the persecuted..

It's not fair that rich nations have large populations of starving children and homeless.  It's not fair that there are even larger segments of populations that live in fear of their own governments.  It's not fair that the super rich are able to buy elections.  It's not fair that a growing marketing industry's sole product is deception.  It's not fair that the television industry has deteriorated to an opiate for the masses.  It's not fair that the social media now trumps reality.  It's not fair that cheap reality television now passes as quality art.    It's not fair that stores get away forcing you to buy what they have rather than what you want.  It's not fair that customer spend more on gas searching for what they do want than the item is worth.  It's not fair that sales persons know nothing about the products they sell, and only know how to demand cash or credit.

It's not fair that students can graduate on credit for standardize testing and still are unable to read, write or compute.  It's not fair that teachers are not trusted to fairly grade students but are allowed to send them to jail on their emotional fears. It's not fair that the former greatness of public education is falling under the weight of for profit schooling.   It's not fair that as more money is spent on education literacy rates falls.

It's not fair that in the 21st century that the majority of people must even think about life's unfairness.  IT JUST AIN'T FAIR.