The second problem with freedom

The second problem with freedom is having the freedom to succeed means we also have the freedom to fail. They go together. You can’t have one without the other. For some reason there is a movement to make sure nobody fails. Every kid gets a blue ribbon. Again it is a good idea in theory. A world where everybody succeeds sounds great but in reality it is impossible. We need to fail. I was a crew chief on a dirt track race car for 8 years and I always told the driver that there is more to learn from losing than winning. When we lose we have to choices. 1. Give up. Hey, that is a freedom we have also. We have the freedom to be a lazy bum. If that is how you want to live your life it’s OK with me. Just don’t ask me for a handout. And don’t ask the government to take anything form me to give to you because you chose to be a bum. 2. Learn from your mistakes and try again. There is a famous quote from Thomas Edison: “Results? Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work”. Failure is good. Things are learned that make our successes even better. But the bottom line is life isn’t fair. No form of government will ever be able to make it fair. Learning how to lose is one of the most important lessons kids need to learn. Giving them all blue ribbons and only letting them play games that don’t have winners and losers is going to lead to a generation of society that won’t be able to cope with the harsh realities of life so they are going to look to the government to take care of them. This country was founded on the idea that anyone can succeed who worked hard enough. Not everybody will succeed because the government will make it so. Life sucks more often than not for many people. I am one of them. I have failed many times. I have exercised that freedom too many times. But one of these days I will succeed. I have that freedom because I am an American.