The "I Want Mine" American Outlook

"Bus driver, move that bus!"I think we've all heard that phrase repeated on a popular television show, as have I, and I always get choked up at the end, when the truly deserving families see their new house for the first time. The gratefullness shows on the faces and their expressions, even their emotions. These people were in desperate need of this type of intervention, without other options.This article, however, is about the types of people, and shows on t.v., that seem to mimic the above mentioned, except it seems that it's client base is, well, far less deserving?

Take for instance, the show's on television that "help out" homeowners with their landscaping disasters, for free. It will show grass two feet tall, bushes like Fred Sanfords beard, etc. Common sense would rationalize that a mower and some hedgetrimmers might just do the trick, but nope, gotta have a show about these morons getting twenty grand worth of landscape labor and materials that you just know they won't take care of afterwards.

Narcissism goes beyond the media, and Adonnis would be proud at the "I want it now" attitude of our country. From the shows about sixteen year old girls getting six figure birthday parties, to others touting their "cribs", we get what we want, when we want it, just like Burger King. MY WAY

This type of attitude can only stand for so long, before crumbling into self despair, and isolation, attributed from having to actually accomplish tasks on your own. It takes it's toll heavily on the insurance system, the hospitals, and the prehospital EMS systems. For instance, last evening, or morning rather, at 0430 hours, I was dispatched to an address for a sixty two year old man, whose brand new Hummer sat in the driveway, with a chief complaint of not being able to "poop" since yesterday. One day. Yes, that's right. Did he try any over the counter relief? Of course not, because he will just call 911, get immediate help, and have it HIS WAY. No pickles, hold the cheese.

Another example of the "I want it now syndrome", (or IWIN), for short, is the thirty year old lady who calls 911 new years night when her forty year old friend becomes intoxicated on wine and vomits. My look of disgust at the abuse of 911 must have clued her in, because she said to me, "it is what it is". Not my favorite saying, that night at the least. I politely explained to her, that actually it is what it shouldn't have been with some common sense, alas, the "me, me, me" society has convinced us that unless the world and everything, and everyone in it revolved around us, then it's wrong, and it's tantrum time. Does writing this make me narcissistic? I'm not sure, I know I don't want to be, but I'm pretty sure that I have had my share of "all about me" episodes. I think everyone has. These aren't the folks I'm writing about. I am talking about six figure sweet sixteen birthday parties, brand new cars for the lads who just received their licenses, and that guy in the gym who screams at himself in the mirror, (you know who you are). I used to be petrified to go to the gym, albeit I'm only five feet seven, and a hundred a fifty pounds, but it was the type of gym I was going to. It catered to the Adonnis' of the world. You all know, the fake tan, scream at each other, shrunken testicles type, with whiteheads on top of whiteheads. I was afraid if I make any of them angry, they would throw me through the wall. Perhaps thats why I don't go to a gym today, just out of fear of angering someone on steroids. My brother is a personal trainer, and I don't know if he does steroids, but his head is the size of a pea, and his body looks like something out of a cartoon, and he likes mirrors, lot's of mirrors, but I digress.

I remember being in a cell phone store probably ten years ago, when this sort of behavior was freakishly uncommon, and witnessed one of the first few incidents of "IWIN" syndrome. A lady in her thirties came in, allready ready for a fight. She attached herself immediately to a sales rep and began complaining about how her "new phone", wasn't getting any reception anywhere, and she couldn't talk on it. The sales rep looked up her phone records in his computer, and found that not only did she have no problems talking on it, she actually went over her pricing. Well, that threw the princess into a state of "addonisism", if their is such a word. She actually began screaming at this poor kid, then threw her phone right through their glass window and roared away. We were all a bit shocked, but that was my first ever experience with the syndrome that is rampant today.

A few more tales of the "I want it now" syndrome. Surprisingly, no one is exempt from getting this disease, as this story shows us. The deputy chief of the local police department called 911 one evening and stated that he had been having intermittant chest pain for about two weeks, but he stated, "I knew I wouldn't have to wait in the ER going by ambulance". IWIN strikes again!

I truly believe, based on what I have read, but mostly observed, that the younger generation are being affected by the "IWIN" plague at a greater rate than adults, and when they become adults, watch out for some pretty bad temper tantrums when a thirty year old doesn't get her or his way. The media is to blame, absolutely, from watching show's like "my sweet sixteen", on MTV, which is all about the latter, but how the parties are always hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a first car as a gift, because, as most of the little girls have said, "I deserve it". Parental control takes second over what our children are being exposed to. If you don't want little Johnny growing up to be a narciccist, then don't let him watch material that would fill his head with that type of propaganda.

Sadly enough though, it's allready too late for some. These are the folks who have somehow contracted this disease either earlier in their lives by lack of punishment and being spoiled, or later on in life, by who knows how. These are the type to call 911 repeatedly from a pay phone at a bar to ask for a ride home, until their arrested. These are also the type to give the person who is solely responsible for saving their lives after overdosing on heroin a bad attitude, because we ruined their high.

So, to conclude, I would advise against having any mirrors to look at yourself in, throw the television away, never, ever, go to a gym, and don't call 911.