Challenging Social Norms pt. 1
Tuesday? Terrific. Here we go!
First things first, here’s an important disclaimer, so please read that.
Now, onto today’s topic.
In this post I would like to address two social norms that I have noted in recent times and make an argument against them:
- University after high school
- Drinking alcohol
Let’s dive right into the first ‘norm’, going directly to a 4-year institution immediately after graduating high school.
Going to University does have numerous benefits to one’s life in both the short and long term including: new experiences on campus, intellectual growth in and out of the classroom, obtaining a degree in a field one is (hopefully!) interested in, getting an ‘adult’ job and earning $$$, etc. etc. etc.
That being said, there are other choices out there that a high school graduate can pursue, including: enlisting in the military, entering the workforce [work retail, work at parent’s work, or something similar], go to a community college, or go to a trade school.
Again, each of those choices has numerous benefits to an individual both short and long term. The question that should be asked here is “What should a high school student actually choose to do?”
Think about it this way, is it right, morally right, to force/”push”/”encourage” a high school grad towards one path or another, why not present all the options to them, provide information as best as one can, and allow them to decide for themselves? Is there anything evil/sinister/corrupt about this approach? I don’t think so, and here’s why.
By allowing the individual to make decisions about their own life, this encourages independence and long-term thinking in that individual. When they are able to choose for themselves, then they gain the experience of weighing pros and cons of various possible options. From this, they build and reinforce their own value hierarchy to assist their decision making process in both this instance and all future instances. And so many other possible benefits.
Now this is NOT an easy process for a high school student to do, and that is what parents, teachers, and other trusted and respected adults are for: to offer information and guidance about the options and being a resource to answer questions and guide them towards making their own choice.
In short, going to university after high school is not the only option out there, there are others; also, it is best to allow the individual to make their own decisions regarding their own future by presenting them with all the relevant information and supporting them in their endeavor irrespective of one’s own opinion on the topic.
That’s that, so let’s move to the next topic, drinking alcohol.
As everyone should know, the legal age to consume alcohol in America is 21. I personally have never consumed alcohol, I don’t see the value in doing so. I also have discovered, to my surprise, that there are individuals older than I who don’t drink as well! What I would like to address is the, to me, common held belief that one should/must drink alcohol [for ‘fun’, to get drunk, to relax, etc. etc.].
Let me begin with the conclusion: If an individual does not do something based on their own evaluation of that something, then another individual has NO right to demand anything of them. Instead, the other individual can make the case for doing the something, but that is about the limit of what is morally acceptable for the other individual to do in this situation.
The question to be asked here is: Why {or why not} should an individual consume alcohol?
As described above, the best way to approach any decision is to take cognizance of all pros and cons of the activity involved, reference one’s value hierarchy, and check one’s moral code to arrive at a conclusion and plan of action to take.
For the choice of “to drink alcohol or not”, I’ll lay out what I perceive as the pros and cons.
Pros: good taste [depending on the actual drink], more enjoyable atmosphere [assuming with others], relax/de-stress, and some others
Cons: getting drunk [loss of memory, damage to body], costs money, plus opportunity cost to be doing something else or drink something else
Granted this pro/con list is probably biases and is definitely not all-inclusive; however the argument for drinking does seem to be more about other-centrism, which is clearly self-destroying because that necessarily diminishes the self.
Here’s the bottom line: I don’t drink, I don’t see the value in drinking, there are others who don’t drink and don’t see the value in drinking, and if there are individuals who do drink, then they have the right [free speech!] to make their case for drinking and they even have the right to not associate with myself and/or those others who don’t [freedom of association!]; however I submit that my case against drinking is stronger than the case made for drinking.
In closing, let me tell everyone who cares a little secret: Whenever anyone makes this case to me, I immediately associate them [fairly or not] with Lillian Rearden from Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged . Please read that novel, especially the sections where Lillian interacts with her husband, Hank and the thoughts he has regarding why she does what she does.
Thanks for reading
As always,
Choices=Reality