Courage

I guess it was inevitable.  I watch many sources of news and keep up with what is happening in the world.  If you've read this blog at all you know how disappointed I am with today's media.  The simple truth is that they no longer report the news...they shape the news.  And nothing is more evident than the non-story that has blown up into a huge story about Bruce, er, Caitlyn Jenner.  I thought that the whole Kardashian thing has been rather nauseating over the last few years (although I will admit to never having watched one thing about them).  I mean, what have they done?  They are making millions for nothing.  Nothing.  They are a media creation.

Now we have the spectacle of a heroic Olympic decathlon winner decided in his 60's that he wants to become a woman.  Huh?  I'm a pretty live and let live kind of guy and if someone wants to do something like that, I guess it's okay.  But don't make it a national story.  Don't inflict this emotionally crippled person on the rest of us.  Don't make us listen to what the impact has been on his family and kids.  And how much "courage" he has.  And you can't escape it.  I mean...it's everywhere.

And here's another thing.  He's not really becoming a woman.  Women are created from little girls who grow to womanhood.  Maybe he's becoming a female, but he's not becoming a woman.  And I happened to see a story where he's not having surgery to, ahem, remove certain body parts.  Sounds to me like he's adding stuff that's pretty easy but not subtracting stuff that would be essential to subtract if he's really...you know...changing.  So....I'm not buying it.

And now we hear that he is being awarded an ESPY Arthur Ashe Courage Award.  I think Bob Costas sums up my thinking pretty well.

So that got me thinking about courage.  I will admit to being a big admirer of Chris Kyle.  You know...American Sniper.  If you don't know, well then you've been living under a rock.  This guy was a genuine American hero.  And I think he epitomized the word courage.  But there are some who don't.  There are some who denigrate his service and don't believe he exhibited any courage in his four tours in Iraq.  Okay.  Everyone is entitled to their opinion.  But this sort of epitomizes mine...