You be you

This was an actual question from my 'Technology in a Global Society' blow-off class last night.

4. List and briefly discuss one of the questions at the end of the chapter.

Question #1. If you were charged with creating a ‘new’ human society, what moral code would you design and why?

(here's my response)

When I was a SSgt in the Air Force I had 6 Airmen directly under me and I supervised a flight of 13 Airmen on the night shift. Since it was night time and rather boring the Airmen spent most of their time getting into arguments and generally being royal pains. My solution to this was my philosophy for life from that point on. I called it “you be you”.

In a nut shell this meant to worry and focus on your own tasks and adversities and let other deal with theirs. For example, some of my troops felt that others were gaining preferential treatment from one supervisor or the other. Under my philosophy, their complaining about it most likely wouldn’t accomplish much… or a negative effect was more common than any effect at all. So the answer was, you be you. Set your own goals and strive toward them. If someone else is getting a free ride or a better go at things… too bad. Life is un-fair. That doesn’t stop you or change your goals so… you be you.

It also covered social actions. Let’s use the current argument of gay marriage as an example, or better yet let’s say that I wanted to marry a horse. Now, if I’m going to get an extra tax break because my horse eats more food than my neighbors wife… or I am going to get free health care for all the times I get kicked by my new equestrian life-partner… then marring a horse is a bad thing. I am adversely affecting other people because I am a freak. The flip side of that is, if I am not adversely affecting anyone with my choice then no one has any right to tell me that I cannot do it. I can do whatever I want as long as it doesn’t affect anyone else.

You be you means that if you choose to be a lay about and end up working at McDonalds for the rest of your life (not that every employee at McDonalds is a lay about) then that is your lot in life and you should shut up and smile when your making my burger.

You be you doesn’t answer every question… but it sure did shut those Airmen up.