Entitlement

One thing I've been realizing is how entitled I feel as an American. It's all about I deserve this for doing nothing, or I can't believe you are treating me like that.

The simplest, most non-controversial example I can come up with is snail mail. For the past three months, at least, mail from Rwanda to the US has been halted. Some rumors about terrorists and Yemen…not sure how all that goes together but that's what rumors are all about I suppose. Just in the last week they have started to allow mail again. Which is a relief to all those letter writing PCVs, and gift-shipping ones too. Snail mail is something we just take for granted. Imagine Georgia saying to Maine - I don't trust you so I'm not going to allow any mail to go from me to you. That sounds ludicrous, doesn't it?

The messier parts of entitlement include respect, having someone acknowledge your level of education or the fact that age doesn't reflect your maturity and experience. and yet what did I ever do to earn those things? It's almost as if patriotism has become a badge of self-righteousness and high maintenance living. Somehow the history of the US has given me permission to demand a pedestal.

After reflecting on what I just wrote, I realized it sounds like I don't believe in basic human rights or that everyone should respect everyone else. I do believe these things but I also think we should be cognizant of our behavior. We can't just demand these things without also giving them to others. We can't assume we earned something because of a birthright.

In a completely unrelated note: I am a full fledged addict to West Wing now and I was pondering the other day how interesting it would be if a political show like that were made in Rwanda…or India…or China…or Mexico. How different would it look? Would anyone in those countries want to watch it? Would it turn from a drama to a tragic comedy? How many women in powerful positions would be acceptable?