My Journal #273 - Mistakes are ok

I'm still not quite myself. I've had a rough couple of months. But something happened that needs to be discussed. So here goes . . .

This past week a political candidate made a galactically ignorant comment, no question about it. The comment was about something that is considered horrible by any standard. The man had given many interviews on that fateful day and was probably mentally exhausted. Once he realized how badly he had screwed up his word choice he immediately offered apology after apology.
He made a mistake. He admitted his mistake. Yet now the world wants this guy not to run for his office. Furthermore the world wants to tar and feather him.

Huh?

When did we as INDIVIDUALS in a great country get so damned arrogant that we can’t understand or accept common mistakes?

Which of you haven’t made a stupid comment or done something completely ridiculous at one time or another?

Let me explain something to all of you. When people screw up they usually learn a valuable lesson. I put my hand on a glowing red stove once, and that was stupid. But I learned never to put my hand on a burner again. So making mistakes is part of life, as is learning from those mistakes. And forgiveness is a virtue.

Being a good leader is a trait with which some people are born. Yet the same characteristics which lead to this trait also tend to lead to a person being a risk taker, decisive, and a little bit cocky. These types of people don’t worry about security or safety nets. They see a challenge and they do something. And yes, sometimes they make mistakes.

But do you REALLY want someone leading you who has never made a mistake?

I promise you, if you show me a person that hasn’t made a dozen whopper mistakes in their life; then I will show you a person that hasn’t done shit in their life. They’ve never taken a stand, or stood by a friend, or argued an issue in public. They’ve never stood up and said, “Dammit, if no one else will do it then I freakin’ will!!!”

In this particular case, people who favor the same party that this man represents are demanding he step down from the race. They would rather have someone who is opposed to all their views, and who would probably make them much worse off in time have the seat instead of the man who fucked up his word choice one time.
WTF????

Folks, there is a game called LIFE going on right now; and most of you are missing it. Let’s try to keep our eyes on the ball for the remainder.