There are so many people that think the rules don't apply to them. It seems like I encounter these people more and more often. There are drivers who don't think traffic laws apply to them, citizens who don't think litter laws are important, community members who think the group's rules are stupid and Christians who don't think Biblical principals are meant to be followed.
Can you imagine a world without rules? Complete anarchy is even too much to fathom. In my opinion, there is really only a thin line between complete anarchy and people who break even the smallest of rules.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not a perfect Miss Goody Two-Shoes. Sure, I break rules. I speed. I take pictures where photography is prohibited. I have snuck backstage at concerts, pretending I'm with the band. I'm not justifying my actions.
The people who consistently break the rules are the ones who get to me. At church, they put their kids in classes that they're too young for. (People pushing their kids to grow up too fast is another issue for another day.) At the banquet I organized a couple months ago, they put 11 people at a table for 10. They didn't ask, they just informed me that they were doing it. Even though certain standards are laid out by the church, some people have decided they are above the rules.
These frequent rule-breakers get all fired up when they're not permitted to do something they really want to do. They whine. They argue. They make scenes. They don't worry about who they're offending, who they are throwing under the bus. They have been raised in an It's All About Me World.
Teaching my children why it's important to follow the rules is an important parenting responsibility. Sure, I would rather fight for my kid to get the best of everything. But I can't. My kids have to learn that life isn't fair; it doesn't always go the way you want it to go. When it doesn't, my kids can't pitch a fit, whine, and make a scene. They need to shrug their shoulders, maybe vent their frustrations to someone close to them, and move on with life. The sooner that kids (and adults) learn this, the more satisfying life will be. Because when it comes to rule-breakers, eventually they're going to be crushed.
What specific rules do people break that really frustrates you?
2 comments:
This is a great post, and very honest. I can't think of any "rules" that people break, but I do have the idea that there are just certain standards by which we should all "keep up". Ha! Certain life etiquette, if you will. :)Like when your at the bottom or top of an escalator don't stop after you've gotten off. Keep moving, so you don't block others. When your about to make a right hand turn, and cars have the right to pass you on the left as you turn, don't, at the last minute whip back towards the left to make a wide turn when you are in a 2 door speck and don't need that wide of a turning radius. If you work in customer service, do your job and HELP with a smile in your voice, UNLESS on the rare occasion you are being verbally abused, treat everyone with kindness, otherwise get another job. Don't smoke on a playground around children. Don't drink and drive. Don't leave a public toilet seat covered in pee, blood, etc. Wear deodorant, or something that will cover up BO. Wash your hands after you go to the bathroom. If you make a mess, clean it up properly. Don't do things half assed. Are you sorry you asked? Ha! I'll be done for now... :)
Everyone breaks rules, but the people who break rules at work annoy me the most. I work in a numbers based field-- if you don't hit your goal, you're not going to get a raise. So it's really upsetting when people "cheat" to get their numbers by breaking the rules, and then they get rewarded for it! Ugh! I hate that!
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