happiness is a warm smoking gun

the other day, i sent out a massive amount of resumes to political consultants throughout the united states. all of whom i had never met or spoke to prior. i found an exhaustive list online and figured it wouldn't hurt to get my resume in the hands of as many people as possible. many didn't respond to this mailing, which is perfectly understandable. many responded with messages to the tune of "not currently hiring, but we'll keep your resume on file"

a few generous souls provided me with encouraging words or even advice. they pointed out improvements which could be made to enhance my resume, websites to search for conservative political jobs, or even provided me with other people in which to contact. i prefer to deal with people like these.

one man, a political consultant based out of chicago, asked me to call him. i did. we spoke about the potential of me being a staff member for his office in one of many upcoming political campaigns, most notably in Georgia. he was a strong conservative and seemed to hold his faith and family values close at heart. i like that. working for a political campaign while employed through his office would allow me to make a tremendous number of connections - with the Georgia politician's network, as well as the Chicago consultant's network. this could lead to a tremendous amount of open doors in the future and if nothing else, great references and experience to add to my resume. i'll keep you posted.

but one man stood out among the rest. i struck some nerve in him that pierced down to the very soul, or absence thereof, of this man. he is the president/ceo of a relatively well-respected political polling, research, and consulting firm, established in 1981. he's not new to the game. i assume he wanted to impart me, an impressionable college grad, with his "wisdom" of how the world works. i chose to respond with my own wisdom and humility, something i am quite sure he lacks. i decided to share the conversation with you, the reader. enjoy. oh, and please tell me what you think! =)

i'll start with his response to my initial letter. here goes:

Trent

You are graduating at the wrong time.

I am unaware of anyone hiring for anything anywhere in the State of Arizona, or for that matter in the United States. Even the once permanent signs in the McDonalds are nowhere to be seen.

I assume you have already noticed this.

I wish I could be more encouraging; but there is a recession out there and possibly a depression coming.

Best of luck to you,

Mike O'Neil

*note: i have left the original formatting, syntax, and grammar in tact.

i was completely surprised when i got this email back. all i had done to him was basically ask if he had, or knew of, any job openings. he decided to take out his hatred of the world on me. now, if you know me, which i am pretty sure you do, i couldn't resist responding to a message of this caliber with a message of my own.

Mr. O'Neil,

Thanks for your quick response to my email.

I must start by saying, I appreciate your refreshing optimism.  While you may in fact be correct about the further impending doom of the economy, I cannot sit back and do nothing about my lack of employment.  While there may be few people hiring in the United States, there are always people hiring.  This is not the 1930s.

In addition to the optimism that I have for my own successes, my values and core beliefs do not allow me to file for a social handout, such as welfare.  Although I am currently unemployed, and have been for over a month now, I refuse to take someone else's money, when I am perfectly capable of making a living myself.

At this point, I am not ready to settle for a mediocre job outside of my education area, but when I do, it should be noted that Baton Rouge, my hometown, has recently been recognized as a "safe place to ride out a recession."  The economy here is showing few signs of disaster and there are numerous places hiring, as well as new businesses springing up everywhere.  And for the record, Baton Rouge just so happens to be in these United States of America.

The difference between you and me is perception.  You have a job, a career, and a well-established firm, yet the economy has turned your entire world view into excruciating pessimism.  I, on the other hand, have not had a job for over a month, have little to no experience, and few connections; however, I remain faithful that everything will work out in due time.  Optimism is the key to life.  Life's too short to be pissed off all the time.

My words don't come from some sheltered adolescent who's worldview will be completely crushed upon entering the "real world."  Instead, I have faced "the real world" on numerous occasions and have always risen above my circumstances through my optimism, perseverance, dedication, hard-work, and most of all - my faith.

You could be more encouraging, but you choose not to.  There are greater things in this life than the economy and the current state of affairs.  You can't let it affect you as much as you have.  Otherwise, you'll remain bitter forever.  That's no way to live a life.  I choose happiness, despite any hardships I may encounter along the way.  Maybe you should give it a try too.

Trent Barnett

trentbarnett@gmail.com

i feel like i was adequately able to convey my disagreement with his comments. if we had sat down for coffee and discussed politics, his commentary would be one thing. but to respond that way to an initial job request email, when we've never met before, no thank you sir.

one thing that kind of makes me happy is the fact that this guy is the owner of this big, well-established firm.. which means he probably hasn't had anyone talk to him in that manner in many years.. much less a measly college-grad like myself. 

i hope you enjoyed this as much as i did. please, leave your own commentary on the conversation. i'd like to see it.

the rise of socialism

what has happened to the republican party? they sit around and argue against government abuse of power and socialism, now they are pushing for the biggest bailout in American, and probably even world, history. the republicans should be the ones trying to stop the democrats from doing this however we seem to support it just as strongly as they do. $700 billion dollars.. that is nearly $2300 in added tax liability per taxpayer. i can think of a lot of better things to do with my $2300.

bernanke is asking for this money to come and all actions to be "non-reviewable"......... if that bill passes... wow. that gives government way too much power to do as they please (i.e. not representing the wishes of the populous.. which is the grounds for democracy). this would be further proof of just how expansive our government is and we can do nothing about it, except elect new officials (and i dont mean obama). however, the new leadership always seems to fall under the same mantra as before and no real change takes place.

the financial leaders argue this bailout will fix the economy.. what happened to individual responsibility? if we can spend $700 billion now to bail out the companies, what happens down the road when other companies fail? are we going to tell them no? what makes one buy out better than another? and.. if we can spend $700 billion now, what is another say $700 million later.. it seems like chump change then. so how long with this buyout trend continue? further undermining the American spirit of individual responsibility for an individual's actions...

this argument affects many other aspects of life as well.. reaching into the welfare system, the healthcare system (and push for nationalization), the education system (by way of the welfare system), the Social Security system, and others.. its called SOCIAL security for a reason.. hence SOCIALISM. cradle to grave socialism is what runs the Democratic party and maintains their voting base for generations to come. i dont need to do anything for myself, the government will take care of me.

seriously, if i was a pathetic worthless life form with no pride or sense of self worth, i would simply sit home and mooch off the government.. why not? they'll provide what i need to live. but i dont want to just live. i want to be able to have the best life i can have. and if it means working hard, then where is the problem in that? i mean seriously, how pathetic can it be to sit at home all day and do absolutely nothing with your life? i get bored just being on summer break.. imagine an entire life (from birth to death) with no sense of worth in life.