...It is sad, but the persevering, winning attitude that has made Americans what we are is on the decline in our society. The earlier generations of Americans from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War times to WWII Era Americans had a sense of pride, a sense of winning — at all costs. That may be why, especially in the case of the latter, that they have been called the “Greatest Generation.” It may be no coincidence that as that generation has begun to fade from our society, the sense of winning and pride has faded as well.
What has replaced it and is becoming more prevalent is a sense of entitlement, mediocrity and an extreme fear of failure. This is evidenced by the fact that, more and more, we see instances of not awarding grades in school, not keeping score in athletic contests, celebrating finishing fourth and lower, and not even deciding winners (and losers) at all.
While this may say sound like a clever way to help boost self-esteem, many times boosting self-esteem has been used as the excuse for the rewarding of mediocrity. It may, in fact, be contributing to and conditioning us to strive for lower standards, mediocre results and finding still more excuses for why people cannot — or more importantly, will not — work to reach their true potential.
In many ways, excuses have replaced the spirit in the American people...
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