Perseverance, arrogance or madness?

While driving home last night from another fulfilling, life-affirming night of working at a newspaper I heard a Public Service Announcement about perseverance.


The point of the PSA was to encourage folks to keep on keeping on despite obvious shortcomings and failures. The PSA used the 16th President of the United States Abraham Lincoln as the example.

Maybe I should have been a logger?

Lincoln is often cited for his never quit attitude. Never giving up is an admirable trait, but at some point one has to think that all the trial and tribulation isn't worth it. If you ask me, Lincoln is the LAST person our society should hold up as a symbol of all things good in staying the course.

Lincoln battled a nervous breakdown, lost numerous elections for state and national offices, failed at business twice, etc.

"But Scott, he was young during all of that and he eventually became president."

OK fine. He became president after years of defeat and failure on many different levels. But was it all worth it? Seriously?

Everything he did led up to this ...

WOW! THAT STINGS!!!!

So what does this all mean? I'll tell you young readers. I'll break this out in large type so you can copy it, print it and hang it inside your cubicles, lockers or where ever you may need some realistic inspiration.

Work hard, stay focused on your goals and get shot in the back of the head by a jealous a-hole.

Getting shot in the head can be either literally or figuratively. Either way you're pretty much screwed. 

Now there's advice much more useful that that frigging cat hanging from the tree limb.