Always throw the first punch. Yeah, I know the rules of warfare-don’t fire
unless fired upon-but in some situations that’s just a way for people who are
too scared to fight to keep from getting a black eye. Sometimes you have to stand up for yourself
and for others. Sherman Alexie learned
to throw the first punch because otherwise your opponent will fire first, and
by the time you hit the ground your foe is already in the lead. You have to throw the first punch because 99.9%
of the time there’s not going to be someone to do it for you. I could go on another rant about this, but I’d
probably get myself sent to the principal’s office, so I’m going to keep this
simple and clean. When someone needs your
help, you can’t trust someone else to be there.
You can’t trust that some bystander is going to step in and provide
their assistance, because they’re probably thinking exactly what you are. The
other guy is going to do it. But by
the time you realize they won’t, it’s already too late. When you’re being threatened by someone with
a gun, you can’t expect that someone will step in and stop it. You have to throw the first punch. In the business world, if you don’t step up
to the challenge, someone else is going to take your opportunity from you. The moral of the story: Always throw the
first punch. I hope you’ve got a good
cause, but if you can find no other reason, then do it for Sparta.
Oh, I see what you did there, you said do it for Sparta because Sparta was a war based society that attacked first and took no prisoners. I agree you should throw the first punch because, yes, someone won't do it for you, but you can't just go around choking people out because of Sparta. If you have to search for a reason to do something, then you probably shouldn't do it. In Alexie's case, it almost seemed he was taught to throw the first punch, because, and this may be a stretch, during the skirmishes/battles/war with the U.S. military, the U.S. "threw the first punch" and this warrior society couldn't let that happen again.
ReplyDeleteI agree that people should be more independent, and the first step in doing that is throwing the first punch.
ReplyDeleteHey, Connor, I totally agree with your point that one needs to attack the problem if he wants it fixed/ if he wants something done, he has to do it himself. I think that it's something we need to hear, especially in today's society, where the majority of people are like sheep in a flock, afraid to be a leader and start something or to stand up for what they believe in. Also, the humoresque tone, with the "Do it for Sparta," and the "get myself sent to the principal's office" was a nice touch. :)
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