I have some kind of sinus thing going on. I have a splitting headache and it seems to be emanating from my sinuses. Wishing to alleviate my suffering, I went to a Walgreens near where I work. I go to the appropriate aisle for sinus medications and select the product that will give me some relief. Except, it wasn’t the product. It was a card with a picture of the product.

You see, Crankers use this and similar medications to manufacture meth. You know what meth is? It is the drug of choice for people who want to stay high for days on end and no longer care that their hair falls out to say nothing of their teeth. So, because of these cretins, I have to take this card with the picture of my selected sinus medication back to the counter where the real thing is securely kept out of the reach of nasal sufferers.

In order to obtain the medication I had to show my drivers license. I asked if I had to take my shoes off too. The clerk was not amused. But this little interlude got me thinking. Why do we have to put up with so much bullshit because of the morons who are doing bad things? Why do we have to succumb to evil?

Think about all the things we have to do in order to live in what we call a civilization. You know there are areas where you just shouldn’t walk alone at night. You probably should stay off the subways after 1 AM. My own rule is don’t ride the subway after the evening rush but that’s me. I go to a Yankee game and I have to take off my Yankee cap to show I don’t have any explosives hidden under my interlocking NY. I have to have my cell phone operational to show that I am not using it for an illegal purpose.

Then, I go to get a Blue Moon and I have to show that I am of legal age to purchase it. Ok, the first time that happened I was flattered, but come on! What’s going on here?

Here are some other inanities that we have to endure because of the evil people in the world:

We have to take off our shoes and submit to full body scans at the airport.

We have to put up with the snotty TSA personnel after they make us take off our shoes.

We have to change our passwords to various sites every other week (it seems).

We can’t go to a stinking movie without worrying that some nut job is going to pull out an automatic weapon. (I don’t know about you but I will wait until the new Batman movie comes out on Netflix.)

We can’t go to a sporting even without worrying about drunken idiots attacking us for wearing the wrong shirt or cap.

We can’t go just about anywhere without being recorded or videoed or otherwise having our privacy invaded.

We can’t drive our car without being scanned or under surveillance for DWI, driving unseatbelted, or running a red light or maybe driving an unregistered car without insurance.

I am sure you can add to this list because new invasions or forced accommodations to evil are added every day.

The real trouble is we really don’t mind. It is more important to us to enjoy the semblance of security and personal safety than to worry about surrendering personal liberties. We are only too happy to have ourselves scanned and patted down so that we can fly the friendly skies. We don’t mind surveillance cameras in department stores because we understand the need to watch for shop lifters. We give in because we understand there is evil out there and someone has to be on the lookout for it. But think about the costs that we have to absorb because of evil people.

I can understand why gun owners are angry when they have to deal with restrictions and background checks but they have to put up with it because of those who do evil with guns. There really is no choice in the matter.

America is the most ‘penalized’ country in the world. We imprison a greater number of our citizens than just about anywhere in the world. That cost is a major burden on our nation. It is estimated that eighty five percent of those incarcerated are in prison because of drug related offenses, either selling or committing another crime while under the influence or trying to get money to be under the influence. The War Against Drugs has been a failure.

Because we spend so much money on capturing, prosecuting, and imprisoning drug users, there is very little left for treatment programs. Maybe it is time to rethink this strategy?

I don’t know what the answer is, I only know that, like most Americans, I am sick and tired of having to adapt to evil. I want to progress and evolve to a higher level of living but I am dragged down by those who resort to a life of evil and this is just here in the good old USA.

I would like to see the Congressional Budget Office develop an Evil Index that would cost out what our nation spends on fighting evil. I am just thinking that we would have a twenty first century country were it not for bad people and the things they do.

Make the world a better place.