Very often, American culture sends out conflicting messages. However, many of us probably never notice it. I'd like to very briefly discuss just two of the many instances of these kinds of conflicting messages.

We often hear the popular admonition, "just be yourself." However, at times, we are also told that we should change our ways, improve ourselves, and/or rid ourselves of certain bad habits. If I'm really to "be myself", then I'm going to act just the way God made me - warts, imperfections, character flaws, bad attitudes, and all. If I'm going to change or improve in any way, then I can't be myself.

Pithy sayings like "age is just a number" and "you're only as old as you feel" have been and continue to be repeated over and over again in our culture. However, we are also told that age is a tangible number that matters quite a bit, so therefore we shouldn't wait until we're too old to trying to accomplish certain things. That "stay in school" public service announcement depicting an older lady futilely attempting cheerleader exercises and painfully screaming, "oh! oh! oh!", is a prime example of this. Also, I doubt that most parents would agree to let their 16-year-old daughter date a 30-year-old man, even he told them, "I know I'm 30, but I feel like I'm just 16."

Terry Mitchell

Terry Mitchell is a software engineer, freelance writer, blogger, and amateur political analyst from Hopewell, VA. He's been in the software development/engineering line of work for over 24 years.

He blogs and writes about various subjects such as current events, politics, cultural and social issues, health and well-being, personal finance, religion, technology, media issues, law, government, sports, humor, and trivia.

Through the BlogBurst network, his blog entries are often carried on the Website of the Houston Chronicle, one of the top newspapers in America. In addition, his columns and essays regularly appear on American Chronicle's network of 21 online magazines. They have also appeared online on American Daily, Media Monitors International, Opinion Editorials, The Washington Dispatch, Arrivenet, and hundreds of additional websites.

Terry never misses an opportunity to assail political correctness and take pot shots at the conventional foolishness. He's not a bandwagon jumper - he writes stuff that others should be writing, but are not. He thinks of himself as a kind of modern American philosopher. His blog offers commentary from a unique point of view that is not often found in mainstream media.

Terry would love to have his blog picked up and syndicated by a major news or web organization. He also plans to write a book based on his blog. But, for now, he mainly writes for free as a hobby and enjoys having his aritcles posted on as many websites, ezines, news letters, newspapers, and magazines as possible.

Blog URL:	http://commenterry.blogs.com
Personal URL:	http://www.commenterry.com
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