A couple of days ago I posted on a story which said South Dakota has the lowest rate of depression in the country. I half-jokingly said
Maybe it has something to do with the relatively small number of Democrats we have in South Dakota.... :-)
My liberal buddy Todd Epp commented that my logic was flawed because DC--a liberal mecca--has the lowest rate of suicides. Though I had a theory for this seeming contradiction, I didn't have time to fully consider it, so conceded the point to Todd at the time. However, I may have been vindicated.
Gallup (no conservative outfit, to be sure) reports today that Republicans report much better mental health than Democrats or Independents.
Fifty-eight percent of Republicans report having excellent mental health, compared to 43% of independents and 38% of Democrats. This relationship between party identification and reports of excellent mental health persists even within categories of income, age, gender, church attendance, and education.
Even among those making less than $50,000 a year, there is a 45-31% difference--so money clearly doesn't spell political happiness.
Todd, of course, might say, "Well, Republicans are just ignoring their misery." And you know what, were he to make that assertion, he might be largely correct.
Conservatives have a tendency not to dwell on setbacks and difficulties. Conservatives tend to cowboy-up and make the most of their situation. Conservatives tend to understand that while bellyaching feels good, it doesn't get you one bit closer to your goals and doesn't accomplish a thing. So we just press on and try to make lemon aid out of lemmons.
Liberals, however, tend to moan and whine and dwell on all the reasons why they can't do anything for themselves, all the reasons why it's not fair and unjust, and how everything in life just blows chunks--not good for your mental health, and anyone from a good parent to a good shrink will tell you that.
If the hardy people who settled South Dakota had been liberals...well, they'd probably all still be in Minnesota. The pioneers ignored incredible hardships, pressing onward for their dreams. It's how grown-ups get things done.
Republicans are also more likely to be Bible-believing Christians. The Bible tells us that God loves us, and if we're on His side, we KNOW that even if times are difficult right now, things are going to turn out just fine in the end.
As for DC...I suspect that libs there have a low suicide rate because they are so close to the lip of the trough of government largess that the hope that a few drops will spill over the edge and fall squarely into their mouths keeps them from throwing in the towel.
So, liberals, why not cowboy-up, love America, love South Dakota, trust God and enjoy better mental health. There's only one risk involved: if you do that, you might end up a conservative.
4 comments:
"Cowboy up"? Yuck. It's exactly that kind of pseudo-macho bull (when's the last time either of us roped any cattle?) that shames people away from admitting problems, talking openly about them, and working with others to solve them (and I'm not talking about moaning and whining about one's own mental health).
How very sensitive of you, Corey. Up for a group hug later?
My politics aren't about proving my manhood. I love hugs. Come on over.
Meanwhile, I wonder: I know neither phrase translates easily into Aramaic, but which phrase would Jesus have used more often: "Cowboy up!" or "Group hug!"?
Better than a group hug, how about group action? I haven't seen a Habitat house get built yet by one guy. None of the folks in my social circle (a not terribly exclusive circle) can afford typical medical bills purely by their own efforts; they have to resort to insurance/gambling schemes that themselves are becoming unaffordable. And Neil Armstrong didn't build his own moon rocket. Good things come to those who work together.
In addition to my critique of the contradictory implications of your mostly rhetorical rugged individualism for the social contract (contract: agreement between parties who realize they can't do everything themselves... obviously an invention of weak-spirited socialists), I'll drift back to the original mental health issues and note that your "cowboy up" rhetoric may only reinforce the sense of isolation that leads people not to report their depression and, sometimes, just kill themselves. I've got no sympathy for suicide, but I don't mind considering offering language -- and hugs -- that might help people deal with their problems in better ways so they can stick with us in the battle of life.
There’s nothing wrong with a hug, now and then. Even I like them, occasionally, both giving them and getting them.
But we’re not meant to live in perpetual Huggsville. Most of the time we have to be about the business of living life, and sometimes that’s tough.
Habitat houses (and I’ve worked on several) don’t get built by standing around whining and complaining about how unfair life is—they get built by people “cowboying up,” putting hand to hammer and getting the job done. And Neil Armstrong got to the moon because a lot of people “cowboyed up,” ignored all the failures of the space program—including the Apollo One deaths—and got the job done. Cowboying up isn’t pretending hardships don’t exist—it’s picking yourself up and pressing on, despite them.
Jesus was very compassionate, but he was also very tough-minded. Consider this passage from Luke 9:57-62
57As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."
58Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head."
59He said to another man, "Follow me."
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father."
60Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
61 Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family."
62Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."
That doesn’t sound like a man who harbors a lot of whining.
Jesus also didn’t play around when
Or consider what Jesus’ apostle Paul went through (2 Corinthians 11:23-29)
I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
Only once did Paul slow down to catalogue his hardships, but he never stopped to wallow in them. He “cowboyed up” and got the job done.
What did Paul tell his apprentice Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:3: Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.
And again in chapter 4: But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
And the author of Hebrews advised (Hebrews 12:7): Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons.
And consider the trials of Job, and of Joseph in Egypt. I’m sure they had their moments of discouragement, but they didn’t wallow in it.
Or consider the millions of Christian martyrs for the past 2000 years who didn't let persecution get them into a funk, but kept on keeping on.
It’s okay to feel sad sometimes. It’s okay to feel discouraged sometimes. But the problem comes when we dwell in that lifestyle, when we start wallowing in it. That’s when your mental health takes a nosedive.
The “politics of cowboying up” isn’t about proving manhood, but demonstrating adulthood and maturity. Children can afford to cry excessively and dwell on unhappiness. Adults can’t—not if they want to accomplish anything, and not if they want to have good mental health.
Having faith in Christ certainly helps to keep your nose up. Knowing the creator of the universe loves you, and will make sure you come out alright in the end can’t help but prop you up.
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