Yes, I Am A Snob

Recently, my own mother said to me “Wendy, you are a snob.” She didn’t mean it in a bad way, she just believes in calling things as they are.

I prefer the term, discriminating, myself.

But do I think I am better than some people? Yes, I do.

I truly believe that all men are created equal. I just don’t think they stay that way.

But think about it, really, why would I be the way I am if I didn’t think it was better?

If I didn’t think that being a productive member of society was better than sucking up society’s resources, I would sit at home, collecting welfare, and pop out babies. Am I a better person than someone who falsely collects disability when they have the capability to work simply because they are lazy? Yes, I am.

If I didn’t think that using proper grammar and being well spoken was better than not, I could drop my good diction. If I didn’t think that being clean and well groomed was better than being dirty and offending others around me, I could stop taking a shower and washing my hair. That would sure save on my water bills. Do I think that I am a better person that the barefoot, stinking woman that has no grasp of the proper use of the English language that I see in line in front of me at Wal-Mart? Yes, I do.

If I didn’t think that being honest and moral was better than stealing, I could stop working so hard for a living and just take what I want. Why bother wasting my money buying things, I could shoplift! I could steal from my company; I could raid the pension funds of my employees and leave them penniless in their golden years. So what if I hurt other people, right? Am I better than someone who takes with no regard to other’s rights? You bet I am!

The funny thing is, I think if I asked 100 people “Here is a child molester, he takes the innocence of babies and has ruined the lives of dozens of kids. Do you think you are a better person than he is?” most would answer yes. What about a murder? Someone who doesn’t pay their taxes? A person that cheats on their spouse? It’s only when the line becomes not so clear-cut, that the bad people become not so bad, that people hesitate.

But by saying that they are a better person than the child molester, they have established that some people are better than others. Why the squeamishness over the semantics?

Are there people that are better than me? Absolutely! My husband is a prime example; he’s spent the last 17 years as a United States Marine defending his country. He’s about to leave for his third tour in Iraq, his fourth if you count Desert Storm in 1991. He’s taking this tour because a friend was slated to go, but it would have caused a hardship in his family. Dave is taking his place so his friend can take care of his sick wife.

Dave is well spoken, unfailing nice to people in the service industry, worries about taking financial care of his parents and mine in their golden years, is patient with children, truly listens when other people speak, takes care of his physical health, tries to better himself every year, and follows the rules no matter how inconvenient they are to him. I strive to be more like him.

So yes, I am a snob. I do think I am better than a lot of people in our world today. But I also know that there are people who are better than me, and I use them as examples to grow and improve myself.