What is Helium

Is the average American lazy?

Results so far:

Yes		71%	655 votes	Total: 921 votes
No		29%	266 votes	Total: 921 votes

Yes

4 of 44

The average American has finally made it to the point they wish to be . Technology , computers and electronics , have made our lives easier . The only challenges now are the stresses on our mental capacity .

When things are right at our finger tips and all we have to do is just click the mouse on our PC's . Things take action quicker and with little effort on our part . We as Americans have worked toward this goal for a long time . How to take the "Hard" out of work .

The hardest thing we have to do now is walk , to get where we want to go in our house . We do not even have to leave the house now , we can do our jobs from home . You can even go to College on line , no getting up to attend a class .

We as a nation , are fast becoming a geriatric group of people . The influx of illegal aliens from other countries , should be the testimony for average Americans being lazy . Why work hard when someone else can do it for you .

The world today , is nothing in comparison to the work of forty years ago . Things were not as simple then as it is today . Back then you worked hard to get a head and to stay a head .
Hard work has taken a back seat in todays society , laziness is in the driver seat now .

Learn more about this author, Rex Coker.
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No

4 of 32

by Carol Gioia

There is no reality, only perception. The average American, as perceived by the world at large, appears not only lazy, with modern technology literally doing the work for him, but also somewhat spoiled in his oversized house, with every modern convenience and all the trappings of an affluent and upscale lifestyle. Taking a peek behind closed doors of middle class America, however, reveals an entirely different scenario.

Average American men and women are working harder than ever before to keep pace with the increasing demands of our high tech society. The technology which promised to "free us up" has actually created a blur between employment and personal time. Productivity reports are skewed as uncompensated time fluctuates between work assignments performed at home and personal committments carried out during work hours.

Communication is done through the internet and cell phones. Text messaging, e-mail and voice mail have all but eliminated face to face interaction. Sitting in their individual cubicles hunched over glaring computer screens, average Americans pay for their tecnological advances with isolation, eyestrain, carpel tunnel syndrome, chronic back pain and myriad other mental and physical ailments.

Average Americans work fifteen minutes away from their homes, but it takes an hour to get there and back in the glutted traffic on the modern highways and freeways. Travel time in rush hour adds an additional two hours to the workday. They carry laptops and blackberries to activities and social functions to insure they are staying on top of their responsibilities. Before they are finished with one day, they are lining up and organizing the next day with their electronic day planners. They are networking and multi-tasking all during their technology invaded personal time, until they are mentally taxed and physically fatigued.

Due to the government red tape invading school systems, average Americans have the additional task of supplementing their children's activities to make up for the cutbacks in school programs. The "No Child Left Behind Act" has buried teachers under a mountain of administrative paperwork and left chidren without sports, music and art programs within the educational system. Average Americans spend time transporting their children to afterschool functions and programs with prohibitive fees. They spend time fundraising for their children, and volunteering huge blocks of time to insure their offspring are receiving the benefits of healthy and enriching activities previously provided by the schools.

The average American household cannot make ends meet without a dual income work situation. The added stress of trying to "do it all" takes it's toll and puts strain on the average American woman. She is juggling children, home maintenance, shopping, providing meals, and working for that necessary second income. She is volunteering at school, church and in the community to pick up the slack caused by cutbacks and downgrades in every facet of our society. A large percentage of average Americans are heads of single parent households and the stress is magnified in all areas for these individuals.

Social lives are carried out on the ball fields and in the gymnasiums of America; meals are eaten on the run. "Stressed out" is one popular buzzword of the day, and the other, "busy" promises to become a competitive sport with the frenzied, frenetic attempts to "keep up." Even leisure time and friendships are multi-tasked and prioritized.

If average Americans are "tuned in" to what it takes to survive in our modern world, they are also emotionally "disconnected" as they plug in to the technological wonders which promise to drowned all personal interaction in a sea of virtual distraction.

The definition of lazy is "not wanting to work, or inclined to be inactive."

Average Americans are not lazy by any definition, but they are inclined to be exhausted.

Learn more about this author, Carol Gioia.
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