Playing by the rules…This is a saying that has many meanings, depending upon who is talking or what rules are being considered. I certainly hear a lot of people using this phrase today. My students insist upon this as a summation of their gripes during playground games. Political parties throw wild accusations of this not being done by the opposition. The citizens of our country claim the government is very unfair in seeing that everyone but the government plays by the rules. The government, it seems, is exempt.
It is important that we agree to a moral set of rules by which we all can receive guidance. The absolutes in those rules, such as the Ten Commandments and The U. S. Constitution, keep us united and prevent anarchy.
The problem is that many people choose to change the rules to fit their own desires. The rules keep changing so much that it appears no one is following “the rules.” In our world, we deal with power struggles as people want to control the “rules of the game.” Situational ethics brought on a frontal assault which has steadily weakened our understanding of “playing by the rules.”
My personal attitude is that I will continue to teach my students about the two absolute rules: The Ten Commandments and the U.S. Constitution. With these codes of expected behavior, I can lead students to measure up to the standards. This process will allow all our citizens to measure our success in learning to “play by the rules.”
- Kay