Cow tipping
A Facebook friend posted this earlier today on the art of cow tipping. That is, according to urban legend, legions of drunk men (and you would have to be in order to attempt such a feat) would sneak up on a cow, presumably while it's standing in a rural area asleep or minding it's own business, and shove it over. Then, once witnessing the cow in complete distress, one would have a good laugh at some abusive expense similar to that of torturing a small animal or insect. I have never witnessed this phenomenon, cow tipping nor animals of any kind being abused. It is, as previously stated, an urban legend. According to this online article, it might be nearly impossible to actually achieve :
http://modernfarmer.com/2013/09/cow-tipping-myth-or-bullcrap/
I had not heard the term "cow tipping" in a very long time, but it reminded me of the last time I had had anything associated with the term. A childhood friend of mine went to college in the Philadelphia area (but I won't say which one because I AIN'T CRAZY), ended up staying for a year, then transferred back to the Midwest. I asked why she was so unhappy there, she said it was because people asked her if she tipped cows in Ohio. At the time I did not ask how she responded to it. True, I realize that not all of us can come from such culturally acceptable places as Ohio, I'm sure she could have insisted otherwise. And yet, she did not. I thought this was something that happened to those who only attended this institution, until another I knew went to the same institution and this did not bother him in the slightest. The first person and I are no longer friends. I realized she is/was much more insecure than I originally thought she was with this statement, and left this university because she wasn't the center of attention. She would prove to have many other instances where she would be furious or throw hideous tantrums because she was not the center of attention, but that's another story of course ...
Still, I realized so much about the statement of cow tipping. You could embrace your white trash roots or what others perceive as trash and have fun with it, or you can be ashamed. What do any of us have to be ashamed of? So you may come from a place where people have tipped a cow or two, whether or not you participated in the act is questionable. This is class resentment. One automatically assumes things about others based on their social class. If one is wealthy, one has everything handed to them and is not grateful. If one is poor, they are unable to afford the things they really want and therefore must suffer. Is that true? No, not really. I knew just as many welfare recipients who are driving new cars with rims on them, wearing designer clothes and have real diamonds when many others have fake ones. And I know just as many middle class (aka "wealthy) who ended up drug overdoses in the city morgue. And I know even more wealthy who are struggling to get by just like everyone else.
Maybe class resentment is really about how modest you are or aren't. If you don't make a big show of your material things, you are truly without class, or "down to earth" as they say. Where does this notion that one thinks that they are better than others because of what they do or don't have? What if you lost everything and then you have nothing, do you still think you are better than others? Or what if you never had anything, you still think you're better than others who do? Life is complicated, all because of cow tipping. Just a train of thought.
http://modernfarmer.com/2013/09/cow-tipping-myth-or-bullcrap/
I had not heard the term "cow tipping" in a very long time, but it reminded me of the last time I had had anything associated with the term. A childhood friend of mine went to college in the Philadelphia area (but I won't say which one because I AIN'T CRAZY), ended up staying for a year, then transferred back to the Midwest. I asked why she was so unhappy there, she said it was because people asked her if she tipped cows in Ohio. At the time I did not ask how she responded to it. True, I realize that not all of us can come from such culturally acceptable places as Ohio, I'm sure she could have insisted otherwise. And yet, she did not. I thought this was something that happened to those who only attended this institution, until another I knew went to the same institution and this did not bother him in the slightest. The first person and I are no longer friends. I realized she is/was much more insecure than I originally thought she was with this statement, and left this university because she wasn't the center of attention. She would prove to have many other instances where she would be furious or throw hideous tantrums because she was not the center of attention, but that's another story of course ...
Still, I realized so much about the statement of cow tipping. You could embrace your white trash roots or what others perceive as trash and have fun with it, or you can be ashamed. What do any of us have to be ashamed of? So you may come from a place where people have tipped a cow or two, whether or not you participated in the act is questionable. This is class resentment. One automatically assumes things about others based on their social class. If one is wealthy, one has everything handed to them and is not grateful. If one is poor, they are unable to afford the things they really want and therefore must suffer. Is that true? No, not really. I knew just as many welfare recipients who are driving new cars with rims on them, wearing designer clothes and have real diamonds when many others have fake ones. And I know just as many middle class (aka "wealthy) who ended up drug overdoses in the city morgue. And I know even more wealthy who are struggling to get by just like everyone else.
Maybe class resentment is really about how modest you are or aren't. If you don't make a big show of your material things, you are truly without class, or "down to earth" as they say. Where does this notion that one thinks that they are better than others because of what they do or don't have? What if you lost everything and then you have nothing, do you still think you are better than others? Or what if you never had anything, you still think you're better than others who do? Life is complicated, all because of cow tipping. Just a train of thought.
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