It’s Always 5 O’Clock Somewhere—Especially in a World This Uptight

You don’t need a cocktail to realize society’s acting like it’s been on a three-week bender of outrage. Maybe what we need isn’t more judgment—but a universal, all-day happy hour of empathy, grace, and chill the heck out.

I don’t consume alcohol. Yet, I think contemporary Society is in need of 5 o’clock somewhere. People go around angry. People accuse other people of being evil. People rush to judgment without understanding the issues. People get angry because other people are different from them. They stay angry with them, even if they have never interacted with them. Many of the angry people I see on television are those who profess to follow someone who said, “do unto others as you would want others to do unto you.” That sounds almost masochistic based on many of the actions and spoken words filling the airwaves. Yes, it’s time for 5 o’clock somewhere, anywhere, at every moment.

1. If empathy were served in a shot glass, would society still chase it with bitterness?
2. What would happen if we replaced social media outrage with a “Do Unto Others” group hug and an herbal mocktail?
3. Could the Golden Rule use a modern remix—maybe something like, “Tweet others as you’d want to be tweeted”?