JOHN WALLACE: Snowflakes of America, unite!

What’s all this talk about snowflakes?

Lately I have heard this term intended as an insult, as in, “These snowflakes are trying to destroy our country.” Trying to pin down an exact definition of who or what a “snowflake” is is like trying to herd kittens.

Apparently, it defines a college kid who is distressed by this president.

One of the oldest definitions of a snowflake being used as a derogatory term was just before our Civil War when the term was used to describe someone who was against freeing slaves, who stood tall in the face of the federal government trying to steal their property. They were called snowflakes because, supposedly, they would melt down under the heat of opposition to their idea of property.

Fast forward a 150 years and this derogatory use of “snowflake” once again rears its ugly head. However, during the journey through time, it appears to have passed through the looking glass and now it is being used to describe “someone who thinks each person is unique and special and is destined for greatness.” Another definition is, ”the opposite of a realistic human being.”

I guess by that they mean a “realistic human being” would be “someone who ‘does not’ think that each person is unique and special and is destined for greatness.”

Is that how you would like to be treated?

Traditionally, the definition of a snowflake is water in a state of transition. Being in transition is a good thing. You are moving from one state to another. You are evolving. Water adapts to its environment.

Bruce Lee said that water flows into and adapts to whatever situation it finds itself. Pour it into a glass, it becomes the shape of the glass. Into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. Into a teapot it becomes the teapot. He said we should be like water.

That’s good advice. To survive we must adapt. It is not the smartest, strongest or fastest that survives, it is the one that is most adaptable to change. See the dinosaurs. You can’t? That’s my point. “Snowflakes” will learn to adapt, improvise and overcome. They will or they won’t survive.

A snowflake is in transition from water to ice. A “snowflake” is in transition from child to adult. Let it happen. They will be a far more interesting person if they decide who they want to be. They can always transition again as they grow in the future.

“Snowflake” is also being used to describe college kids who have not yet been exposed to the heat of “the real world.” Is it any wonder they are a little puzzled when they look at their country and see elections where the candidate with the most votes didn’t win? A president who can’t fulfill his constitutional right to nominate a Supreme Court justice? A healthcare plan for “the people” that takes from the poor and gives to the rich? A White House that is inexplicably entangled with Russians who have admitted to interfering with our elections? A self-admitted sexual predator running the country who tweets videos of himself beating up someone from the press?

You can see how this might be confusing to a young person. It’s confusing to me and I’m 60. Is it right or wrong? That’s what the “snowflakes” are trying to figure out. The best way to move forward.

So give them a break. Remember we were all “snowflakes” at their age. Then we went out in the real world. Some of us got hard as ice. We lost our flexibility. It was “my way or the highway.” And if we met a force greater than ourselves, we might crack or break. Some of us became water and adapted. And some of us took too much heat and evaporated into name-calling gasbags.

And can we not agree to disagree with someone without resorting to insulting them? How would you like it if people ran around calling you a “deplorable”? Isn’t name shaming the final refuge for those who are unable to express themselves with rational thought? Their need to insult someone is much more a reflection of their ignorance than it is of yours.

College kids should embrace this name “snowflake.” It’s pure, it’s natural and it’s beautiful. No two are alike. By owning it, you take away its power. If someone calls a college kid a snowflake, they should respond in the appropriate manner. “Thank you.”

Maybe they could get a tee shirt that says, ”Yes, I am a snowflake, Thank you very much.” Or “Snowflake Nation.” Or “United Snowflakes of America.”

John Wallace, of Lee County, is an occasional contributer to the Perspectives page.