Who has the right to complain?

At one time or another pretty much everyone does it. Some part of life turns out differently than you'd like it to and you b&#ch up a storm. You disagree with some store policy or other that ends up costing you money because you weren't aware of how things worked. Everyone does it from time to time and that's fine.

The kind of thing that drives us really nuts though is the person who is constantly complaining, the guy or gal you just want to slap and tell to shut the heck up. Well, technically, according to what I believe, you can. Alright so maybe the violence part might not be a good idea, but...

Anyways. If a person isn't part of the solution they are part of the problem. Since complaining, by definition, is not a positive action that is likely to engender any useful form of change, it and the people that do it are just contributing to whatever it is that they are unhappy about.

As an example, I greatly dislike the way politics work in our country. I feel that our system is broken and bloated and needs to be destroyed and a new system made from the ashes of the old. There are good points but they are so few and far between that they are not even enough to build a good framework for the new system.

However, I don't see any real direct way that I could make things better. So, I don't take part in the politics of this country. I do what is legally necessary and that is that. Other than that, I pretty much stay away from politics. And normally unless directly asked, I keep my opinions to myself. Unlike many other people I know, I don't complain about all of the things that are wrong with the system. Again there's a lot stuff I don't like about how our country is run, but I don't bring others down by whining about it.

To be clear, stating that a thing is broken or doesn't work for all involved is not a complaint. Whining about how unfair it is to you or how much trouble it causes for you personally is complaining. Complaining is always a drain on you and those around you. It is never empowering. And aside from that there's a more productive use of that energy. Instead of complaining, think about what it is that you are really unhappy with in the situation and spend all that energy coming up with solutions that create a win for all involved. See, if you don't have a solution to the problem, one that works for everyone involved, or at least the people you are talking to, nobody cares about how it doesn't work for you.

In my (not always) humble opinion, I believe there are two categories of people that have the right to complain. The first is people that are unhappy with a situation and have come up with solutions that work for all involved but nobody is willing to work with them on implementing them.

And the second is people that are unhappy with a circumstance, have come up with solutions and are in the process of fixing things.Usually though these people are so busy rallying others to their cause that they don't have the time or energy to complain.

In essence, the people that are doing their absolute best at working towards making things better are the only ones that have any right to complain about a given situation and ironically, they are the ones that almost never do.

So the next time, that guy or gal comes along, you know the one. Tell them to put or shut up. Ask them what their solution to the problem is. And if they have one, why haven't they gotten it implemented yet?