Cynism is my favorite 'ism'

I hate clichés. Don’t get me wrong. I understand why we use them. I understand that sometimes there’s nothing else to say. I get it, but I don’t like it.
Let’s analyze some clichés:

‘What’s meant to be, will be.’ – This is basically spiritual communism. Why would you ever work for anything?

‘God gives us only what we can handle.’ – Then why is there suicide?

‘Everything happens for a reason.’ – This is a tough one. I know a lot of people NEED to believe this; NEED to use this logic to explain why bad things happen. Unfortunately I don’t buy into it. Sure, everything has a CAUSE, but not a ‘reason’. A young kid gets killed by a drunk driver. The cause is the stupid drunk driver. You want a ‘reason’; a greater purpose; god’s plan? Well, unfortunately if there is a greater reason us, here on earth, will never find it. Unfortunately the 'reason' is just that life isn’t fair.

(Speaking of:) ‘Life isn’t fair.’ – This is one of my favorites. This actually seems to be a rare truth in the world. Unfortunately it isn’t the comforting statement we all want it to be.

‘God helps those who help themselves.’- Have you ever read the directions on those over-the-counter acne medications? ‘Wash face thoroughly before applying a thin layer three times a day…blah, blah, blah’. If you wash your face three times a day, you wouldn’t need the acne cream. Is this analogy clear?

‘He/She will get what they deserve.’ – Haven’t we established that life isn’t fair? Karma is great in theory, but that’s as far as it goes. How many successful and happy assholes can you name?

‘You deserve better.’ – Yeah, maybe you do... and maybe you’ll get it. But, again, life isn’t fair. There are no guarantees. Sometimes settling for ‘good enough’ is the right choice.


While I may sound cynical, I think the logic is pretty sound. But more-over, I don’t think it’s the clichés in themselves that are really the issue. What really gets me is that in the same five-minute conversation you can be told conflicting clichés – all with the best intentions. They’ve become over-used and lost their purpose. Let’s look at this fictional dialogue:

"She broke up with me."
"I'm sorry, but let's be honest, you deserved better (cliche #1)."
"Yeah, but it sucks. I didn't do anything wrong. It's not fair."
"Well, life isn't fair (cliche#2)."
"I guess, but I don't know if I'll ever be happy again."
"Yeah, well, I think this happened for a reason (cliche #3)."
"And what's that?"
"So you can find someone better."
"But if life isn't fair, how do you know I will find someone better?"
"I don't."
"Oh... well, thanks for the pep-talk."

Need I go on?