Oh world. Life. Humanity. You’ve done it again. Another year of grievances to air, and if having ample grievances to air is the end game (it isn’t), then 2012 did not disappoint (but really it did) and these are just a few of the reasons.

10. Salespeople

And I don’t mean the door-to-door kinds of sales people. I mean the people who are constantly trying to sell you on themselves/their product/their services, who also tend to be the people who continue to pitch when I’m already a buyer. Stop it before I change my mind. Or just stop it in general. If I’m going to buy/buy into something, I’ll do it, but the incessant pitching is NOT making me want to use/purchase your products. Special shout-out to the name droppers whose primary mode of persuasion is ethos, but don’t substantiate the arguments with equal amounts of pathos (emotional appeal) and logos (logical appeal). I mean, I get it. You’re trying to demonstrate your value, but you’re not showing me why you’re valuable in the first place if you’ve only talked about who you’ve worked with instead of what you’ve done for them.

9. Unsubscribable email lists

I’m looking at you, Mr. President. I donated to the campaign and did something I was proud to do. Then the emails started. And they didn’t stop. Even after I unsubscribed from all of them, they kept coming. However, this isn’t the only list, so to all of you who make unsubscribing a complete pain in the arse, I say BAH HUMBUG.

8. Parents who ruin it for the rest of us

Those impossibly perfect parents whose kids don’t make messes when they eat, who make little goodie bags and notes for everyone on their flight to pardon the potentially fussy babies that sleep through the whole thing anyway. I’m so happy for you, that you actually have time (or maybe just sleep) to sacrifice for such a cause, but do remember that your children have as much right to be there as anyone else. The guy that doesn’t believe in regular bathing or hygienic products like deodorant isn’t going to apologize for smelling like dumpster, so why in the name of whatever you find holy should you have to apologize for the existence/presence of your precious little baby? Right.

7. End of the world conspiracists

It’s so nice to see you all here still today. I really don’t have to say TOO too much on this because I’m sure they’re hiding somewhere in shame, but I will say that yes, we should all be more conscious of our own emergency preparedness, and no, it shouldn’t take the threat of an apocalypse to live the life you want to live. That said…

6. YOLO

Really, this should be higher on the list, but the segue was just so natural. Anyway, NO SHIT, you only live once. That is not an excuse to do stupid things for the sake of trying them out. Remember, you may only live once, but it’s better to forgo the crazy impulses than tell stories of them from jail.

5. People who blame the ills of our nation on Godlessness

There’s a grossly misguided/irrational assumption that a person without religion is amoral and that a person who is religious has a higher moral standard. People do good and bad things regardless of their affiliations. It doesn’t take a religious text to tell a person how to not suck at being a human being/sharing the earth with other people. It takes empathy and logic. Don’t want people to steal your things? Okay. That probably means they wouldn’t like it if you stole their things, too, SO DON’T DO IT. Yes, moral gray areas exist, but often times, those areas surround deeply personal choices that have nothing to do with anyone else, so get yer nose out of other people’s business and handle your own.

4. The NRA

Seriously, no one is trying to legitimately take away everyone’s guns, the government isn’t trying to disarm the people so it can oppress them, and if you’re not a good enough shot to hunt down a rodent without using a semi-automatic, then maybe you should consider target practice with clay pigeons until you are. Remember, there’s a big difference between wanting some assurance of competent gun ownership (permits, licensing, practical tests, frequent inspections, much like what we have to undergo to drive a car) & limits on/prohibition of the use of assault weapons (which are wholly unnecessary for civilian use) and stripping a nation of its right to bear arms.

4. The NRA. Again.

They get 2 spots because they’ve earned it. Seriously, the higher-ups of this organization (and I should note that I know NRA members who don’t stand behind the NRA’s statements made in response to the Sandy Hook shooting, so when I say NRA I mean the people who speak for the NRA as an organization but not its individual members) think it’s a good idea to spend money the nation doesn’t have on putting armed guards in schools (which many schools already have anyway, even though that didn’t stop the Columbine shooters) when most schools don’t have a full-time nurse or librarian and teachers are getting laid off in droves. Such a great idea.

Also, these are the same people who are worried that the government is planning some kind of hostile takeover. And you want to arm the institutions they run? I swear, my nose is going flat from all the headdesking I’ve been doing lately.

3. Chris Brown supporters, aka “Team Breezy”

It is never okay to abuse someone, and to beat a person within inches of her life only to have fans say that “she deserved it”? WHAT THE HELL?! That is SO far beyond wrong. And when people criticized the Grammys for honoring him, his fans were RABID. I personally am not a big fan of misogynistic, partying-is-life style music, so Chris Brown’s music itself doesn’t speak to me, except to say that he’s an arrogant tool who doesn’t respect women. However, his actual music in this situation, as far as I’m concerned, is irrelevant, because there is no talent that excuses abusing another human being. The fact that he has fans who support him, not blindly, but without regard for his actions is disgusting and despicable.

2. The fact that we are still arguing about women’s issues

And we’re not including women in these arguments. SNL nailed this one:

1. People who threatened to move to Australia/Canada/etc. if Obama won the election, then filed petitions to secede after he won.

I know. You’re disappointed that your candidate (who I recall the rest of the Republican party lambasting early on in the election cycle) lost the election that was wholly his to lose. You’re not satisfied with the candidate who won by a landslide in a fair election in a country where citizens actually get the right to vote and aren’t forced to vote for anyone in particular, much less at gunpoint, because you think he’s a godless, socialist heathen. Well, sorry to break it to you, but the rest of the developed nations in the world utilize some form of socialized health care, many tax higher than the US does (the US has some of the lowest effective tax rates in the developed world), not to mention vast differences in gun ownership rights. And as for secession, I seem to remember learning about a certain Civil War that didn’t end very well for the secessionists. See? There IS a reason we’re required to study these things in school.

So that’s how I’ve been disappointed this year. Let’s try using our thinking brains a little more in 2013, please? For more grievancy goodness, check out my Airings of Grievances 2010 and Airings of Grievances 2011 or see what other people have to say by following the hashtag on Twitter (#airingofgrievances). Don’t forget to leave a comment and tell me how you’ve been disappointed this year.