vatican II didn't say don't eat fish (or other meatless foods) on friday, they said you don't have to. why they said that and didn't think everyone wouldn't is beyond me.
personally, i like rules. i like rules like i like guardrails. they keep me in.
guardrails keep me in, play pens keep them in, and only having but so much money should keep all of us in (but it doesn't).
being kept "in," in (ha!) my opinion, is a good thing. what's wrong with the world is, they let things out.
letting things out is bad. letting out the waist in your pants is bad. letting out your anger on everybody else is bad. letting out God in schools is bad.
(the only time letting something out isn't bad is when they let you out in traffic. and you can count on one hand how many times that happens. because there isn't a rule that says they have to.)
fish on friday was good. it kept your sorry ass a little less sorry. i have a friend who has never eaten meat on friday in his life. even as a baby, they fed him noodles or cheese or, as he got a bit older, fish. the rule about fish on friday is as much a part of him as his own breathing is. when he learned that vatican II said you don't have to anymore, he choked. true story.
we don't need to get rid of the rules - we need to get rid of the boo-hooin' about 'em.
give yourself the heimlich maneuver.
