The Cho Factor, Part XXVIII

A Whole New World

In Part XXVII, I described three members of the “Outcasts by Choice” Ring (a separate ring, suggested by Voice of Sanity reader Thomas O., that intersects with other rings of the caste system). They included Lee Wellman, Ian Bechtel, and Jim Coleman, all of whom were basically ignored by kids in the higher rings.

But things changed quite a bit for Lee, Ian, and Jim after they left Brigadoon High. Jim, a straight “A” student, went on to become a medical doctor. I haven’t seen him in thirty-five years, but I understand he is both highly respected in his field and very well off financially.

Ian began building small apartment houses when he was in his early twenties. I became friends with him after college, and was amazed at how, starting on a shoestring, he had been able to construct (and own) hundreds of apartment units at such a young age. I recently saw him for the first time in decades, and I was impressed by what a good looking, confident person he had become. If I were meeting him for the first time, I would have assumed he had been a member of the Inner Ring in high school.

As for Lee, while still in his twenties he borrowed a grubstake from his father and opened a little specialty retail store. I had heard about it, but hadn’t given it much thought at the time. Then, years after I moved to California, Bo Zak told me that Lee’s original store had grown to one hundred retail outlets and that he was a very wealthy man. While I am purposely not divulging the exact business he is in, I can tell you that Lee has long been a multibillionaire and a fixture on the Forbes 400 Richest People in America list.

My reason for sharing with you the abridged stories of Lee, Ian, and Jim is that I know I have readers who are concerned because their children are in the lower rings of the caste system in their schools. As someone who has been through it many times, let me assure you of one thing: It doesn’t matter!

What’s important is that you give your children unconditional love and support while they are struggling with The Game and its caste system at school. Thankfully, none of that nonsense needs to have any bearing on the outcome of their lives.

Nothing underscores that more than the long list of high-profile business people and celebrities who had difficulty in school because of learning disabilities. It’s a list that includes Tom Monaghan (founder of Domino’s Pizza), David Neeleman (founder of JetBlue Airways), Paul Orfalea (founder of Kinko’s), Jay Leno, Tommy Hilfiger, and Charles Schwab, to name but a few. Many even suspect that Bill Gates is afflicted with “higher-functioning” autism.

The lesson is clear: Adulthood is a whole new world, a world totally unrelated to the horrors of high school … The Game … the caste system … teacher and student bullying … and outrageous mountains of busywork euphemistically referred to as “homework.” (A lot more on that subject in a later article.)

The next best thing to home schooling your children is to take a cue from reader Thomas O. and teach your kids to simply ignore The Game — and do their own thing with their own friends. If you can pull that off, you’re a heck of a lot smarter than all those teachers who, in many subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) ways, help to ensure that everyone stays in his/her proper ring.

In the next installment, we’ll take a look at the effects of the caste system on The Big Event — the first class reunion.

Previous – Part XXVII, Outcasts by Choice

Next – Part XXVIX, Class Reunion Warmup