Everywhere you turn at MCC - Penn Valley, there’s a student grumbling about an undeserved grade. Hearing the elevator gossip and between-class chatting, you’d think there’s not a single fair teacher on the campus. You might also think that there isn’t a single parking place in the garage or edible item on the Café Scout menu, and that $80 per credit hour is the highest tuition rate in the nation.

Why does everyone spend so much time complaining? Ranting to your best friend about that C is not going to turn it into a B, regardless of whether or not you earned the higher grade. All it accomplishes is making you even angrier and irritating your friend (and anyone else who happens to be standing nearby).

This mindset is developed in high school, where teens quickly learn that their opinions and desires mean jack to the overworked, underpaid administration. Taking action only results in being ignored or punished. All they can do is mutter to each other and scowl at the authorities, leading to a festering attitude of resentment.

Another contributing factor may be American society in general. This country has a worrisome habit of sitting on the couch, swigging beer, and whining. Everyone has criticism about the government, but what percentage of eligible voters hit the booths at election time? Everyone clucks their tongues about the obesity epidemic, but how many put down the potato chips and go for a jog?

It’s easy to fall into the beer-swigging couch trap. After all, when everyone else is doing it, there doesn’t seem to be much point in trying to make a difference. But there are things that can be done to alleviate the problem. On a large scale, letting high school students have a say in decisions that affect them and empowering teens to create change where they see it needed will mold a generation of doers.

There are smaller actions you can take, too, if you don't feel inspired to revamp secondary education. Stop complaining to friends and strangers and start sharing your concerns with the people who can do something about them.

If there's a problem with your food, ask the cafeteria workers to get Dennis Humphrey and tell him what happened. If you don’t like a grade, explain to your teacher why you feel it should be different. If you can’t win over the teacher, take it to the head of department. If he or she doesn’t listen, appeal to the dean.

And if you've gone through the appropriate channels and spoken to the people that have the power to fix the problem, and nothing happens, and it doesn't look like you're going to get any results... in the grand scheme of things, is it really worth that much stress? Quit bitching and move on.

Tell us what you think. Write Spectrum at editor@mcckc.edu.