I realize this will publish the day AFTER Thanksgiving, but I feel a need to share my thanks.

After a great deal of hubbub recently, I can honestly say I am most thankful that my parents and I grew up in a world without social media, that our characters were formed in a world that predated the idea of instant gratification, that we learned (OK, they forced me to learn) the value of working to achieve what you wanted.

I read something the other day talking about the problems faced by kids of today. The story said many of the problems were caused by parents being over protective. The kid who takes a risk and falls off the monkey bars as a child learns to dust himself off and climb back on. That knowledge will benefit them the rest of their life. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

I was that kid. All it took was a cinder block and a piece of wood to construct a makeshift ramp, suddenly I was Evel Knievel on my bicycle. And so was every other boy with a bike in the neighborhood. Crashing was inevitable but road rash was a badge of honor.

But in today’s world, too many parents don’t want their child to take risks, or to face failure. So no score is kept in T-ball and everyone gets to bat. In peewee football, everyone gets a trophy. Everyone is told they are special, even though they did nothing out of the ordinary. In many cases, the kid did nothing.

That whole concept of rewarding nothing makes some kids think they are entitled. That the world owes them a cushy job, lots of pay, the corner office, without having to work for it. The same article said one fresh out of college job applicant had the audacity to tell the interviewer that they would have his job within 18 months. It didn’t matter that the kid had no experience in the field and the interviewer had worked 20 years to get to where he was.

Computers and cell phones (which are just small, portable computers) are great inventions that make life a lot easier. But maybe they make certain parts of life too easy. It allows people to avoid that tedious problem of human interaction. Don’t want to see someone in person — call them. Don’t want to talk to them — text or send an email.

That impersonality can lead to some pithy comments and remarks on social media. And this week, remarks will be running rampant all over the country and rival college football teams prepare to meet. One state to the west, my Dawgs and the Rebels are preparing for a Thanksgiving night showdown. In Alabama, the Tide and Tigers are preparing for an Iron Bowl of epic proportions. Never before has the SEC West title been on the line when the squads met. On top of that, the winner effectively has the inside track to the national title game to be played in the historic Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 6, 2014.

Back in the day, if you wanted to trash talk the week before the game, you had to wait until you saw an opposing fan face-to-face. Of course, you also ran the risk of provoking a physical altercation, so things tended to be a little more cordial. Nobody wants to irk an irritable 6-foot-5 zealot who is within arm’s reach. It doesn’t matter how good your insurance may be.

The innovation of social networks, in particular Facebook, means people can throw out comments and hide. So I urge people to take everything this week with a grain of salt. Folks who don’t quite love your team are going to make snide comments. It is unavoidable.

Take the high road. After the game, whether your team won or lost, you can hold your head up and know you were a winner.

William Moore is the Senior Editor at Gulf Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at wmoore@gulfcoastnewspapers.com