Throughout history public sentiment about the state of affairs of our nation has
fluctuated between optimism and pessimism---feeling good/feeling bad. These moods
have sometime led the rest of the developed world's demeanor, and at other times followed.
At few periods in our history was our economy in danger because of a deep
decline elsewhere. Usually we were the bell sheep that led the others. When we
went into recession others eventually followed. So it was with recoveries. Our
current recession seems to be different. It is deeper, longer, wider and more
damaging than conditions in the other developed nations.
In trying to understand it certain factors come to mind:
We have taken on the role of policeman to the world. As such we must
maintain a military establishment larger than the rest of the world
combined, at home and in many foreign lands. This diverts resources from
more productive pursuits.
Our citizens have developed a sense of entitlement to government
services without a commensurate obligation to pay for them in the form
of taxes.
We have accepted living beyond our means as a normal life style, both
as individuals and as a society.
Our sense of common purpose and concern for the general welfare has eroded
and been replaced by "anything goes in pursuit of a buck".
The recipe for recovery is, in each of the above factors, to return to the way things were before, to the status quo ante. Perhaps it should begin in Washington
with politicians who place the general welfare above their own self interest.
Who will say "we ask not what our country can do for us, but what we can do for our country". Imagine what would happen if all of us did that!
Lets get to it!
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4 comments:
A highly noble ideal!
Unfortunately, Americans have forgotten the value of rising to the vaunted idealistic objective of idealism.
It is true that our country defined and implemented high standing values in the past but sadly, those ideals are not realistic today.
More and more frequently today Americans are guilty of playing the role of "wronged and owed". We are chronic complainers for not getting what we expected. How very juvenile!
Can we return to those earlier values and become innovators again? Yes, but not without a "smack upside the head" which all of us richly deserve. Our culture has become jaded with introspection thanks to several decades of successes and reliance on the arduous efforts of a handful of intellectuals in our past. Today however, intellectuals are perceived as ideologists and simply discounted as "weird".
American culture, unlike any other society in the past, is actually becoming LESS mature as it ages! (If only we could bottle mystical idealism and sell it as the new "Fountain of Youth". Our economy would almost immediately stabilize with such a huge influx of new income that even Congress might not be able to spend the profits before they are received.)
Come on, America! Let's face the fact that our's is not the Utopian civilization we wanted it to be.
Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. – JF Kennedy.
What can I do for my Country?
I will be a good citizen and vote for the President who can promise me a bright future. I will pay my taxes. I will drive at the speed limit. I will be friendly with my neighbors. I will have the prescribed 2 and 4/5 children per family. I will send my children to College. I will try to buy a new car every two years. I will pay the mortgage on my house. I will buy a card for my wife on our wedding anniversary. I will retire to Florida in a Condo.
I certainly expect to be successful in the pursuit of happiness.
What do people expect their Country will do for them?
I expect an easy job with good pay and with stability where I cannot be fired, like a job in Government or in teaching and with regular guaranteed increases. I expect peace and tranquility. I expect minimum taxes. I expect a nice car and a driveway in a good neighborhood. I expect my children to be College Graduates.
Above all, when I retire I expect a good union pension and also Social Security payments. I expect Medi-care and –caid. After all I am entitled to it.
jacques
Camelot was a play but it has never been a stage of reality.
JFK was without question a refreshing emblem of change and corrective actions for our nation. We look back on those halcian years when it seemed all wrongs could be righted but then quickly recognize that the ideals of that existence were quickly extinquished by a bullet to the brain.
Our nation recognized the common ambition of returning to a simpler, more honest way of life but, alas, we quickly learned that living in the past is contrary to reality.
"There's no way home!" is what we should have learned. We can only scoop up our scruples and create a new path to happiness for the entire society. This is not a one-person job however. It is our obligation to work fiercely but in unity with our peers to create a kinder, more respectful environment then work diligently to make it the new reality.
In terms of high level leadership I keep hoping to find another Dwight Eisenhower. Someone willing to commit his/her entire political perspective to a logical and common good.
When I look around today I find only political suck ups and "bouncers" (those who will freely switch affiliations on the potential of a forum and potential position).
Give me a choice of real candidates with real, heart-felt ambitions and I will again trust in the "American democratic process" (which I feel has always been a fantasy but keep hoping to be surprised with some new revelation to prove me wrong).
Jerry is quite right when he says:
“It is our obligation to work fiercely but in unity with our peers to create a kinder, more respectful environment then work diligently to make it the new reality.”
Instead, we are racing down the road of daily life within realizing that we are approaching the edge of the cliff. The economy? Get another few trillions somewhere. The next generation? We managed – they will. Foreign wars? Oh yes, the Generals are in charge over there. The environment? My lawn is green, my A/C works fine. The future of our country? That is Obama’s job. Not mine.
Sad to say.
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