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Everyone identifies with this: When one of your friends or family members aren’t looking or acting their best, you don’t want to be seen with them because it’s embarrassing. Why? After all, he or she is the one who is not appropriate--not you. Even so, you feel that you have a personal stake in their actions. This is because your family and friends are seen as a reflection of yourself, and you want them to do well because you are affected positively when they do.
Americans are totally lost on this concept.
Americans are perfectly content with seeing inequality as long as they are getting theirs now. I understand this because it’s our culture—after all, if it were not for greed, this country would not even be here. However, to maintain a sense of apathy to fellow Americans while having national pride is contradictory. Americans can see poverty, hunger, and disease in their own land and not be moved to remedy it because they see those conditions as a natural part of life that cannot be changed or they think it has nothing to do with them even though the people affected are connected by being Americans. At the most, the average American will be moved to donate a buck or two, but he or she will not be convicted enough to devote much effort to trying to solve the problem. How much pride can Americans have if we are content enough to allow our fellow citizens to live in disgrace? How strong is our national identity?
What makes matters worse is that it can be done—we can greatly reduce these problems we have today. Take Denmark and other European countries, for example. They have practically little crime and poverty, offer health care and education to their citizens, and are considered the happiest people in the world. The United States cannot reach this point, however, because our gratification is derived from the accumulation of personal wealth, in addition to the fact that we do not want to sacrifice to help our fellows because we simply do not care about them. However, what Americans do not realize is that when they help the poor, they are helping themselves, as well. For example, the uneducated who feel desperate and hopeless will turn to crime, but when their needs are taken care of and when we work to remedy their situation, not only do they have a better quality of life but are more productive, helping society as a whole.
Americans are totally lost on this concept.
Americans are perfectly content with seeing inequality as long as they are getting theirs now. I understand this because it’s our culture—after all, if it were not for greed, this country would not even be here. However, to maintain a sense of apathy to fellow Americans while having national pride is contradictory. Americans can see poverty, hunger, and disease in their own land and not be moved to remedy it because they see those conditions as a natural part of life that cannot be changed or they think it has nothing to do with them even though the people affected are connected by being Americans. At the most, the average American will be moved to donate a buck or two, but he or she will not be convicted enough to devote much effort to trying to solve the problem. How much pride can Americans have if we are content enough to allow our fellow citizens to live in disgrace? How strong is our national identity?
What makes matters worse is that it can be done—we can greatly reduce these problems we have today. Take Denmark and other European countries, for example. They have practically little crime and poverty, offer health care and education to their citizens, and are considered the happiest people in the world. The United States cannot reach this point, however, because our gratification is derived from the accumulation of personal wealth, in addition to the fact that we do not want to sacrifice to help our fellows because we simply do not care about them. However, what Americans do not realize is that when they help the poor, they are helping themselves, as well. For example, the uneducated who feel desperate and hopeless will turn to crime, but when their needs are taken care of and when we work to remedy their situation, not only do they have a better quality of life but are more productive, helping society as a whole.
What contributes to this apathy is the arrogance that Americans have. We are taught that we live in the greatest country in the world because it’s free (as if America holds the monopoly on that). Anyone can do anything he or she wants to here. This sentiment teaches Americans at an early age that there is nothing wrong, so complacency is welcomed. I often see many who view poverty is a self-caused problem that can be cured simply if people weren’t lazy. After all, since this country is the greatest in the world, if someone’s in poverty, it must be because of her or his own doing. If more Americans didn’t see each other in such a distant way and were more concerned about each other, we wouldn’t have such a one-dimensional perspective of the underprivileged in this country.
(Interesting observation: Why is underprivileged in Microsoft’s dictionary but not overprivileged? Americans have no concept of it.)
(Interesting observation: Why is underprivileged in Microsoft’s dictionary but not overprivileged? Americans have no concept of it.)
1 comments:
selfishness bolstered by the instant gratification so prevelant in our country. hopefully this recent economic downturn will show people how easily they can fall into poverty and how difficult it is to get out of it. Also notice how many of those who lost their jobs ended up stealing or killing their families and themselves. Poverty breeds desperation which breeds crime. And for those who have lived their whole lives like that, how are they supposed to know anything different?
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