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A Wish List for 2002
Editorial
The usual thing is to make resolutions for the new year, so that's what I'll do.
I, along with Jinx and Robin of Payson.cc resolve to do our best to bring you on the pages of this website not only some of the usual things readers see on the Internet and in newspapers, but also the unusual... information, thoughts, questions and opinions that have often been neglected and ignored in the public forum.
The media trend in America since September 11 has been to be upbeat, positive about the future, patriotic, generous and unquestioningly supportive of government. That's all good. Except for the unquestioning part. We all do good things and bad things and governments are no exception. As citizens of America, it is our duty to ask questions, to be informed and to demand accountability and common sense from those who serve us. As GOOD citizens, we should constantly strive for consideration, integrity and responsibility in ourselves and in others, whether it be those who govern us, those we choose to associate with, or those we do business with.
Now is the time, as we look more deeply at ourselves, our country and the events of the world on which we have an effect and which affect us, to consider the many ways that we can make this great country a better place in 2002. In keeping with the sentiment of this time, I offer a "wish list" to be considered for the new year.
I wish...that there were fewer lazy and irresponsible Americans who abandon their shopping carts in driving lanes and parking places in every grocery market parking lot across the country. It doesn't take that much effort to return them to the store or the spaces provided. Along the same lines, I wish that some people didn't throw litter out the window of traveling vehicles and dump truckloads of garbage in forests and pastures. By such actions, a small minority of people make us look like a nation of slobs and sets a horrible example of irresponsibility for young people to follow.
I wish... that all children lived in homes that contained books and had parents who read to them and with them and listened to them read. I wish for more two-parent families and mothers and fathers who take responsibility for the education and welfare of their children, rather than expecting others to bear the entire burden. That alone would solve many of the educational problems that beset our nation.
I wish... that all families and all schools had active physical education programs as a fundamental component of their lifestyles and curriculums. The human body was made for physical activity and its neglect is creating a growing segment of illness-prone weaklings. I wish that more children could safely run and play along the streets of their neighborhoods and that more street corner gatherings were for the purpose of dealing in marbles and baseball cards instead of drugs and mischief.
I wish... for more Americans to think for themselves and to have the courage to stand up for what is right and to speak out against what is wrong... and to seek the knowledge that will help them know the difference. I wish for an America where no one ever felt the need to be a party to anonymous letters and telephone calls, and to foolish politically correct dictums flowing from a self-righteous, self-appointed cadre of opinion-molders.
I wish... that political leaders and members of the mass media would step out more often from their ivory towers and reacquaint themselves with the lives of the majority of Americans. They need to know more about us and we need to know more about each other. Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their jobs. Entire industries have closed or all but moved from American shores, large and small factories have closed and whole communities have been gutted of meaning and culture and hope. The job market of rural counties across the nation is dominated by tourism and government. These are not sustainable industries, as we are beginning to discover. We need to know about these things and to consider their implications for the future.
So, I wish... for a rebuilding of community and regional industries and character, and a new awareness and respect among a primarily urban-minded population that all things that sustain civilizations and life come from the earth. Our hope for a better America lies not in cheap imports from other countries, not in government programs and grants and vast expenditures of money, not in a concentration of human hopes in huge multinationals that squeeze out the lifeblood of a million communities, but in the character and will and integrity and endeavors of America's everyday people. Presidents, movie stars and Fortune 500 CEOs may be the stars of the American stage play presented to the world, but the life and strength of the stars are provided by the foundation of a largely anonymous, but healthy and vital supporting cast.
We are that supporting cast that make stardom possible and we have more power than we think.
I wish... for a resurgence of that individual self-reliance, innovation and opportunities for little people that made America great.
Finally, I wish... that the United States Constitution would be returned to its rightful place of prominence in the land. Our people and our lawmakers seem to have abandoned the principles that established and built this country in much the same way as they carelessly abandon grocery carts in parking lots.
All those wishes for 2002 are possible.
Aren't they?
Payson.cc © 2002 Carrol Cox
Payson Arizona Editorial and Opinions on National USA / World / and Local News Issues