Obama just gave his State of the Union address. It focused mainly on creating jobs for the millions of U.S. citizens who are still unemployed. I just read an article written by David Gergen where he is discussing the address and also the importance of it. The article is entitled, "Can the U.S. Still compete?" Obama's approval rating has plummeted in the past few months and many politicians are waiting to see the affect that his State of the Union has on his nation.
In Gergen's article he discusses how America is losing it's power in the global market. He arranges a list of a few things that the United States could do in order to get back on track and not lose it's place as a world super power. The main focus of his new strategies would be focusing on our education. As a nation we are falling far behind the new rising super powers, such as China. Looking at it from the perspective of a student, I realize the truth in his words. Having attended the public school system for only 3 years I can't say I am an expert on it, but I can definitely attest to the fact that the standards that an "average" pupil are expected to reach is exceedingly low. A student can merely scrape by and somehow still manage to get into college. Education here is a byproduct of our daily lives, in many newly developing countries, education is life.
One of the reasons that I feel education is such an important part of life in other countries is their circumstances. For instance, in China, communism is slowly beginning to loosen, and although this way of governing is still largely in power, it has been opening its doors to ideas that had previously been frowned upon. In countries like these, education is the only way to get ahead. What I mean when I say this is that these students can't depend on the wealth of their parents or their family name to proceed in life. They have to fight for it, and education is the only way they know how. They also understand the monumental shift that has taken place in the world.
Americans have gotten lazy. Yes, in the 20th century we were the super power, but we can't rely on the hard work and patriotism of our ancestors. During WWII and the years after, our sense of nationalism could be felt "from the mountains, to the valleys," but now where is it? We live in an economically struggling country who is trying to ride on the coattails of the successes of the generations that proceeded them.
It's time to pick up our slack, and this is what Gergen discusses. If we want to be able to compete in the changing, fast paced global market, we need to be an intelligent, united country! We need to become informed citizens who take an interest in the affairs of our nations, rather than passive individuals who sit on their asses and only get involved when we have something to complain about.
At the end of Gergen's article he poses the question, "do we still have the right stuff?" In other words, he is asking if we are still made up of the strong willed, passionate Americans that thronged our country years ago.
This brings me to something that we discussed in Philosophy today, ontology, or the "theory of being." The idea is that even though substances are altered over time, the elements remain. We are made of the same atoms and fibers as our ancestors. We have the same general compostion as them, but do we have the same drive? The same passion for our country that has driven us for hundreds of years to become the nation we are today? Or have we become lazy?
I personally believe that we do still have the necessary material to compete with the rest of the world, we just need to discover it! We need to inspire our students and younger generations and show them that this is a country worth fighting for! Help them to become aware of the benefits of freedom and the enormous number of blessings they receive just from being born in this country!
I don't know how we can go about this personally, but we can look to Gergen for help. Encourage our learners. Encourage knowledge and understanding and encourage a new hope in our country. We are made of the same fire and heart as the men who founded this fabulous country and I feel that we need to rise to this occasion! Don't just accept the fact that we are losing our place in the global market, fight for it back! Fight for something you believe in! Remember what this country was founded on and fight for that! Freedom and dreams and family and the idea that every man deserves a chance. Well, young students of today, here's your chance. Take the state of our nation into your own hands and fight for something bigger than yourself and be reminded that we are all a part of something that is bigger than any of us. We are all made of the same elements and we all deserve the opportunity to make this country a better place.
Occupy Wall Street?
ReplyDelete