Change – it’s the one constant
I want to address the President’s Inaugural Address to assist in ‘doing the math’ as it were. I will highlight the key phrases that have a bearing on where we are currently and where I think we will be in the future should we choose to relinquish our current anchors.
President Obama started out with ‘our collective failure to make hard choices; our schools fail too many.’ The phrase points to two glaring challenges that we as Americans are facing but not necessarily addressing. We are a nation of instant gratification; we have to have it all now, today, if not yesterday. We are too busy spending instead of investing…time, money and ourselves. We are choosing to bury our heads as opposed to taking responsibility for our one and only life; an entitlement mentality paired with the victim mentality is a dangerous concoction.
‘The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation; the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness. In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never given. It must be earned.’ I came to America when I was almost eight for the reasons mentioned above. I remember my parents telling me I could be whatever I chose to and set my mind to, especially in this great country. I believed them and have willingly taken my chances. The other thing I was told was that I needed to do things seven times better than the Americans and thought ‘fair enough’. The word legacy is bandied about like a neat toy but it seems most have forgotten that it has to be built and earned, it is not found.
This country was built by entrepreneurs… ‘It has been the risk-takers, the does, the makers of things who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.’ It is going to be the entrepreneurs who will put America back up on its feet. It won’t be the government for lack of fiscal literacy and it certainly will not be big business, they’re too busy laying people off. If each American can take it upon themselves to invest in the proper education which will allow them to create their own jobs as well as for others; in turn learn to pay themselves first as the wealthy do, then and only then can we find ourselves as a whole country on the road to recovery. Too many Americans in times of crisis are going about it partially correct. They are investing in education, the type of education that will put them right back in the same position they were before – working for someone else.
When they get laid off again, the complaints will return. My question is this….if you made a conscious decision to put your future as well as your family’s future in the hands of someone else and it doesn’t turn out as promised, whose fault is it? You’ve entrusted your future in the hands of someone else in the form of a 401K and it evaporates within a few months that which has taken a few years to build, whose fault is it? Look in the mirror. America has lost its identity – most of America has put their value or self worth in the hands of someone else; as well as their net worth.
‘But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions – that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.’ I agree. My father always said, sometimes when you want something done right, you’ve got to do it yourself. You can’t blame big business, their doing what’s best for their stockholders. That’s how it works…try starting your own company and see for yourself. Why don’t you – you can’t do any worse. In fact, what if you found out that you could provide yourself with a better and more comprehensive medical and retirement plan – and doing so would benefit you not only financially but literally?
‘For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act – not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth.’ What does a flight attendant say before the plane starts or the runway? ‘In the event of an emergency….place the mask on yourself before you place it on your neighbor.’ It’s great to act, but let’s make sure we aren’t just ‘swinging at the wind’. Taking a cue from the wealthy, you cannot take care of anyone else unless you take care of yourself first. Get the right education that includes fiscal literacy, create your own job and lay that foundation; for good intentions are just that, good – and the road to hell is paved with it.
‘And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.’ Again, all this sounds good but first and foremost, fiscal literacy. If you don’t start there – you are nowhere and most importantly, you go nowhere. It has to start at fiscal literacy….has to. So how about getting it to our children sooner rather than later?
Why fiscal literacy? It will afford each and every one the avenue of becoming a entrepreneur by leveling the playing field if not starting at an advantage because of the lack of fiscal literacy. By becoming an entrepreneur, one can ‘extend opportunity to every willing heart – not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.’ Why fiscal literacy? Fiscal literacy provides wisdom and with wisdom comes understanding, and with understanding comes compassion, and with compassion comes doing good and what’s right.
‘What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them.’ If the map doesn’t agree with the ground, the map is wrong. Folks the map is wrong and has been wrong! How much longer can we go on as a country operating with the wrong map? Too many lives are at stake to continue using the axiom ‘fake it ‘til we make it’. The world has caught up if not passed us, it’s become a global world and market in all aspects of the word. But we still have an edge…we are still Americans.
‘For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which the nation relies. They have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.’ I haven’t forgotten…all I have to do is to look back at the rich history this country provides in a short amount of time. It can take your breath away. It deserves boldness and authority from each one of us – I believe in an idea that a single individual who has the right heart and right mind, consumed with a single purpose – give that same individual a group of people with the same conviction – they change the world.
I tell my two year old son, that he is my hero; that much is expected of him, that he will do great things and change the world. The torch has been passed…not too long ago, my dad was my hero. You see, the legacy has to continue – but it has to be earned first while it is being added on to. America, where and what is our legacy today? God has blessed America like no other country, so much is expected. Let’s get to work and do what the world always expects from us – to persevere, manifest our destiny and make a difference.