Once upon a time, the United States of America was a nation of people that saw no limits to what it could achieve. The country manifested its destiny, revolutionized its industry, and warred for good in just a little over 100 years. However, in recent decades it seems as if an attitude of achievement embodied by John F. Kennedy’s “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard,” has turned into Homer J. Simpson’s “Kids, you tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is, never try.”
The irony of the JFK/HJS comparison is that despite being a colossal screw-up, Homer Simpson usually ends up doing the right thing at the end of every Simpsons episode. Our nation today could only hope for such luck, as we face challenges — such as health care costs and our energy future — that exceed the difficulty of those faced by JFK’s generation. Sadly, the nation’s current mentality toward these challenges seems to be “Ich bin ein that’s too harder.”
America’s descent into a nation of candy-asses has been visibly evident during our generation’s political coming-of-age. Among the major legislative accomplishments of the Bush Administration were a tax cut that brought a $400 check in the mail; the Medicare Part D expansion that gave seniors cheaper drug coverage; and an economic stimulus that gave taxpayers more checks in the mail. Rarely was there a call for sacrifice or action, just a request to take what the government has given.
It is appropriate to again turn to Homer Simpson for the lessons we learned during this time: “If you really want something in life you have to work for it. Now quiet, they’re about to announce the lottery numbers.”
The Obama Administration has chosen to be a little more proactive in taking on two major challenges during its first two years: reforming the health care system and moving toward a renewable energy future. Most people whose neural functions are above Homer’s “Okay brain, you don’t like me, and I don’t like you,” would agree both of these issues are important and difficult to address. In the past, these are just the types of challenges that would have been eagerly tackled by Americans.
Our nation’s current response has been somewhat to significantly disappointing. The debate over health care reform has been covered like Homer Simpson on a jelly doughnut, so there is no need to waste precious column space going into reliving the play-by-play of the poo-show. However, it was interesting to hear Christmas party banter about doubling health insurance rates and decreasing coverage that soon led to a resignation that the health care bill was going to be the suckiest bunch of suck that ever sucked.
Data is not the plural of anecdote, but it still seems these “sentimonies[ZTS1] ” are present at the national level, where instead of saying, “Yes we can,” to pushing for a good bill with a public option, our political leaders pulled a Homer and said, “Trying is the first step toward failure.”
Equally disappointing has been the reaction to the cap-and-trade bill that passed the House last year, the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen last month and now the Clean Energy Jobs Act Governor Doyle proposed last week. Carbon-based fuels have provided cheap energy for the past 100+ years, but now there is a growing recognition that they will one day run out, and relying on them for energy has a negative impact on both national security and the environment. Again, this is just the type of challenge of which the America of past generations would not try to weasel out.
Unfortunately, the nation’s response has been to heed Homer’s advice, “Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It’s what separates us from the animals! Except the weasel.” Either climate legislation will cost us jobs, or emission limits will prevent us from competing with China, and thus we must continue to burn fossil fuels until … they run out or something. Just try to imagine the Moon Speech with JFK saying, “We choose not to go to the moon because, err, those Soviets are scary.”
Commentators like to cite the Founding Fathers and the Greatest Generation as folks who once made America great before its current descent into mediocrity. Unfortunately, this is usually followed by bellyaching instead of looking to their dedication as a source of inspiration for the future. Health care reform and carbon emission legislation are both excellent opportunities for America to emerge form its malaise and tackle challenges business-as-usual would shy away from. And as Homer put it: “Run away? Did ‘Braveheart’ run away? Did ‘Payback’ run away?”
Zachary Schuster ([email protected]) is a graduate student studying water resources engineering and water resource management.
