Life after the fallout

Every so often a culture shifts in the direction that it was going. Sometimes the shift is small and almost unnoticeable other times it is quite dramatic. Anyways let me explain myself. I was sitting in front of my TV like I do every Monday evening and a car commercial came on boasting better gas mileage and a 60 day guarantee. And that got me started thinking... Then an insurance commercial came on for liberty mutual talking about how they are really concerned with being responsible. And that really got me thinking.

First I thought maybe we are at a precipice, a turning point where we as the American People can choose a new direction for our country. Then I realized that the precipice is long gone. We are now living with the consequences of our decisions. We were at a precipice when the economy tanked and businesses which have previously been stable went under or were bought up by the Government, stocks fell to an all time low leaving investors poor or broke. People stopped buying and started saving what little they had left. Some would call this a depression I choose to call this the precipice. Essentially America's economy came to as much of a halt as is possible. Which gave a rare opening for the American people to turn in a new direction.

That is exactly what we did. And I think we took a turn towards responsibility. Before we as a country we consumed, and discarded with little thought about where our trash built up. Now with the green initiative. There is a new thought about responsibility to the earth, to make less of a negative impact on the environment that we did the day before, and tomorrow to make even less of a negative impact. We are trying to be responsible stewards of this earth so that we can appreciate its beauty for generations to come.

Another evidence of this new direction is the idea that we are responsible to help others in need. More people have begun to volunteer since the economic downturn, and this new emphasis on social responsibility has begun to drive businesses to follow suit. With shows like EXTREME Home Makeover and others that are bringing communities together to help those in need. People want to get involved in this responsibility movement. It is to an extent that advertising is using this as a selling point. Corporations are donating to charities or causes when people purchase certain products. People want to help, responsibility is cool now.

We as America have turned a corner and now its time to hold on and see where this road takes us. Will this energy for responsibility fizzle out or is it just beginning? Only time will tell but what I do know is this. If we continue on this road with the idea of stewardship and responsibility in the forefronts of our minds, America can not only care for its own people but for so many others throughout the world.