Inspire Integrity by Corey Ciocchetti

Author:Corey Ciocchetti [Corey Ciocchetti]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
Published: 2018-03-18T16:00:00+00:00

THIS IS AMERICA, PEOPLE!

These statistics are shocking and depressing at the same time. Before I saw the results, I thought the percentage of discontented Americans would be much lower. But, after seeing the actual percentages time and again, I thought about the people I encounter every day. I would venture that around 30% of the people I work with seem authentically content on a consistent basis. The other 70%, not so much. Perhaps I just don’t know them, but many seem downright miserable. How about your colleagues?

Let’s move outside of the office. I don’t see a ton of happy and content people on my commute. Do you? What about running errands or out on the town? Do you see many content-looking people when you are out to dinner, on an airplane, or even out jogging? I cannot say that I do.

Try this experiment next time you are out and about. Smile at ten people as you walk. Don’t do it all creepy or you’ll ruin my experiment. Just use a gentle, “I’m a friendly human,” type smile. I have done this hundreds of times and found that only about three in ten people smile back at me; most act like even having to acknowledge my existence or look away from their phone is a burden. I don’t interfere in their lives any more deeply than a smile and a nod and even that makes many people grimace. That’s the amazing thing about anonymous polls, I guess – outside of politics, they usually get stuff like this right. And that makes me upset for one main reason … this is America, people!

Creating an environment where people could live in freedom and peace has been the goal of this country since our Declaration of Independence. The founders used the words “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” – the equivalent of “the good life” in the 1700s. Our system of government was purposely structured toward this end. America is unique in that it has functioned as an (imperfect) representative democracy since its founding – a political structure that was beyond a radical idea at the time. While the United States is not the first nation to include elements of democracy, “it is the oldest existing nation with a constitutional government in which the people elect their own government and representatives.”88

To this end, today we spend billions on national defense and police forces so our people can work, rest, raise families, and improve society without fear. There is very little that we owe our government in exchange – we are only required to obey the law, pay taxes, serve on juries (and show up to court if summoned), register for the draft (just the men for now), and buy health insurance. These are our only mandatory civic duties.

Most nations struggle to provide the level of freedom enjoyed by Americans. The United States strives to, and for the most part does, supply key human services such as power, water, trash collection, and medical care to even our most rural locations.

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