Is the American Spirit dead?

That’s the question I have to ask myself as the current recession, depression, financial crisis, or whatever you want to call it continues.  The reason I ask that are headlines like these from the January 6, 2009 Detroit Free Press and Detroit News.

The Free Press headline said “Obama’s plan holds promise for Michigan” and the News “Recovery rests on stimulus.”  You can find similar headlines and stories in every newspaper and on every television newscast.

My question, when did Americans become so dependent on someone else saving them?  When did the answer become “government” to every problem we have.  What happened to “WE THE PEOPLE?”

For the life of me I can’t fathom why John Q. Public thinks the people that have screwed this country up can now suddenly come up with “The Answer?”  (Apologies to the real “The Answer” Allen Iverson.)

Does anyone in their right mind think the people that are in Washington, D.C. getting paid over 100K a year to spend our money are any smarter than we are?  Do you think they are somehow so caring and passionate that they can divine a program or law that with the waving of a magic wand make it all better?  From my experience, it’s government that usually makes things worse.

All those in government think about is how to spend our money to help the poor schmucks that didn’t have the intelligence to become politicians or government workers.  Do you realize that the #1 employer in the United States is GOVERNMENT!  Put all those that receive a paycheck from any level of government together and you’ll find that an entity that creates nothing spends most of the  money earned in the United States!

I realize times are tough, believe me I do.  I’ve been what I like to call “under-employed” since February of 2008.  I haven’t been without a full time job since I was in college, but I am now. Yes it’s scary.  Yes I ask myself many times how am I going to pay the bills.  However, I never ask the question “When is the government going to save me?”

I’ve been networking, learning, reading, talking and finding a way on my own to make a living and hopefully thrive.  I try and use all the resources that are available to me to put together a plan and use the talents I have to move forward.  I also work with others that helps enhance my effort  and theirs with new opportunities.

That to me is the American Spirit that use to be what drove this country.  We were the “Can Do!” people.  Nothing could stop us.  We got knocked down, we got up, dusted ourselves off, and worked even harder than before because that’s what Americans did!  I just wonder when did we lose that spirit?

Have we become so use to getting everything we want without working for it that we expect handouts all the time? (Mom and Dad did you ever not give your son or daughter that iPod or cell phone or PS3 they wanted because they didn’t earn it?)

Sure it’s a lot easier to turn to the government and say “Save me” and many see nothing wrong with that.  Just remember for the government to give you something they have to take it from someone else. The “government” has no money because they don’t produce anything.  However, Americans do produce something, in fact they produce every bit of wealth that has made America great! 

It’s time for all of us to return to the true American Spirit, grab our bootstraps, stare adversity right in the eye and tell the world “We are Americans!” and we will come back even stronger thanks to our own spirit and ingenuity not the kindness and largess of the government.

~ by detroitvoice on January 7, 2009.