by Mark Bearing

Created on: October 13, 2010

Thinking about what is wrong with this world I feel I could come up with so many answers, most of which would spark debate with all sorts of people in disagreement. I feel when a question as broad yet as meaningful as, "What is wrong with the World?", is posed, it is best to be subjective and as honest as possible. I think it is also important to keep things simple and direct so as not to branch off into other issues or concerns that may be aside the point.

So in a sentence, the thing that is wrong with this world is that people have stopped living and working for the betterment of the community and instead have turned all of their concerns to themselves and their families alone.

There was a time, and not all that long ago, when a community was forced, for the sake of survival, to work together. The learned would teach, the skilled would labor, the doctors would heal, and the farmers would well...farm. In the time before currency the system of bartering made life so simple that each member of society needed only do their part and everyone stayed safe, healthy, and happy. Even after a monetary system was implemented, citizens made use of their talents. But as time has past and things have changed, the concept of hard work has faded. It appears that nowadays there are select groups in society that have it easier than others and live their lives accordingly.

Now class systems have always existed, but it appears, at least in America, that laziness has crept its way into too many aspects of life that it may not have been in before. Many of the privileged have offspring that have never learned what it means to apply themselves or to get their hands dirty for the sake of someone other than themselves. At the same time it appears that many of those living in poverty have developed the same sloth that plagues their wealthy counterparts. Whether it is because of a feeling of helplessness or glass ceilings, in the end it isn't important. What is important is that the will to do good for others appears to be deteriorating.

What is wrong with this world today, or at least what is wrong with America and I'd like to assume translates to the world, is that people have lost their sense of their place or purpose in society. There is a kind of comfort that comes from knowing that what you do, whatever that may be, is helpful to the community. It feels good even to know that our work helps even one person to move forward, to grow. So what I would like to see in this world, whether it be when I turn on the television or walk down the street or sit outside a coffee shop, is to get a sense that people care about what they do, to somehow feel that each member of society wakes up in the morning with a sense of purpose and then goes to bed feeling like they've made a difference in the world however small it may be. We all have the ability, and in my belief, the obligation to make a difference (hopefully a positive one) in the world.

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