The Reality Undermines Meaningful Progress

Tariffs, taxes and price increases seem to be the talk of the town today.  When talking about how to make things better there are times when adjustments have to be made.  The theories that are examined, the outcomes that are desired and the practices used to achieve these goals all have a tangible cost that goes beyond dollars and cents.  When the collateral damage hurts more than the problem, did we solve the problem or make a new one?

These really unnecessary mandates punish the very people they are supposed to help.  There is no relief in the price of daily goods like food and gas.  The prices go up at the threat of increased costs.  Large companies and corporations take cost cutting measures that put people out of work.  Small businesses struggle trying to make it through the short-term economic crisis created from having higher costs to do business and less flexibility to address it.  The 401k retirement plans of workers get devastated by the drop in the value of the stock portfolio they have.  Investors take big losses on the funds they have and the labor force gets confronted with job insecurity.

Tremendous responsibility unveils messy people.  The old saying is that pressure will burst a pipe.  Pressure is something that needs to be managed because it is always present in our lives. One of the ways we do that is by doing things in a consistently healthy way.  Responsibility is often treated as pressure.  The more responsibility, the more pressure.  This is why we teach, train, and keep conditioning ourself to deal with responsibility.  Some people only pretend to be able to handle things, and the results are usually not good.

The impact of decisions on real people matters.  The veteran who wonders if their check is coming matters. The workplace protections for women and minorities matter.  The benefits that people have earned from a life of service matters. The laborer is worthy of the honor, even double honor, for giving themself to make others’ lives better.  

When those in one class are only concerned with their own class, they make life worse for all the other classes.  Just as that would be true in a school, it is just as true in life.