Solving Problems, and Mindset Needed

While lying in bed this morning, sometime around 04:00 AM, I started thinking about the state of things in America and the rest of the world and it occurred to me that the problem is that we have stagnated. We seem to be constantly at odds with one another about what direction to go in, and instead of moving, we just sit with our wheels spinning. In fact, our wheels no longer even spin because we are so mired in the morass of one ideology versus another. While our supplies of fuel continually dwindle, nothing has been done in any significant way to either replace or supplement the fuels that we have. Our current demands burn up supplies with abandon, and while we are not in a crisis mode yet, make no mistake about it, we one day will be. What to do, what to do?
  I must ask: Where are the movers and shakers today that will lead us from this darkness into a new era of light? Where are the voices inspiring the young men and women of today to take chances and search for answers to this and so many other problems that plague the modern world? Where are the Bold Thinkers, the Visionaries who have a clear idea what direction we ought to go in? Who will lead us with brilliant words and bold new ideas? Certainly none of the current 'Leaders'. You don't make discoveries by being conservative. If people like Lindbergh were conservative in their visions, we would still be sailing ships to get from one continent to another instead of flying aircraft. If not for the bold sacrifices of people like Amelia Earhart, we would still think that we could not fly around the world, and that women don't belong in the pilot's seat. If not for Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement, a large part of our fellow Americans would still be living under the American version of apartheid. We did not stop going into space because of the shuttle disasters. We suspended them the shuttles for a while, but inevitably continued onward in upward. We did it because the human condition is not to be conservative. It is to continually push the envelope. To face each challenge and find ways to meet it and win. We, as a people, as a race called human, need to find the answers to these things that tax our existence and we need visionary leaders to show the way. We are going to experience failures. Anything worth doing is a risk. Pointing fingers at it and saying "See? What did we tell you? Look at the money lost on this project!" does nothing but set the quest for answers back even further. This is what nay-sayers do. This is what people either without vision, or another agenda do. Everything worth doing comes with a risk. It the nature of our existence.

 Things don't get done by saying that they are too expensive, and that we shouldn't try. Things don't get done by ignoring them and saying to the people that you represent "Don't worry, someone else will find a way to fix it." Things get done by taking bold actions. Standing on the steps of the Capital with a rifle in your hand is not the way. Instilling fears that the government is going to take away the peoples right to bear arms, while you are chipping away at the right to privacy and freedoms of religion and speech, are not getting it done. We have an infrastructure that is crumbling. Roads, bridges, railways systems, are all falling apart... and very little is being done about it. Fossil fuels are getting increasingly difficult to bring to the surface. Fracking, in some cases, causes the ground water to be infused with natural gas; and still, no one has found an answer. These problems must be solved, if we are to continue on as an advanced civilization. Simply saying 'God will provide' won't do it either. If God is out there, he has provided. He has given humankind the brain that can work out complex problems. Nothing will be handed to us. It is up to us to find the answers ourselves.
 I'm an old man, and these are my conclusions after much thought over years and years of seeking answers. My words will only be read by a few people, but if this rings a bell with others, then perhaps they will write something, and perhaps someone respected and inspiring will take up the cause. My concern is for the my grandchildren and the society that they will have to live in. I am truly worried, but I am hopeful that the call will be heard.

John Zaffino March 23, 2014
Kent Lakes, NY