Values

There was an article on the Straits Times today, titled "Breakdown of values dragging US down" by Thomas L Friedman for the New York Times. I can't help but to link our own society with it too.

As the society becomes more affluent, people are less willing to lay down their lives, to step out of their comfort zone to fight it out. This has always been the requirement in the development of all societies. An excerpt:

Ask yourself: What made America's Greatest Generation great? First, the problems they faced were huge, merciless and inescapable: the Depression, Nazism and Soviet Communism. Second, the Greatest Generation's leaders were never afraid to ask Americans to sacrifice. Third, that generation was ready to sacrifice, and pull together, for the good of the country. And fourth, because they were ready to do hard things, they earned global leadership the only way you can, by saying: 'Follow me.'

Unfortunately, as nations progress, the societies lose the drive to succeed. Students are not interested in their studies, those who are good are less ready to take on a harder job, ... Another excerpt:

The US has had a values breakdown - a national epidemic of get-rich-quickism and something-for-nothingism. Wall Street may have been dealing the dope, but US lawmakers encouraged it. And far too many Americans were happy to buy the dot.com and subprime crack for quick prosperity highs.

As individuals, it calls for a different kind of parenting. We can't just rely on schools to teach the right values to kids or culture competitiveness through growing up. Being competitive in getting a higher score in computer games is different from being ready to serve the company/nation and be successful.

Yet, how many parents are just satisfied in buying that coveted toy to the children to appease them, to quieten them down?