RESPECT
Dated 27th August, 2024.
The root cause of lack of respect in our society today is centered around how we have brought up our children in western society over the last 40 years (2 generations) or so. Today (and for some time) children from an early age are in control of a family – want a mobile phone, computer, red party dress, football etc., because other children at kinder garden and school have it.
What they want to watch on television
What they want to wear
Whether they say “hello” or good morning to a person and the list goes on.
Simply put parents in Australia and throughout the western world have allowed the child or children in the family to dominate family life at a very early age – an age where in generations before, children were “seen but not heard” and were far more “disciplined” by parents.
Generally speaking, the child as grown up with more confidence, but such confidence has not been in the main “well harnessed” by parents and such has led to children on mass creating a “me me society”.
It has exploded over the last generation or so this century.
That self confidence has been at the same time an important part of education and school syllabuses – for a student to develop a “self confidence” in his/herself. Hence, at the same time, preschools, primary schools, secondary schools and universities have all endorsed and supported “individual rights” and hence a “me me society”.
But the mistake has been that such generally speaking has not been “balanced” in the home and school with learning and understanding “respect” for others and the need to recognize or think about the impact on another person of any thought, word, or conduct by the individual expressing a right.
Rights and self-confidence are fine, but it needs to be understood and balanced with “respect” for other persons at the same time.
Once the root cause of what I perceive to be a big problem in western society is understood and acknowledged, it should be relatively easy to change individual attitudes, particularly young children.
The following is required: -
More dedicated and stronger parenting to better take more direct control of the development of children. To lead and direct and not be the follower and the one being directed (I acknowledge the current difficulty of effecting this in a two income family).
To vary the preschool/primary school/secondary school syllabuses to provide a better balance and understanding of students “rights” and “respect to others/responsibilities/obligations”.
The second and most important need to change is the basic concepts of honesty. Today corporations and businesses in the capitalist world are “hell bent” on just one thing – profit and money.
Society today, led by big business and politicians, lacks the honesty, integrity and transparency expected by society.
This change has evolved (as all change has) but its evolution has been massive over the same time frame as our children have lacked respect. Surely, Australian leaders of business and politics have got “the message” over the last few years. The people have had enough. People power is about to erupt – peacefully but with the objective of significant change in favor of the ordinary person.
Many small businesses have been left “for dead” after the pandemic. And then inflation and a cost-of-living crisis has made life exceptionally difficult for them. If the small business is very profitable it is not massively affected by the above but if it carries a much smaller turnover and profit, then it is likely to be very much more adversely affected. The problem is not with small business. It is and will always be the major employer within our society. It has at all times in the main remained hard working and honest. The “cheating” and “dishonest practices” are at the big end of town. Technology has allowed “big business” to be more productive and make more profits. Share markets, cryptocurrency markets, property markets, gold and art markets are all at record high levels. Money and profit is everything. It should not have so much influence. The wealthy simply “play a high stakes game” with investments in shares, currency, property, gold, and art and cryptocurrencies. These people in the main are not financially impacted unless they have borrowed money to enter the game and really in life, it is just that – a game played by the wealthy or those who want to be wealthy and who have access to “entry money”.
Leaders in Australia today should be making this acknowledgement and acting in the best interests of the vast majority of persons who are not able to play the game. Instead, they do very little and what is done is invariably too little, too late.
This change occurs if politicians acknowledge their current shortcomings. If it is just wiped away like the AFL wiped away its “drug policy” with the aid of big business partners in the press and media then nothing changes and we will all continue to head towards a social, economic and political disaster.
Money should not be all important. It is necessary to have money. But we are all different and as such have different needs, wants and uses for money and abilities to live with or without much money.
In summary education is the key. And individual strength of character to acknowledge shortcomings and make a commitment to do better and not just “hide” with the support of media or “spin doctors” and other self-fulfilling persons if one naturally pursues and seeks to improve society attitudes about honesty and respect in this country.
This paper has simply set out what the writer perceives are the root causes in respect to our lack of respect for others and lack of honesty with ourselves and others in society today.
If you agree with me you will vote for a political party with candidates who will work hard to correct these two evils and in doing so, provide a better quality of life for the forgotten Plato “public good” majority. A vote for Democracy First is a vote for social, economic and political change.