What Have You Done for ME?
I've recently noticed a strong sense of selfishness in America. I understand that when the economy gets bad, people naturally turn to their own self-interests. It's shown up often in the political discourse and how individual citizens talk about the direction our economy and our country is headed. What have you done for me, what will you do for me, and why are you helping those people seem to be more and more common attitudes (though not necessarily in that order all the time). The one place it is popping up and I don't understand it it the case of the freed American hikers, Josh Fattal, Shane Bauer, and Sarah Shourd.
If you read comments on stories covering their long overdue release, people are actually saying they got what they deserved. I'm seeing comments like:
another prime example of people demanding freedom without accountability and or suffering the consequences of their actions
or
Dear government of Iran, we would really appreciate it if you kept idiots like these. We don't want them back. We are more than happy to have you feed, clothe and house them for the rest of their lives.
While likely not the safest activity in the world, those who attempt to climb Everest or engage in other, similar activities, don't receive this type of scorn. Other comments are unhappy with their criticism of any US policies (which so far have been very soft) and strike a definite love it or leave it tone. These attitudes seem to be a reflection and extension of the economic, what have you done for me lately idea permeating policy discussions. The idea that young Americans might go to a strange part of the world to experience culture and nature is so foreign to some people, that it's wrong.
As Americans we should be happy that US citizens are home. We should be happy that our government cared about them enough to work for over two years to bring them home. This is exactly what our government is for. To protect the rights of the individuals, to work on behalf of its citizens. These young people don't deserve our scorn because they now criticize a corrupt Iranian regime that holds political prisoners for speaking out and asking for the same rights protected by our Constitution.
Too many Americans seem to have forgotten what Democracy means. It doesn't mean we live in a society where we say all the time, "there oughta be a law..." it means we should be looking for opportunities to say, "there shouldn't be a law." It also means that our government doesn't imprison people and strip them of their rights (like we do in Cuba to many young people who are not terrorists), it means that it should be protecting rights of citizens against larger interests be they corporations, those who would impose a theocracy, or countries like Iran.
Regardless of how you feel about these young people and their comments since coming home, our protection of free speech means that we as a society need to tolerate these ideas. These young people went through a horrible ordeal that is not due to them being reckless or irresponsibility. They're out there experiencing the world before they have responsibilities or expectations on our society (mortgage, social security, Medicare, etc.) and really represent the best of our youth. Why? Because they want to understand how the world works and make it and the United States better despite living through a horrible experience.
There is nothing wrong with seeing the world. There is nothing wrong with being young and having a sense of adventure. There is nothing wrong with speaking out against an injustice (be it in a foreign country or here at home). But there is a lot wrong with having a closed mind that only thinks of one's self and thinks that if others receive help it means that they're losing something.
