We’ve all heard the excuse or explanation that ‘it’s
society’s fault’, to explain someone’s failure.
We hear expressions like this often when an individual has committed a
crime or simply failed to succeed.
Personal accountability is diluted as we are told that this person came
from an imperfect home, had no role models or ample education.
These arguments are often wielded by those who have been
favored with society’s blessings and advantages.
As readers here know, I am not politically liberal and regard
myself as an independent who usually votes for Republican candidates. I did vote for Senator Sherrod Brown, one of
the most liberal members of the U.S. Senate, a fact that astonished friends and
family, as I had concerns about the character of his opponent that I could not
overcome. I am proud of this vote.
Were you born next to a ladder?
A 19-year-old female was sent to me to evaluate hepatitis
C. She was unemployed. She had used intravenous needles years ago
and resumed using them a few weeks before she saw me. Hepatitis C was not the immediate medical
priority here.
I felt that I was facing an individual who inhabited an
alternative universe from mine. While I
am speculating, I surmise that she faced choices through her life that I never
had to confront. What narrative, I wondered,
could this young woman have had that would lead her to her present destination,
where she would be self-injecting poison into her body? I am not relieving her of personal
accountability for the decisions that she has made. Adverse circumstances do not guarantee failure. Indeed, we all know phenomenal people who have
overcome incredible adversity and long odds to achieve and inspire. I wish that their methods were
contagious. The woman before me, at
least so far, was not one of these individuals.
Perhaps, she came into this world unwanted and unloved. She may not have had adults in her life to
build her self-worth and to help guide her.
Maybe, education was a closed pathway for her. What caliber peer group was available to take
her in to soothe her rejection?
My point is that it’s always easier to judge someone’s
failures from higher ground. Would many of us have reached higher ground if we weren’t born with a ladder that was set up
beside us to ascend?
I’m all for personal responsibility and accountability. I’m also making a case for empathy, a virtue
that has not always been as strong as it should have been in my own life.
If our ladder breaks and we crash, how would
we like to be treated?
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