The larger community needs building not destroying

Many years ago when I served as a member of the Board of Education, I saw first hand how easy it is for people to tear things down and tear them apart and how hard it is to build something. I was reminded of that twice today. First, I visited with Dr. Thelma Dawson in Darlington this morning. Her mother, Mrs. Pugh, died the other day. We served on the School Board together and it was pretty much Dr. Dawson's idea and and hard work that brought the Mayo Magnet School into existence for Darlington County. The fight was hard. People declared they would never send their kids to such a school. And, today we know that Mayo is the top choice for many Darlington County students and parents. Ask Dr. Dawson, building that program was really difficult.

And the second time today that thought came to be was watching Hard Ball as pundits assailed the stimulus actions of President Obama and his team. And, remember, Hard Ball favors the president. Yet, already people were declaring the policies ineffectual, too radical, too quick in one breath and then in the next saying even more radical things needed to be done. Were any of them doing anything? No. Their job was to talk. It is up to others to build and those who are building must feel like they under constant siege by forces wanting to destroy whatever they construct. How quickly we forget that the current administration has been in office less than two months.

These are very different times than any of us have ever experienced. This morning on NPR Prime Minister Gordon Brown of Great Britain was calling for international regulations to govern all the countries banking systems. He noted that in this age (which we know as globalization) what happens in one country quickly impacts another. We have never been this globalized before and that is only one of many differences between now and past recessions/depressions. We are facing very difficult times and it seems to me that if we are going to mitigate the effects of this global economic downturn we can only do it through cooperation and collaboration. There are those who are taking great pride in hoping the current ideas fail but you will notice that while they are great at using stones as weapons, none of them have figured out how to use those stones as building material.

We are now living in a world that we have not lived in previously and it is going to take actions that have not even yet been thought of to change our path and start us back on that recovery road. But, if people keep building obstacles instead of helping to clear paths it is going to take much longer and be much more painful than any of us want to imagine. We have a person who is leading with authority and who is willing to be accountable and for the present let's all give him a real chance to show us he is authentic in his leadership. Our Hartsville community, our South Carolina community, our national community and our wider-world community are need of people who will help build. Those who don't want to be part of the building process are free to make that choice but let's withhold any attention until they are willing to put some of their own building ideas into the process.