I have had enough of the pity parties for people who insist there is no opportunity while refusing to consider going where opportunity might be. A town can lose jobs. A person can lose a livelihood through no fault of their own. But at some point, the question has to become: What are you going to do about it?
Does a job have to come to your street, in your hometown, paying exactly what you want before you will consider changing your circumstances? Are you willing to move, learn a trade, go back to school, or start somewhere unfamiliar? Or is everyone else supposed to rearrange the economy around your preferences?
Our Families Went Where the Work Was
My family followed agricultural work because that was how they survived. I picked cotton as a child. Later, I worked construction to help pay for college and attended law school at night.
None of that was a pleasant little adventure. It meant hard work, exhaustion, and sacrifices. We wanted something better, and wishing for it was not going to get us there.
I have little patience for romantic speeches about hardworking ancestors from people unwilling to consider doing what those ancestors did. If your grandparents left home to find work, what lesson did you take from their lives? That they were supposed to make every sacrifice so you would never have to make an uncomfortable decision?
Honor their initiative by showing some of your own.
People Walk Thousands of Miles. You Have a Car.
People have walked thousands of miles seeking a safer life and a chance to earn a living. They leave familiar places, relatives, and everything they know. Some arrive without speaking the language, then take difficult jobs while trying to build a future.
Meanwhile, some Americans talk about moving to another city or state as though someone has proposed sending them to another planet. They already speak the language. They already have citizenship and the legal right to work throughout the country.
If you have a functioning car, the ability to work, and no obligation preventing you from leaving, why is looking beyond your hometown unthinkable? Why does the newcomer have to demonstrate extraordinary determination while you are entitled to wait?
I am impressed by the person willing to start over. I am considerably less impressed by someone who complains about that person while refusing to consider a change themselves.
Kennedy Asked for Something From Us
In his 1961 inaugural address, President John F. Kennedy said: “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.” JFK Library
That was a call to service and responsibility. It asked Americans to think about what they could contribute. We could use more of that spirit today.
For people eligible and willing to accept its obligations and risks, military service is one possible route. It offers pay, job training, housing support, and education benefits subject to program requirements. Service can provide a way to leave home, develop skills, and build a different future. U.S. Army
Other routes include apprenticeships, community college, and looking for work beyond the place you have always lived. Each requires finding out what is available and taking the next step. Complaining requires considerably less effort.
Real Obstacles Deserve Real Answers
Disability, caregiving, a lack of savings, and the cost of housing can make moving extraordinarily difficult. Someone caring for an elderly parent cannot simply toss a suitcase into a car. Someone already working two jobs may have precious little time or money to pursue training.
Those are real problems, and they deserve practical help. Government should invest in education, infrastructure, and conditions that allow people to work and communities to prosper. Employers also have responsibilities to the people whose labor produces their profits.
But an obstacle should lead to a discussion about how to overcome it. It should not automatically end every discussion about what a person might do differently.
Stop Waiting for a Politician to Deliver Your Future
A politician can promise to bring back the economy you remember. That promise does not give you a new skill, submit an application, or prepare you for an interview. You still need a plan for your own life.
Before telling me that America has failed you, tell me what you have tried. Where have you applied? What training have you investigated? What would make moving possible, and what have you done to find out?
I will listen to an honest account of the barriers. I am tired of hearing that every possible step is someone else’s responsibility.
Get off your butt. Look for the opening, prepare yourself, and take a chance when you can. Our families made difficult decisions because they wanted a better tomorrow; we should expect some of that determination from ourselves.
