A return to self-sufficiency

Hurricane Irene has come and gone. If you ask the news stations, it was the storm of the century and the coast of North Carolina will never fully recover. In fact, a little northwest of here, in the area that took a direct hit from it, it could very well be that way, although I doubt it. However, here in Jacksonville, a city filled to the brim with hurricane veterans who barely bat an eye until it reaches at least category 3, we had little damage. We had a lot of trees down, several leaky roofs, and the occasional business with a sign that blew over. We were lucky, to be honest. Normally even a category 1 will spin off some tornadoes that will cause at least SOME major damage. But not this time. So when the hurricane finally left, we all went outside to clean up the mess. My 7 and 5 year olds helped drag branches out of the back yard and put them in a pile, which was transferred to my husband's truck and taken away. It took about three hours, but it was done. While working, I saw many of my neighbors doing the same thing.

It wasn't until a few days later that I heard the first grumblings about the fact that the county was not going to pick up the debris from the side of the road. Apparently this only happens if the county gets extra money for being declared a federal disaster area. Since the president has yet to sign off on that for this county, we're on our own. Here's the problem: people are all upset that they have to clean up their own damn yards! Yes, I'm serious. I have heard some pretty horrible things said recently about President Obama for not declaring this county a disaster area.

The whole thing got me thinking. When did we, as a society, lose the ability to take care of our own affairs? Since when do we need the assistance of the federal government to pick up sticks in our yard? Have we become so spoiled that we are not willing to take responsibility for anything anymore?

A few months before I was born, my hometown had an enormous flood. The water was six inches below the ceiling of my grandparents' house, and everything inside was destroyed. After the water receded, Grandma and Grandpa cleaned out all the mud, ripped the walls out, redid the wiring and insulation, then put up all new drywall. By themselves. They did take some donated furniture from the Red Cross, but everything else was on their own. All of this while my uncle James (six years old at the time) was running around under their feet. And yet, Onslow County can not handle disposing of a bunch of sticks. That's pretty embarrassing - and if you don't think so, you are part of the problem.

This whole thing begs the question, have we become too prosperous? Most of us have never had to pick up the pieces and move on. We don't do our own repairs. We can't manage our money. When things go badly, we throw ourselves on the ground, flap our arms, and yell, "I can't do it! Send the government to come and save me!" In short, we are spoiled rotten. How do you think the remote tribes of South America handle natural disasters? They get up, say to each other, "Wow, that sucked," and get started picking up the mess. No one is going to do it for them. Sometimes they may have to rebuild a hut, and may never have done so before. So what do they do? They learn. You will never be able to do a thing for yourself until you try. Living in America has caused us to lose our drive to try, because it has become unnecessary.

At a time when America is experiencing serious financial problems, it may be a good time to start making unusually large budget cuts. Some may be painful. But this one is a no-brainer. Do not send federal funds to Onslow County. We don't need it. What we do need is a few citizens who are willing to get off their behinds and take responsibility for themselves, their family, and their property.