Writing at National Journal’s website, Matthew Dowd makes a compelling case for a reassessment of our values, focusing on the importance of time in helping people, rather than money. I wholeheartedly agree. It is particularly important that those of us who believe government should be limited to core services are generous with our individual time and talents, especially when it involves seniors.
Yes, the way we allocate the federal budget is important, and so is the way we take care of citizens in our society, especially the poor and vulnerable. But maybe instead of arguing for a new prescription benefit for an elderly shut-in, we make a personal visit and spend some time with them. Instead of always talking about holding politicians accountable for Social Security, we might want to hold the hand of someone suffering from Alzheimer’s and give them a personal sense of security. The Spanish poet and philosopher George Santayana once said, “Old places and old persons in their turn, when spirit dwells in them, have an intrinsic vitality of which youth is incapable, precisely, the balance and wisdom that come from long perspectives and broad foundations.”
