A Nation Off Balance

During the same week that Goldman Sachs announced its record-breaking 2010 first quarter earnings of $3.3 billion, The New York Times reported that school districts across the country were planning to lay off teachers: 22,000 in California; 7,000 in Illinois; and 600 in nearby Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district. Quoting Superintendent Peter C. Gorman, “We are doing things and considering options I never thought I had to consider.”

Interestingly enough, that same week brought the news that a military commission of retired officers concluded that our national security is at risk because we have too many fat people. Yes, you read that right. Twenty-seven percent of all Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 are overweight. “This is the future of our Army we are looking at when we talk about [this age group],” Recruiting Command’s Mark Howell said. “The sad thing is a lot of them want to join but can’t.”

I also heard that same week a radio report about Senator Jim Webb’s commission on the state of our criminal justice system. Intrigued, I read more and learned, among other things, that though the United States comprises 5% of the world’s population, we house 25% of the world’s prisons. Moreover, four times as mentally ill people are in our prisons than in mental health hospitals.

What do these stories have in common? A nation off balance.

A nation where one company earns $3.3 billion in 3 months while schools are closing their doors cannot lead the world in education.

A nation whose citizens are too fat to serve cannot lead the world in national security.

A nation that imprisons 1 in every 31 adults cannot set the standard for criminal justice.

I’m reminded of a boat tilted into the water because too many people are standing on one side. It’s as if we’ve mindlessly accepted a state of affairs that’s now reached a tipping point, or perhaps has already passed it.

It takes more than the captain to correct the problem. We’re all in this together.