"With great power comes great responsibility". If you are any kind of a comic fan (or fellow nerd), you know the origin of that line...at least in my little world. It's a phrase that has particularly relevant meaning in today's world. Of course, quoting a comic would perhaps foster thoughts of someone with superhuman powers, able to leap tall buildings and such. The funny thing is that power, true power, exists in a far less imaginary way. Power is derived from relationships, from human interactions, and the level of power is dictated by the observer's own strength, knowledge or simple resolve. Responsiblity comes into play in how we choose to utilize that power.
As I write this, I think of a number of positions of power. There are parents, stock brokers, presidents, customers, entrepeneurs, priests, preachers, politicians and more. In each of these roles, the level of power is dictated by the people they interact with. In each of these roles, there are examples of good and...well, not-so-good use of power. The stock broker who puts his own financial gain above all other things, even if it means breaking the law. The customer who completely unloads on a sales associate, knowing that if they scream loud enough to the right person they will get everything they want and more. The politician who rails on violent content in a video game only to be arrested for firearms trafficking and fraud.
Going back to my quote, the dangerous part about power is that with it inherently comes responsibility. There is a need for the person in a position of power to determine just how much power or influence is appropriate given the situation. Being responsible is HARD. It's so much easier to tell your kids to stop doing something "because I said so" than to spend time walking them through the "why". It's really hard to admit that you, not some phantom defect, destroyed your phone because you know it isn't going to be cheap to replace. In those and countless other situations, the individual in power has to be willing to show restraint.
As a society, America gets a lot of flack for being self-absorbed, petulant, egotistical and power-hungry. We are perceived as a country that is full of people who think they know better than everyone else because of our military might and our tenacity for innovation. While there certainly may be a tinge of jealousy or misunderstanding involved, some self-reflection may be needed to address some this frank yet relevant feedback. In the grand scheme of things, America is a teenager when it comes to societal history and, occassionally, we act like it. It wouldn't be a bad thing for us to take a step back for a moment and see if any of those opinions may be valid.
Fixing an entire society, though, starts at the individual level. How do we perceive ourselves and, more importantly, how do others perceive us? I'm not talking about the superficial traits like beauty. I'm talking about the way others see us when we are in a position of influence or power. Are we focused on ourselves or the greater good? Are we looking outside of our little place in the world and thinking about how what we do today impacts our future and the future of those around us? Are we raising our children to understand what it means to be responsible for our actions or are we just teaching them how to yell louder? Finally, are we using the power we have, whatever the situation or position may be, responsibly and helping our world be a little bit better each day? Those aren't easy questions to answer but self-reflection and power are very similar: both take a lot of work but the results are worth the effort.
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