Its Yours..... Own It

Many of the ills that affect us as a nation we consider societal problems. We approach these ills as such. These ills include smoking, obesity, drugs, teen pregnancy, crime, etc. This is the wrong way to look at these ills. These behaviors need to be recognized as self-inflicted. Portraying these behaviors as societal allows the participants to deflect blame. Blame is put onto the product of society excuse and others. Fortunately for us, behavior is a product of free will. We choose to make decisions and we live with the consequences. If participants of these behaviors own there actions and keep the consequences to themselves, then people would be more prone to accept the behavior. So often people don't own the behavior and make excuses pawning off the blame on society, genetics, and so on. If you want to smoke in the privacy of your own home or car, fantastic. If you want to earn money by legitimate means, lock yourself in the house, and do drugs, fine. If you want to get pregnant as a teen, raise your child, and not use government assistance, great. There are very few ways to keep crime's effects to yourself. You get the idea. If you accept the responsibility of your actions and the actions don't adversely effect others, then most people won't care what you do. Choose your behavior, own it, and leave me out of it.