Public Apathy

It's on everyone's mind, yet they can't find a word for it. There's an itch, but the source is not clear, and although one scratches and scratches, it never seems to go away. It drives you crazy, and you look around to find that you're the only one who shares this itch with you. Yet, you know other's feel it too, because you've asked them, and they acknowledge the problem. Somehow, however, they act as if it doesn't exist, moving on through their daily lives too distracted by current events to notice the itch at the back of their minds.

Then suddenly, a break through. "A HA!!!" You shout to yourself, as you watch a two and a half hour documentary exposing the itch you've had for so long. The excitement quickly fades, however, as you're shouting alone, and there's no one there to egg you on. You browse through an online community that amounts to time wasted on the internet, and you find something curious. A public showing of this incredible, groundbreaking film for everyone to see. "A HA!!!" You shout again, except this time you hear similar shouts all around you and your excitement is spurred. Suddenly you break down, and this no longer feels like a perverted fairy tale of what could be, and you start thinking of what should be.

You return home, renewed vigor in your veins, to find that although you've gone through a life changing experience, you're reminded of how many people have yet to share this with you. This was four months ago when I first saw Zeitgeist: Moving Forward in St. Cloud in a half-filled auditorium where I realized that more than just a few people shared my desire for an improved system designed to serve the human civilization as a whole. I've given out Dvd's, designed my entire college speech class around this movement, and talked to everyone I know about what it means to me.

And although people are slow to listen, and although they still continue through their daily lives, too distracted by current events to really understand the impact of my words, my endurance will outlast their public apathy, and slowly, from a groggy hibernation, they will awaken and realize that it is time for change. Not change through politics, and most definitely not change through simply hoping that Obama will actually do something for the people. Instead, through the work of this movement, we will instigate change on a global scale, recalling outdated ideals, re-prioritizing our value system, and living in a sustainable fashion to create a true, efficient economy that allows for tangible human growth and nurturing which nothing today could ever compare to.