So as a kid, I was raised on the idea of taking responsibility and accountability for mistakes, actions, and work. I have always been kind of neurotic about making sure all that I do is proper, but I’ve lately been questioning if it’s even worth it.
Being an adult, all I ever see is evasion of responsibility.
Evasion of taxes Evasion of liability in car accidents Evasion of responsibility for mistakes etc.
For example, if you get into a car-wreck, the first thing anyone does is try to pin responsibility and liability on you for injuries and property even if you were in the right.
If something goes wrong, it’s never that person’s fault. If something goes right, it wasn’t just your work.
Idk, it’s a really random thought I had this morning. No one wants to take the blame, I get that, but the idea of evading responsibility is so deeply ingrained in our culture, that insurance companies use AI to auto-reject claims to avoid payouts.
I could go on with this little reflection, but I just find it so hypocritical that I was raised to act responsibly when American society’s MO is the exact opposite in the most fundamental ways.
Okay, lets go with your metaphor here. Your kid has broken their leg and needs to go to the ER. You know that the ambulance company in your area doesn’t take your insurance and just the ride will cost you six months of rent, the treatment will cost money too. It’s raining and your tires are bald. Your kid is screaming and you need to make a decision right now.
What is the responsible thing to do? Anything that goes wrong from this will be your fault.
Well, it was your negligence to have bald tyres, so it would be your fault of you had an accident because of that.
Again, I’m saying this is not a good analogy.
I’m using it as an analogy because OP did.
What is the responsible thing to do in that situation? I’m not asking about fault, I’m asking what the correct choice is. Do you go into debt, or do you drive?
It is a fact that most companies in the US do not consider public transit to be reliable transportation and will refuse to hire you if you don’t own a vehicle. It is also a fact that a minimum wage job doesn’t pay enough to maintain a vehicle. That we don’t have basic worker’s rights, that medical care is outrageously expensive and insurance covering what you need is a gamble.
This is a situation that Americans find themselves in at an alarming rate. Yes, having bald tires makes me at fault for a crash, but we cannot expect people to willingly accept the full responsibility for the failure of the system like OP is asking of them.