The legislature is on a summer break, and I will take advantage of this fact to write less about what is going on in Lansing right now, and express some thoughts on another issue.

As we celebrate our independence this year, several clouds on the horizon cause many people to worry. Terrorist activity seems to be increasing across the globe.

There is a new danger from mosquito bites, which may cause birth defects. The Brexit issue has caused shock waves to hit financial markets, and people are seeing their investments lose value. Various states find themselves in financial trouble. Several school districts in our state are in financial crisis. On top of all that, we face the prospect of a November election where large numbers of Americans do not like either of their choices from the two major political parties.

In times like these, it is tempting to become pessimistic about our future.

I must admit that I sometimes worry about what my children, and (hopefully) my future grandchildren, will face in the years ahead. If you focus on the negatives, it is easy to be brought to despair. I think our media these days feed into this also. Our “news” channels are becoming more like soap operas, making it hard to filter out the facts from the preconceived notions and prejudices of the reporters. The internet also provides an excess of questionably accurate information. Even some of our churches can feed in to the negative atmosphere by (perhaps appropriately) decrying the sinful state of “the world,” as opposed to the faith and higher ideals that they seek to promote.

I am not going to stop here and say that everything is going to turn out great. In reality, we do indeed face great challenges in our world, our nation and our state. I do hope however, to encourage folks to keep a longer perspective on the issues that challenge us, and to not lose hope and optimism. Here are a few items to keep in mind in order to help maintain that longer-term perspective.

We must always remember that we live in the greatest country the world has ever known, and that the U.S.A. is the hope of the world. We have established freedoms and rights in our constitution that so many other people in the world look at with envy. The backbone of our country is made up of things like faith, family values, determination, and a strong work ethic. Our history is one of struggle, growth and progress, and it will continue in to the future in the same manner.

While only in the recent past we faced an energy crisis, including gas shortages, high prices and dependence on foreign oil, we have seen this situation take an amazing turn for the better. We now are much more energy independent as a country, and prices have come down.

Technology, while often a challenge to keep up with, continues to make our lives easier and safer, and it shows no sign of slowing down in the future. We continue to be amazed at what it can produce. I often wonder what my late father would think if I could bring him back and show him my smart phone, which is a better camera and calculator than he ever saw, not to mention how it brings so much information (weather, directions) to me from the internet.

The world as a whole has experienced a growth in overall standards of living on a steady pace. There are growth pains that accompany this, but we have found ways to produce food and energy that we could never have anticipated. Worldwide communication is exponentially better than ever before, giving us greater awareness of the challenges that face us, and better tools to deal with them.

The world, along with our country, has experienced greater health issues in the past than those we face today, along with greater threats to financial markets and greater threats from war. We have always found a way to overcome, and hopefully we will do so again.

As I said, I am not promising anything, but I personally am working to stay optimistic about the future. Whenever someone says that we need to get back to the “better” times of the past, I wonder when in the past they are actually referring to.

A student of history knows that in the most significant ways, we are living in the best time ever to be alive. Let’s work together to make the future even better.

 

Dave Pagel (R) represents the 78th District in the Michigan House of Representatives.