Resolutions…But Not the Typical Kind for New Year’s
It is once again that time of year where we take stock in our day-to-day lives, reflect on the year gone by, think about how to make ourselves better into the New Year, and vow to start fresh with goals, personal and professional. This is our yearly ritual, as individuals anyway, but as I sit and reflect on how to approach 2016, I wonder if this ritual can apply at the institutional level, across the government and specifically, within our national and homeland security institutions.
Maybe this happens somewhere in the backrooms of DHS, the White House, the Pentagon, or some other agency. We know the media will provide us with a “Year in Review” of major events of 2015 — there are many deserving reflection — but as I sat around the dinner table over multiple holiday celebrations, I thought it would be interesting to pose the question. Here were a few suggestions.
1. Lose weight and get in shape… The current administration as well as past administrations have become too involved in people’s everyday lives from education to gun control to healthcare. In the attempt to do what many perceive as well-intended policies to improve the lives of citizens, the government lacks the ability to outline and address unintended consequences. In 2016, it’s time to cut back the reach, scope, and size of the government.
2. Learn something new… Within the public discourse it feels as if the country is polarized and divided. This is not because we simply hold different views and perspectives, but because people are afraid to discuss them. There is no middle ground or ability to engage in the discourse. If you are pro-law enforcement, then you are racist. If you own a gun, you are for arming terrorists. If you agree with access to healthcare for all, then you are a socialist or, even worse, a communist. In our public and political discourse, it’s time to try something new. Find a new approach and engage in discussion instead of turning back to old habits of pitting people against each other.
3. Get Out of Debt and Save Money… How it is that every few months the country is in budget crisis and that year after year, Congress and the government is not held accountable for a budget. This year, Congress should be held accountable for reaching an annual budget. If not, they should be held accountable for not doing their job and lose it.
4. Quit Smoking… Climate change is everywhere. It has permeated every discussion from terrorism to Pope Francis. Even as we sit in New Jersey in shorts and flips fops on Christmas Eve, it’s not that the issue of climate change doesn’t need to be addressed, but the concern has not turned to why has it become the main focus of politicians, religious leaders, and the media? One issue is not the catalyst for every problem and as we face many different concerns as a nation, let’s not keep hiding behind one while refusing to the tackle the others.
5. Run a half or full marathon… The threats and challenges that face the United States are long-term, whether it is terrorism, violence, civil unrest, economics, disease, etc. They are real and take a plan to address. Just because you read about a marathon or your grandfather/grandmother ran a marathon once, you don’t wake up one day and run a marathon. It takes training, planning, and vigilance that is comprehensive, from the food you eat to the training tools you choose. It’s time that the government take a more comprehensive approach and stop using rhetoric and tools of the past to face the challenges of the future.
The list had to be shortened, as immigration, job creation, education, and law enforcement support rounded out the top ten list. But just as every year most resolutions are broken, no one at my dinner table expects these to be fulfilled. Nonetheless there is something poignant in this simple exercise.
My dinner table is just a small slice of America and could be stereotyped as right- or left-leaning, progressive or conservative, north and south, American and non-American. There are many reasons and factors for why this list exists, from the media, to politics, to individual beliefs, economic status, history, and so on. I wonder how similar dinner table conversations were comparable over the past few weeks, whether you celebrate this holiday season or another one.
The simple takeaway for me from this exercise is that regardless of how you label yourself or how someone else labels you as a group or individual, there did seem to be a feeling at my dinner table that no one is listening.
An increasing and pervasive attitude of indifference and more importantly the feeling of incapacity at impacting decisions at a national level is an issue that needs to be address as these sentiments impact security through economics, individual action or inaction, and political decisions.
For those who wonder how Mr. Trump has been able to maintain a lead, my best guess is tapping into this seam of frustration.
So, I go back to our list of resolutions and postulate that in 2016, it will come down to this one: there is a serious need to address the issue of frustration, not from a polarized angle of racism, anti-intellectualism, jobs, religion, and education, left or right, but from a comprehensive and holistic perspective. It cannot be black and white, have and have not, and us against them. But as all resolutions go by the wayside, 2016 promises not to disappoint. Happy New Year!
Dominique Tarpey is a transportation security manager with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. You can follow her on Twitter: @dtarp525
She is part of The White Hat Syndicate, a Medium account launched on October 26 that aims to publish thought-provoking articles about cutting-edge homeland security topics. The six authors come from a diverse array of professional and personal backgrounds: legal, fire, environmental health, federal transportation security, and law enforcement.
The Syndicate invites you to engage us in conversation, either here on Medium or via Twitter. We look forward to the discussion.
The opinions and ideas expressed in this article are that of the author alone, and although a current employee of DHS and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, the ideas represented above are not those of TSA, DHS, or the United States government.
