Tag: Independence Day’

Spiderman or Socrates?

 - by KitchenPantryScientist

“With great power comes great responsibility.”  Similar quotes can be found all the way back to ancient Greece, like Socrates “rule worthy of might.”

It makes me think of Spiderman.

At any rate, on this Independence Day weekend, as members of the most powerful nation in the world, I think we should all take a moment to reflect on personal responsibility .

We’re a nation of blamers.  We’re all furious at BP.  I rant about the people overfishing our seas and at the farmers feeding antibiotics to animals to make them grow faster, among other things.

But, when I turn the microscope on myself, I see a mom who has spent the week driving her kids from activity to activity, guzzling gas.  I see a foodie who loves eating sushi whenever she gets the chance, not alway checking to see where her fish came from and whether it is sustainable.  I also see someone who occasionally forgets to turn lights off, uses too many paper towels and cleans her toilets with disposable brushes.  That’s only the beginning.

My name is Liz and I’m part of the problem.

What can I do?  I can carpool more and always check where my food is coming from.  I can take two seconds to wring out the dishrag and use it to clean up a mess instead of grabbing a paper towel.  I can take responsibility for my own actions.

What will you do with your great power?