Most of us fail the marshmallow challenge.
Even if we know there’s a greater reward for denying ourselves two sweets instead of one, we say, “why wait?”
That can be a problem.
Deferring immediate gratification is how we best prepare for the future.
That’s how as a country we fund entitlement programs such as Medicare and Social Security that help take our senior citizens into their sunset years.
It’s how we are able to have a strong defense system that works to preserve our democracy.
It’s how we maintain our infrastructure making sure we have clean water to drink; good schools, law enforcement and public health services.
Conscientious lawmakers work to see these programs and services are adequately funded knowing they are the fabric that binds our society.
Others are always looking for loose threads.
SOCIAL SCIENTISTS refer to industrialized societies such as the U.S. as being “time-blinkered.” Increasingly we have become so focused on today, that we refuse to consider how our actions may affect the future. Nowhere is that more evident than our failure to address climate change, where sacrifices today could make a big difference for future generations.
In France, large segments of the working class are in an uproar over President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to extend the retirement age from 62 to 64.
