The time to scream is now

Have we lost our ability to express outrage in a constructive and timely manner? Do we even know what we should be collectively outraged about anymore? That didn't seem to be a problem 30 or 40 years ago when U.S. citizens took to the streets over wars, environmental issues and civil rights. Our music, literature, movies and news reports reflected what was going wrong in society so that we could apply the pressure to fix it. But now, even when we do organize, our causes seem less substantive and often focus narrowly on self-serving interests or political ideologies. It's not that America lacks big, moral issues worth fighting for or against, it just seems everyone is preoccupied by other pursuits. Distractions abound in modern society.

We have a great opportunity to righteously scream bloody murder over the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The screw-ups and lies coming from the oil company and slow-reacting government officials should be enough to draw similar public outrage to the post-Katrina cries and protests. Yet, I don't see tears, raised fists or politicians demanding anything of themselves or BP. I want to see some anger and good old-fashioned finger pointing. I want to hear our president raise his voice. There are some things in life that people have a right, even a responsibility to scream about, particularly when it is relatively clear who and what is to blame. This man-made crime against nature is one of those things I don't need wait on a Congressional panel to tell me what went wrong.

I fear many people are only casual observers of what is going on in the gulf. The news in general, for whatever reason, just doesn't interest people like it did in the 1960s when folks gathered around the television to watch Walter Cronkite or picked up a copy of The New York Times to read about what they needed to know versus what they wanted to know. We now live in a Twitter world, where substance is sacrificed for immediacy. Our attention span is down to 140 characters.

Where is the organized outrage about over-development, unemployment, dangerous coal mines, polluted bays and corporate greed? Injustice should be easy to spot, particularly when people die, go broke or have no quality of life because of the actions or inaction of elected officials or corrupt business leaders. What's going to happen to the fishing industry in the gulf states, and shouldn't that concern us all? Why aren't more people bothered by Goldman Sachs or age discrimination? Do you have to get cancer before you begin to question why a cure hasn't been found yet?

We have a rather huge problem -- a leaking oil well that will rip through our economy in ways we don't even realize yet. Entire habitats are being destroyed as I write this post and I read one report where the Atlantic Ocean, not just the gulf, might be in jeopardy. And when all is said and done, I doubt anything will change to prevent this from happening again because the public outrage won't be loud enough or sustained. It seems the only time we become outraged is when problems are on our doorstep. By then, it's too late. Make no mistake about it, the problem in the gulf will impact us all, just as the 9/11 attacks rippled well beyond the World Trade Center and Pentagon sites.

The people causing these environmental disasters and economic assaults need to go to jail, whether they are from Wall Street or in the corner offices of big oil. Plain and simple, they need to be accountable. Whether it's a CEO of a car company that allows for unsafe vehicles to reach market or an oil executive that lies to the public, there has to be consequences for acting badly in big business. Not just monetary penalties, but time behind bars. These people can afford the fines, but few would want to risk 10 years in prison for acting irresponsibly.

There is a lot to be outraged about in our world, from corporate corruption to raping of the rain forest. And I understand one can't go through life fighting city hall 24/7. But we have migrated to such a point of apathy and distraction that virtually nothing gets fixed anymore because our collective voices aren't being heard on matters of energy, education, crime, the economy and the environment. We just keep repeating the same mistakes over and over either through neglect or misguided solutions. Heck, most people won't even bother writing a letter to their Congressman when they are upset. Perhaps some voices aren't heard because they aren't speaking loudly enough.

My thoughts go out to all the people in the gulf states who are breathing oil fumes and worrying that their livelihoods are gone. The images of birds and marine life covered in oil are heartbreaking. And unlike the destruction from earthquakes and tornadoes, this has been a tragedy created by and made worse by human beings. It was containable, if not outright preventable. But human beings in leadership positions failed.

Through it all, there will be some very good folks cleaning off sea turtles, washing down birds and volunteering to assist with the cleanup. There is always a segment of mankind that tries to undo the misdeeds of others. Unfortunately, this time the challenge is enormous and an entire industries such as fishing and tourism might be lost for decades.