Consider the following statement and analyze wether... in William James' mind it is likely that he is wising up to what matters or being small minded?
"I am done with great things and big things, great institutions and big success, and I am for those tiny invisible molecular moral forces that work from individual to individual, creeping through the crannies of the world like so many rootlets, or like the capillary oozing of water, yet which if you give them time, will rend the hardest monuments of man's pride."
-- William James
I think that he is saying that reform begins with you. The big protest rallies, the boycotts, the letter writing all get something done, but the real change has to come at the person level. That change comes from me talking to you, you talking to someone else and so one and so forth. There is no need to make a big statement to get something done, you just have to be concerned with what is around you. You can change the world by changing the small things around you.
The average individual will not rise to the level of where they can have influence over a mass amount of people; it then becomes the responsibility of the average person to contribute something to their community. It is the little actions that happen everyday to a person that really affects the person next to them. Basic politeness has been lost in many areas. Everyone is in a rush to get what is theirs. Zig Ziglar, a very successful salesman and speaker, has a excellent quote "The more people you help get what they want, the more you will get what you want". Now this quote is suppose to be meant for sales people meaning that the better service you give the more sales you will get, but I think it can be used in everyday life as well. The more you are nice to others, the more people will be nice to you.
International Level: New Activist / Political Participation: 13 1.3%