I find it aggravating that in this day and age no one knows what responsibility is. I don’t know if is it because of the “blame game” culture we live in or if it is just going extinct because responsibility isn’t taught to kids these days.
The thing that has sparked my outrage is this….
Someone hit my Jeep! Hit and run!
They ran into it.
Cracked my headlight.
Dented my fender.
Then just drove off.
Never said a word!
I suspect it was someone dropping their kid off at the Head Start school that is two doors down from us.
You know, I understand. It is really freaking icy out. Sometimes accidents happen. You hit an ice rut under the snow and you slide sideways unexpectedly. It happens. That’s why it’s called an accident.
But seriously, why not tell me?
If they were dropping off their kid, what kind of example were they setting? You’re thinking that kids going to Head Start are really young and wouldn’t notice any way. Wrong. Kids see everything, everything you do influences the kind of person they will be when they grow up. Do the right thing, show them how to be responsible. One day they will make a huge mistake, break a lamp, get in a fight, maybe even wreck your car. Do you want them to remember how you hit a car and didn’t tell anyone? Do you want them to hide their mistake like you did?
Maybe there was another reason, you say?
You’re thinking maybe they aren’t sure they can afford the insurance rates from an accident.
NEITHER CAN I!
I know that I will have to pay for the deductible, get a rental while it’s being fixed and deal with all the hoopla of organizing the repairs whether they told me or not, but that is not the point! If you do something wrong, OWN UP TO IT. It’s the right thing to do.
It sucks to get in trouble. I know that. No one wants to be yelled at. No one wants to admit they screwed up. No one wants to admit they were wrong. It doesn’t matter. Do the right thing. That is how the world works….or how it should work.
A majority of the world today feels that they are not responsible for their actions and look where it’s gotten us. Work ethics are dwindling, sexual harassment is rampant, families are broken, crime is up, government is failing, education is falling apart- all because no one wants to take responsibility for their actions. It’s always someone else’s fault.
It comes down to a lack of integrity.
in·teg·ri·ty
- the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness.
“he is known to be a man of integrity”
synonyms: honesty, probity, rectitude, honor, good character, principle(s), ethics, morals, righteousness, morality, virtue, decency, fairness, scrupulousness, sincerity, truthfulness, trustworthiness
“I never doubted his integrity” - the state of being whole and undivided.
“upholding territorial integrity and national sovereignty”
synonyms: unity, unification, coherence, cohesion, togetherness, solidarity
“the integrity of the federation”
The human race needs integrity in order to survive and thrive a species. Otherwise our culture will collapse in on itself. The world will be destroyed all because of lack of responsibility.
So man up, woman up, cowboy up, however you want to say it. Take responsibility for your action, tell the damn truth and make the world a better place. It all starts with you.
adriana pridemore 
Yes! I had someone hit my car and pop the bumper off in the front. It was handing half off. I was easily able to fix it but did they know that? I would rather have you say, “Sorry this happened.” and most likely I would say it is okay. But, to not tell me just makes it worse.
Exactly!