Don’t Miss This Moment

July 30, 2020 Scott Rifkin, MD

(Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash)

Dear Readers,

Last week, I got to visit my two grandchildren. One is aged two and the other just a month old. The logistics of being able to see them safely was not easy but I will not bore the readers with the details.

I watched the two-year-old play. The dialogue in his mind was constant. His motor was non-stop. We sang songs and I made him giggle with my Donald Duck imitation.

On the four-hour drive home, I had a chance to think of the responsibility that we all have to the young children. We owe them a better world but what does that mean?

We owe them a society free of hate. The Black Lives Matter movement is a wake-up call to all of us to make sure that our society faces and corrects its own sins.

The protests in our cities offer a true moment in time to make real progress on racial equality.

Let us not miss the moment.

We owe them clean air and a stable environment. Let us grab the moment to push for aggressive climate action. We can have a strong economy and be environmentally conscious. The moment is now.

We owe them a great education. The cost of a college education is appalling. Great societies provide great opportunities. The discovery of online education offers an opportunity to reformat higher education and reduce costs. A Yale or Harvard or UMBC could provide their great education to more students online with a bit of re-engineering.

We owe them a stable government and the protections of the Constitution. No politician should be allowed to forget the basic tenets of our society.

Justice is not a political tool. Children are not pawns. The Bill of Rights still matters.

In November, we will have a unique opportunity to return to normalcy. Let’s not miss the opportunity.

It could be six months or more before I can see Daniel and Benjamin again. I hope when I do, I can be proud of the progress we have made in our society.

We owe them. I owe them.

Scott Rifkin, MD, Publisher