I think that in our culture, there’s not enough focus on balance. Our society places a high value on extreme practices, and I think that it’s been a cause of many of our problems. Working 80 hour weeks. Enrolling our kids into countless extracurricular activities that they don’t have time to play and be silly as kids are supposed to do. The perceived need to earn $100,000 a year, or own a yacht, or have a really large house and expensive cars. Television programs like “Fear Factor.” All extreme; all unnecessary.

I believe much of this extremism is facilitated by our society’s highly competitive culture; at a familiar neighborhood level, the need to “keep up with the Joneses.” We all want to be successful - there’s nothing wrong with that. I want to be successful, too. However, this barometer by which we’re taught to gauge success is not perfect: it lacks balance.
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This morning I had a discussion with an individual who believes that the Peace Corps is a tool of American imperialism. His argument, summarized, is that the US Government has no business going into other countries to teach / promote / educate in ways that we deem as important or “correct,” as our methods, goals, ideals, etc. in the West can differ greatly from those in other countries - i.e., what’s important to our society in America may not be important to the societal structure in, e.g., Ghana.

To a degree, I agree with this: America should not try to impose its values on other societies. Everyone in the world should have the right to live as they choose, and we shouldn’t think that our culture is fundamentally better than theirs, or that other cultures want to be like ours. “But isn’t that America is the richest, most powerful nation in the world evidence that we’re the best?” Yes and no. America certainly has found its niche, and is arguably the best at what it does. We put a high value on work, innovation, and economic development, all important prerequisites for a global superpower. However, work, innovation, and economic development are values that may not be viewed as the be-all and end-all of our time on this planet by other cultures. That one might disagree with - or fail to understand the nuances of - a foreign culture, should not be cause for imperialist action.
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So, I was out on a hike a couple weeks ago with some friends, and the topic of the Peace Corps came up. It was only a passing comment, and I didn’t give it much thought at first; I had considered the Corps about four years ago when I graduated from college, and at the time I decided it really wasn’t for me. But this time, the idea kinda, well, stuck.
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