Why don’t you care more?

Question: What is your question?

Tommy Thompson: I would ask America, “Why don’t you care more? Why don’t you care more about yourself personally?” Take care of yourself health-wise. You know, you only have one body. Why should you let your body get out of shape? You spend more time maintaining your car and your house. Why don’t you take care of yourself? And then, “Why don’t you take care of your family?” Why don’t you make sure that, you know, you do the best for your family? Be there for your wife or your husband. Be there for your children, and make sure your children know that they have to go into school; that they cannot really be the best they can be without an education. And then be involved in making sure that child gets that education. And then be involved with yourself and your business, your occupation, your profession. And if you don’t like what you’re doing, find another job. Make . . . make your life meaningful. Make your life, you know, be part of making yourself, your family, your community better. And that, it’s not tough. It’s not tough, but it’s common sense. And that’s what America’s gotta do. It’s gotta get back to basics. And you can’t be, you know, blaming the other guy. Every single one of us, it’s easy to blame somebody else. But the heavy lifting of good citizenship rests with each of us in our hearts, in our minds, and in our capabilities.

Recorded on: 7/6/07