What I tell my children

Em 1996 foi publicado o livro "Beyond Reengineering" da autoria de Michael Hammer.
No final do livro, o autor coloca um capítulo com o título "What I tell my children". Ao ler estas notícias e estas, recordei estas letras:

"Success in a process-centered organization takes tenacity, self-reliance, and the resilience to cope with change. It's not for whiners and crybabies; it's not for the rigid, for those who can't go with the flow; and it's not for the dependent. You must be willing to take charge of your life and your career. If technology and markets change and your skills become obsolete, you must recognize it's not your company's fault. If it's anybody's fault, it's yours for not having stayed on topof developments and prepared yourself for new challenges. You must believe that yesterday's success does nothing more than entitle you to play the game one more time. You must be committed to nonstop learning, to re-earning your credentials over and over again. You must take to heat the Bible's injunction that "by the sweat of your brow youk will eat your bread".
These attitudes must be reflected in behavior. People who recognize that success today does not mean success tomorrow will take care to live below their means. They will realize that they may have to face periods of unstable income. The company may take a sudden downturn, thir skills may become suddenly obsolete, or they may decide they need a change or even an entirely new career. You will need a cushion to see you through such periods. Remember that the seven fat years were followed by seven lean ones, and save hard while you can. You must also invest in your own human capital. No longer can you expect to live off the capital (of skills, education, talent) built in early life; it will not pay dividends forever. It is your responsibility to maintain and build your capital reservoir.
Process-centered performers must be mature and responsible adults. They must recognize that there is no magic formula for success; that winning the lottery is a fantasy, not a strategy; that life isn't always the way we want it to be, and rarely is it fair; that we are each ultimately the captains of our own ships. This may not sound like fun, but the rewards of adulthood, while many, do not always include fun.

Porque é que este tipo de linguagem clara e dura, não faz parte do nosso quotidiano?
Porque é que os nossos políticos não conseguem tratar os adultos como adultos, será que eles próprios estão conscientes de que esta é a realidade do mundo actual, ou continuam a esconder o sol com uma peneira? Ou estão eles próprios tão iludidos quanto a massa?