To this day, it is still difficult for me to define civic responsibility. There are so many ways to define it. My idea of civic responsibility is joining the military so that we can get a better appreciation of the things we hold dear. However, I will not discuss my argument for civic responsibility by using military enlistment as an example. I could go on forever about this - but I would have to write a book on it. I"m having a hard enough time writing this essay. My other ideas of civic responsibility are quite simple. The first one I will discuss involves being more active about environmental concerns. Equally important, the other one involves being a well-rounded individual by getting an education.
Back in my days in the Marine Corps, my fellow Marines would make fun of me if I expressed concerned about the environment, especially if I tried to do my part on recycling items that were to be recycled. They would make comments like, "Are you an advocate of the Green Party?" Those were fighting words - I"m not interested in politics in the least bit. However, I seem to care more about the environment than the average citizen. Let's face it, the Marine Corps has a recycling program for each one of its bases but for some reason it is not successful at implementing its ideals. People are either oblivious to the fact that corrugated cardboard, magazines, newspapers and the like are recyclable, or people just don't care. If this kind of attitude prevails in a military base, a place where rules and regulations are enforced, then you can imagine it's not any different in the civilian world. Being a civilian now, I see that much hasn't changed. I"m living on campus and I have yet to see any flyers encouraging the recycling of materials like bottles, cans, corrugated cardboard, magazines and newspapers.
In New York City, where I grew up, it is not uncommon to see many neat stacks of newspapers and magazines lined up in every block waiting to be shipped somewhere for a more useful life other than going to a landfill.