The “Crisis of Confidence” Speech by Jimmy Carter

Really good read. For as much crap as Carter gets, this speech from almost 30 years ago was really spot on. His speech about government, energy, and politics is important, but so is his early identification of the infection that has completely contaminated the American culture:

In a nation that was proud of hard work, strong families, close-knit communities, and our faith in God, too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption. Human identity is no longer defined by what one does, but by what one owns. But we’ve discovered that owning things and consuming things does not satisfy our longing for meaning. We’ve learned that piling up material goods cannot fill the emptiness of lives which have no confidence or purpose.

American Experience | Jimmy Carter | Primary Sources

Read the whole thing if you have time.