The true meaning of courage

True courage is, in my opinion, standing up to a wrong and attempting to make it right. Far too many people are content to put blinders on, and pretend that a given problem or situation does not exist. I believe that silence gives assent for people who are doing wrong and I also believe that a person has a moral obligation to correct problems they see in society. In other words, I believe that if a person has the means to correct an injustice, to not do so is morally wrong, if not criminally wrong. 

Before I go any further, I must state that I don't think that in most situations, a person should directly attempt to intervene, unless a life is directly threatened in that moment. There are exceptions to every rule, but for the most part let the police handle the situation because they have the training and experience to handle a confrontation, but remember that a person can observe and report suspicious activity going on.

The world we live in would be so much better if people would look out for one another. I am not religious for the most part, but I feel that God wants us to look out for one another. I am not a member of any sort of organized church, but I believe in my own quiet way, and I don't want the tone of this hub to sound like I am preaching, because that is not my intention. 

Our country was founded on people standing up for those who could not stand up for themselves. The people who wrote the declaration of independence were risking their fortunes and their very lives to stand up for what is right, as are everyone who has served and is serving our nation right to the present day. When I hear on the news about the casualty figures, the people who have been killed or wounded, saddens me. I know that what we have in the US isn't free, and the cost to preserve it is written in blood, but the deaths and wounds suffered by our brother and sister Americans still saddens me deeply.

True courage is facing your fear, but standing up for your beliefs anyway, no matter the cost to help your fellow man. It can be as simple as being observant to what is going on around you and reporting bad people, to running toward the sound of gunfire as a soldier or police officer. 

It is my hope that whoever reads what I have written here will think about and maybe inspired to help our fellow citizens. Our nation would be the better for it.