Do the right thing

In the city where my parents live, there is litter everywhere. 

Plastic bags are one of the many eyesores.  More than an eyesore, for instance, when they clog the storm water intakes and add to urban flooding during the monsoons. 

A few years ago, my father, who likes cleanliness and order, thought that perhaps he would do something at least right outside his own yard.  He talked with the "watchmen" at the neighboring buildings and told them that they could at least keep their own respective street-fronts clear of waste. The logic is that people do not generally litter a clean place, but are always quick to add crap if there is a pile of waste. 

It worked for a week or so.  And that was it. 

That experience is a reminder that individual actions rarely ever make a real difference, when it is the massive system that needs to be changed.  Yet, in our own ways, many of us try to do what we believe are the right things in the tiny bit of the world over which we might have some say.  Such feel-good acts do not really seem to matter in the grand scheme of things.  Does it mean that we should stop doing them?

The author of this essay argues that "individual action is part of the collective. So, while you won’t save the world on your own, you might be part of the solution."

I agree with that logic.  I do what I have to do fully knowing that I won't save the world on my own.  But, at least, I am not adding to the world's problems, and I am trying to be part of the solution.

Further, through our actions, "we can encourage others to make these changes too, triggering a ripple effect. ... It is difficult to try to convince people that they should change their habits without following such advice yourself; if you want people to take you seriously, practice what you preach."

Of course, one can easily imagine a game-theory situation in which me doing the right thing could lead to another person transgressing even more than before, creating what would seem like a "winner" out of that person while I become a "loser."

The old Hindu belief says that should not matter.  Not even a little bit.  I need to keep doing what is right, irrespective of what others do. 

One doesn't even need any Hindu background.  After all, mothers have been saying those very things to children all over the world with guidance such as "I don't care if others jump off the bridge."