sa国际传媒官网网页入口

Following New Mexico's gubernatorial primary, many observers concluded that polarization was the dominant story.

I believe the deeper story is learned helplessness.

Psychologists use the term to describe what happens when people experience disappointment so consistently that they eventually stop believing their actions can change the outcome. Even when opportunities appear, they no longer expect success. Individuals can experience learned helplessness. Communities can as well. Sometimes entire states do.

For decades, New Mexicans have been told a remarkably consistent story about themselves. We are told we are poor. We are told we rank near the bottom. We are told our challenges are unique, our limitations are permanent and our expectations should be modest. Eventually, people begin to believe it.

That belief may be one of the greatest obstacles to New Mexico's future.

Consider a simple proposition:

"New Mexico is not a poor state. New Mexico is a poorly run state."

I intend that statement as a message of optimism. A poor state is trapped by circumstance. A poorly run state is limited only by leadership, decisions and expectations. Poor management can be corrected. Better decisions can be made. Better outcomes can be achieved.

The distinction matters. If New Mexico's problems are not inevitable, then neither is our future.

Yet empowerment can be uncomfortable. Accepting that improvement is possible also means accepting responsibility for achieving it. It requires rejecting excuses and demanding more from leaders, institutions and ourselves. Change is difficult.

As someone who has spent much of his professional life in healthcare and fitness, I often think about politics the same way I think about exercise. Most people already know what they should do.

The challenge is rarely knowledge.

The challenge is action.

Political reform works much the same way. Most New Mexicans already understand many of our problems. They see struggling schools, barriers to economic growth, persistent poverty despite record spending, and young people leaving for opportunities elsewhere.

The question is not whether the problems are visible. The question is whether we still believe they can be solved.

That challenge is complicated by another reality: New Mexico increasingly measures success by the growth of government programs rather than the number of people who no longer need them.

Healthcare, food assistance, housing support, tuition assistance and childcare all serve important purposes. A compassionate society should help people through hardship.

But there is a difference between a safety net and a destination.

The ultimate measure of success should not be how many people depend upon government. It should be how many people no longer need to.

That conversation has become increasingly difficult in modern politics. Promises of immediate benefits are easy to explain. Promises of long-term empowerment are harder. A 30-second advertisement can promise more spending. It cannot easily explain the value of independence, self-sufficiency and personal responsibility.

As a result, politics often rewards promises of comfort more than promises of transformation. That dynamic is not unique to one party or one election. It reflects a culture that has developed over generations.

And it raises an uncomfortable question: Have New Mexicans become accustomed to managing decline rather than pursuing excellence?

I do not believe we have.

New Mexico remains one of the most extraordinary places in America. We possess abundant resources, rich cultural traditions, entrepreneurial talent, strategic advantages and resilient communities.

What we often lack is not potential.

It is confidence.

The greatest threat facing New Mexico is not political polarization. It is the belief that nothing can improve.

It is the acceptance of decline.

It is the habit of expecting less from ourselves, our government and our future.

Learned helplessness may explain how we arrived here. Confidence, accountability and courage are how we move forward.

Because New Mexico's best days are not behind us.

They are waiting for us to believe they are possible.

Duke Rodriguez is the CEO of Ultra Health and a former Cabinet secretary of the Human Services Department under Gov. Gary Johnson. He recently ran for the Republican nomination for governor.