In his victory speech, Barack Obama listed a great deal of challenges facing America today, painting a grim picture of the future if we do not make changes. It can be quite overwhelming to hear Obama speak as if the sky were about to fall: “two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century.”

One could easily begin to think that we’re about to face both World Wars and the Great Depression, as if all of America’s historical setbacks were about to repeat themselves.

Indeed, we as a nation do face a delicate road ahead, but to claim that this election proved that “a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth,” is a bit excessive. It demonstrates Obama’s eloquence, something dearly missed in the Oval Office, but shows a flare for the dramatic. Yes, Obama’s victory is a historic one, but I am far from the belief that America was or is on the brink of perishing.

The simplest answer to all the problems Obama listed lays within his speech. Self-reliance. It’s a philosophy at the foundation of conservative politics, but you’ll find it held close to Obama’s own bosom.

It does not mean isolationism, sealing off America from the rest of the world in order to extricate ourselves from issues beyond our borders. We have a vested interest in the well-being of all nations for the sake of our own, and we must realize that by bettering America through self-reliance we will give the world a light to follow into the dark days ahead.

At the core of the dilemmas facing our nation today is our reliance on foreign oil. Our dependence on other nations to feed our need for black gold has developed hostilities in the Middle East, fostered a general disdain around the world for American greed, propagated extremist terrorism and helped in the proliferation of global warming, all while having a crippling effect on our economy.

Now is the time for pioneers, the epitome of the self-reliant. When the colonists of New England grew unhappy with their unfair treatment by the English they had only themselves to rely on to break away and create a new nation. As Americans set out west to find new beginnings, they had only themselves to rely on in the wilderness. We must now hold true to our pioneer heritage, we must remake our industries to develop the technologies necessary to power the most powerful country in the world.

Striving for such self-reliance is no easy task, but it is necessary to resolve all the other issues we face. If we become reliant only on the energy sources available within our borders we will be forced to cut back on the fossil fuels that generate gross climate change.

Dollars shipped to the Middle East for oil will stay within the U.S., bandaging our wounded economy rather than bolstering terrorist ranks with new weaponry and supporting the governments that harbor the terrorists who hate us.

Going ‘green’ offers many companies an opportunity to begin again as entrepreneurs, seeking out the various ways to sustain this country in the long run. Developing the technologies necessary to deliver the energy America needs will require massive amounts of labor and productivity, a new sort of industrial revolution to bring our economy to staggering new heights. Going ‘green’ is synonymous with becoming self-reliant.

America has an opportunity to reinvigorate itself as a beacon of progress in a redefined world. Self-reliance centers on a philosophy of having the capability to stand alone, but we can use that strength to lead others so that they may learn to stand on their own as well. Other nations relying on the U.S. to become self-reliant sounds a bit counter-intuitive, right? I assure it’s not when you consider this “planet in peril.” We may pioneer a rebuilding of America into a more self-reliant union, but the necessity for this approach to survive in a shrinking world will push other nations to follow our example.

In Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay on self-reliance, he described this global development much more eloquently than I ever could: “The genesis and maturation of a planet, its poise and orbit, the bended tree recovering itself from the strong wind, the vital resources of every animal and vegetable, are demonstrations of the self-sufficing, and therefore self-relying soul.”

The roots America has cast down to drink up the world’s oil are too widespread, too weak to withstand the hurricane of troubles on its way. But America the self-reliant will find new energy to grasp our planet with stronger, deeper roots that stem from within our pioneer spirit, so that our maturation as a nation may coincide with the maturation of our planet.

Adam McGillen is a Collegian columnist. He can be reached at [email protected].