People are only mean when they're threatened, and that's what our culture does. That's what our economy does. Even people who have jobs in our economy are threatened, because they worry about losing them. And when you get threatened, you start looking out only for yourself. You start making money a god. It is all part of this culture." Here's what I mean by building your own little subculture. It's the same for women not being thin enough, or men not being rich enough. It's just what our culture would have you believe. Don't believe it.Every society has its own problems," Morrie said, lifting his eyebrows, the closest he could come to a shrug. The way to do it, I think, isn't to run away. You have to work at creating your own culture. Look, no matter where you live, the biggest defect we human beings have is our shortsightedness. We don't see what we could be. We should be looking at our potential, stretching ourselves into everything we can become. But if you're surrounded by people who say `I want mine now,' you end up with a few people with everything and a military to keep the poor ones from rising up and stealing it. Invest in the human family. Invest in people. Build a little community of those you love and who love you. In the beginning of life, when we are infants, we need others to survive, right? And at the end of life, when you get like me, you need others to survive, right? But here's the secret: in between, we need others as well.