Post submitted by John Little, April 22, 2016

In his book The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell defines said tipping point as “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point.”  Summarily, his book is about how little things can make a big difference.  In it, he describes how Rudy Giuliani was credited for turning New York City around when he was the mayor.

It was done through a criminological theory known as “the broken window theory.”  The thought behind it is simple.  If you allow broken glass in windows and doors to go unrepaired, it encourages vandalism and other crimes through what appears to be an uncaring attitude for property and appearances by the owners.  So Mayor Giuliani launched the campaign that cleaned up NYC by replacing broken windows and doors, cleaning up graffiti, and tidying up the city.  The result was a drop in vandalism, toll-jumping, and other minor crimes.  Pride in the city was returned.

Bowie has great potential, and that potential lies within its citizens!  We may not have the ability to change the whole world, but if each of us as citizens would change our portion of our world, Bowie will benefit in great ways.  And it’s already happening!

Here in Bowie, we have a compassionate lady who reads to an elderly neighbor every day.  Our police and fire departments go above and beyond their calls of duty to help people.  The Bowie Mission feeds needy people on a weekly basis with the help of some incredible volunteers.  God’s Table does the same every night.  We honor them all, and we honor Barbara Green and the Bowie News staff for starting this BBB campaign.

All it takes to make a difference are things like a kind word, a smile, a fresh coat of paint, repairing a broken window or door, picking up some trash, and taking pride again in what is ours.  Not only will it help to build a better Bowie, it will give us as citizens a fresh perspective of what we really have!