Civil War?
Guess what - this isn't about Iraq (more on that another time). Today's topic is what's going on right here in America.
I drive about an hour to get to work each day, and the same to get home again, and in that time on the road I tend to think a great deal about my fellow Americans. Generally, I'm thinking what lousy drivers they are, but also, I wonder why everyone seems so rude these days.
Have you noticed that? Look at the guy who refuses to yield to the car coming up the onramp, even though traffic is at a standstill, and it wouldn't cost him anything. Or the driver who passes you in the no passing zone so he can get to the traffic light one car length ahead of you. What's up with these people?
It goes beyond the roads as well. Ever use a public restroom? I sincerely doubt that any of the people who trashed some of the ones I've been in do the same thing in their own home - so why do they feel its acceptable to do it in a public bathroom?
I could go on here, but I think you get the idea. What I still ponder is, why? If you look back in history, say a hundred years ago, society was much more polite. Even as late as the 30's and 40's, there were accepted norms of behavior for people in public. But somewhere in the last 60 years or so, all of that went out of fashion it seems. Now its all about "me," and people don't seem to care about how their actions affect others, or the consequences to themselves when these things come back to them (how many times have I seen a driver shouting in anger at someone who just cut him off, 30 seconds after he did the exact same thing to someone else?).
I get very concerned for our society, and America in general, when I think about this. A nation of self-centered people is not a strong one, certainly. I fear that we are the victims of our own success - our nation has historically been very secure, prosperous and forgiving, and so people have become spoiled. There is little incentive for them to think of others, only of themselves.
My greatest fear is that the only thing that might reverse this trend is a true disaster, something worse than Sept. 11th. And I wonder if we can survive anything of that magnitude as a nation and a people.