Wednesday, November 9, 2011

The New America - Second Rate and Falling

There seems to be a general sense of dissatisfaction that pervades our lives today.  It touches us not only when we evaluate our own sense of self worth, but also reaches into our professional lives and grabs the satisfaction that work should bring.

Perhaps the current economic state of our country is to blame.  Or maybe our inherent sense of fear about the safety and security of our homeland.  Before the towers fell, we would awake and think about what tomorrow would bring.  Now, some parts of our minds worry that we may not make it through another day.  On September 11th, 2001, I remember driving home from work and being overcome by the pervasive silence that marked my journey.  People seemed to drive in a trance-like state, their hands at ten and two, knuckles white without awareness that they gripped the wheel a bit harder than usual.   I was overcome by the feeling that after this event we would live our futures being kinder and gentler to each other.  We would see the worth in each of our fellow citizens and treat each other with a new sense of respect and consideration.  But that didn't happen.

First the towers fell and then the economy tumbled to the ground as well.  We witnessed yet another war where our young men and women died in the sand fighting against weapons of mass destruction that were a fantasy of another group of men that would profit from bullets, tanks and oil.  We found out that it was not a kinder, gentler nation.  Bernie Madoff, the Wall Street tycoons and the banks that we supported with our hard earned dollars bilked us of billions of dollars.  The Dow took a downward spiral along with the savings of those who had worked a lifetime to put away a few dollars.  Jobs were lost and we now lived in a country where we produce nothing but lives that are designed to be wasted at war.

We fool ourselves into a sense of complacency by concentrating our attention on the cultural media.  Reality shows that highlight fools more lulled than ourselves.  The Kardashian marriage, rich Housewives fist fighting in public arenas, the zero IQ's of the Jersey Shore, posting our meaningless nonsense on Facebook and Twitter, never commenting on just how drastically our lives have changed. Sometimes, I think what emerged from the ashes of the Towers was a new sense of greed and self loathing and an attitude that life has become cheaper, instead of more valuable.  Many of us lucky enough to have jobs clock in strictly for the check and our sense of caring for our fellow man has gone the way of our country's greatness. Instead of engaging in meaningful dialogue, we drug ourselves with media hype, until we believe that there is something worthwhile about everything we do and say.

We used to have the greatest healthcare system in the world.  Now, doctors caution patients to avoid hospital stays as much as possible, for truly your very life is now in the hands of those whose apathy is palpable.  Amazingly, we discuss ways to avoid treatment for our patients, and actually have a plan to reward ourselves for doing so.  It is all too much like "The Emperors New Clothes," to remain comfortable for anyone who is rational and righteous.

Wake Up America and take stock of how you are being manipulated before your ashes join those of the innocents who perished for a nation that is on it's way to becoming second rate.