The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?
PRIORITIES.

The priorities of society are out of whack due to lack of good character and the most basic of morals (knowing the difference between at least general right and wrong). This causes them to not be able to see and understand things in a sensible, constructive manner. They render themselves vulnerable to self-destruction, and consider their dysfunctional worldview as the norm.

If a person sides with those of bad character, then they lack the ability to recognize good character when they see it. Some find themselves unable to trust their own judgment because of lack of wisdom. As they have children, and their children have children, the problem multiplies exponentially.

They grow up, become government employees, politicians, teachers, judges, news journalists, and parents themselves, and the cycle continues and only worsens.

All these things apply not only to the United States of America, but to the rest of the world, as well.

1) Instead of looking ahead in the long view, they focus primarily on nurturing their immediate fears and catering to their current selfish notions.

2) They look for ways to blame others, rather than noticing the part they play in a problem.

3) Apologies and words of gratitude dwindle; cynicism, mistrust, trouble-making, and bullying increase.

4) Cowardice becomes the acceptible, as more people opt to "live and let die".

5) Technical knowledge is chosen as more important than wisdom.

6) Bad habits have a decided effect on arranging one's priorities:

"Sow an act, and you reap a habit.
"Sow a habit, and you reap a character.
"Sow a character, and you reap a destiny." - Charles Reade

"Habits are to the soul, what the veins and arteries are to the blood... the courses in which it moves." - Horace Bushnell

8. Most importantly, CHILDREN are the future. Raising them is the most consequential and powerfully critical job on the face of this earth. But most people let others raise their children for them, so that they can have a higher standard of living (i. e., more material goods). Indulgence is favored over structure and discipline. Their sense of security and innocence, which is paramount to raising a strong, well-adjusted child, is discounted and cavalierly discarded.


GREEDINESS of every kind, in every realm of life.

Big mistake.

How can the decline be proven?

Wasn't the decline really rolling downhill in earnest at the end of Prohibition...or when women started wearing pants...?

Katharine Hepburn.

She did it.

I completely agree with PoetSeductress. I think she hit the nail squarely on the head on this one. :wink:

Wow, PostS. I want to have your children.

American society values competition over cooperation... probably always has.

No, I'm talking about cooperation. Unless you want to have her children also. Then we ARE talking about competition. GRRR.

Back off, cat. I always thought you were a "she", anyway. Damn, that makes me feel weird. Hmmmm.... Uh, What's up, dude?

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


Lash,

If you were sitting under a tree and you watched an apple fall from the tree branch above you to alongside your foot, would you insist on proof that the pathway between the branch and the ground be tracked, measured, and proven, in order to know that it really fell, there? When you were told as a child not to play in the traffic so that you wouldn't be hit by a car, did you have to have proof, first? You didn't need proof of the cause-and-effect results. All you needed was the common sense of those who watched out for you.

Wisdom comes from common sense mixed with personal experience and insight... which is mixed with the common sense, personal experience, and insight passed on to us from generations back. But no matter how much we're told or not told, we can't absorb much of it unless we have a respect for it. Those who are considered sages have developed a burning desire for understanding, and they look for it wherever they go, with a "seek, ask, and knock" attitude. They also know that you need to tune in and be in touch with the life inside of yourself, as well as the life outside of you. Then you'll begin to find wisdom, as it meets you half-way.

Wisdom is a sibling of knowledge, but not a twin. A person who can't even read or right can have wisdom, if they learn and absorb it growing up. The greatest philosophers of all history didn't (and couldn't) require "scientific proof" for their philosophical truth. Proof is needed more for knowledge, than for anything else. Most wisdom is proven by life, and the careful, thoughtful reflection of it. Since wisdom isn't a science, you might occasionally find slightly different views on what it entails. For the most part, though, there will be much more that's similar than dissimilar.

Do you have to have scientific proof before you know that you're loved? If a person has even an ounce of wisdom, they don't have to be told in order for them to know it. Compared to the existence of man, science as we know it, is a new thing. It would be so arrogant and unenlightened of us to say that we needed proof for every bit of philosophy, when wisdom had already proven it otherwise throughout the ages. Philosophy is philosophy, science is science, and religion is religion. That's why you see the "Philosophy" separate from "Science and Mathematics" and "Religion and Spirituality" forums. They're all connected in some way, but don't belong directly together. However, a scientist with wisdom can achieve much greater accomplishments, whereas one without it would be handicapped, and more likely to produce a lesser or more often corrupt achievement.

Wisdom isn't a twin of religion, but they're siblings. You don't have to believe in a higher power to have wisdom, just as you don't have to be formally educated to have wisdom. Yet, if there are any renowned philosophers who don't believe in a higher power of some sort, I'm not aware of them. Regardless, an intelligent atheist can find valuable nuggets of philosophical wisdom from eastern and western religious literature, if they can figure out how to sift through and separate it from the religious dogma.

Please don't misunderstand... although I'm not what one would call religious, I'm in no way downing anyone's beliefs. I'm just trying to be as fair, balanced, and objective as possible.


Dictionary.com provides 6 definitions of wisdom that are most accurate:

1. The ability to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting; insight.
2. Common sense; good judgment: "It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things" (Henry David Thoreau).
3a. The sum of learning through the ages; knowledge: "In those homely sayings was couched the collective wisdom of generations" (Maya Angelou).
3b. Wise teachings of the ancient sages.
4. A wise outlook, plan, or course of action.
5. Wisdom Bible. Wisdom of Solomon.

To go after knowledge but not wisdom is a serious mistake. Just as the handicapped scientist, we would stunt our progress. If a person has an IQ of 200, yet doesn't have much wisdom, they won't be very happy. Wisdom, along with love, are directly linked to wholeness, and all together bring forth peace of mind.

As for myself, I'm not going to wait for proof in order to live a better life, and make a more valuable contribution to society and the world. But if a person chooses to wait for scientific proof for everything, whenever or if ever that might be, it would certainly be their right to attempt it.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


Thank you sweetly, MA.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


You're a doll, JLNobody. That kind of heartfelt statement makes a woman feel like a woman. :wink:

Yeah, but it makes a man feel like a woman.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


Thank you, echi, you don't know how much I needed that laugh.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


Are you talking about echi thinking you were a she-cat?

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?

Materialism, Vanity, Ignorance, Apathy, partisanship.

If you were sitting under a tree and you watched an apple fall from the tree branch above you to alongside your foot, would you insist on proof that the pathway between the branch and the ground be tracked, measured, and proven, in order to know that it really fell, there?

___________________

No, but if someone said there was an apple lying next to my foot, while I saw it was clearly still in the tree, I'd ask them what was wrong with their eyesight.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


Good answer, Amigo. But the partisanship really can't be helped, because of today's drastic contrast of beliefs between the Right and radically redefined Left. There have always been differences, but not to the extend that there are, now. So I would personally go with your first three answers.

If the first three, being materialism, vanity, ignorance, and apathy were under control, there would be very little partisanship. The first three determine the outcome of the fourth.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


YES!!! YOU GOT IT, LASH!!!!!!!!

I have seen the apple fall, and I've provided my witnessed account of the process in my first post.

The events/criteria described in your first post could be said of any time in history.

The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?


How old are you? I've been around a long time, long enough to see several generations, and know of many very personal accounts of 2 generations before me. I can see the dots connect they way they have, with the ability to spot mathematical and symbolic patterns that others don't usually detect.

My education was not ever-so-cleverly infiltrated with radical indoctination and outright partisan censorship of historical textbooks and classroom discussion, as the students have become subjected to in the public schools within the past few decades.

With all due respect, I can apparently see things that you can't. This isn't to say that you are not intelligent. It just means that we're able to do different things.

Re: The downfall of America's society... what is the cause?

This is hilarious. She's even quoted herself.

This may be my new tag line: "I can see the dots connect they way they have, with the ability to spot mathematical and symbolic patterns that others don't detect."



I think you may need a little more insight to actual history before you rely totally on your special x-ray vision.