If I remember correctly, it was Dwight D. Eisenhower who once said, “Things are more like they are today than they have ever been before.” That, in fact, is why I choose to write today.

Following some of the news stories and taking some recommendations from friends about what to write in recent days, I decided to explore the health of society itself. Such topics are not usual for me to share in writing, however; given these interesting times in which we live, the greatest wrong may be to say nothing at all.

Some of what I write today, I learned from unusual sources, such as my pets like Tiny (pictured here in a Hibiscus pot). There is something simple about an animal, a simplicity that we humans seem to lack, things like unconditional loyalty and love (although some debate whether an animal can love). Some reading this have never owned a pet, for those, this may seem disjointed and nostalgic, however, to the rest of us who can easily recognize such loyalties in the eyes, meows or barks of our pets as they greet us when we arrive.

In light of all this, I began thinking of how Society itself works. For example, hundreds of years ago, our forefathers settled this land. They came here in small, close knit groups seeking a better life free from encumbrances of too much government, taxation and religious restriction. Much of the reason we became a country lies in the fact that these groups of settlers were closely knit, caring for one another and working for a better, freer future for themselves and their posterity. Anything short of that genuine care and compassion for one another may have resulted in a far different America than we know today.

All of this in mind, I began to wonder what’s wrong with Society in general. Why do we no longer care for those around us as our forefathers did? You can see it in cities across the world where saying Hello to a stranger, opening a door for someone, or doing a good deed seem unthinkable, yet it was such mentality on which our very society was founded. Consider some of the following news stories:

• In China, residents who have been evicted by government riot, a college student wanting a hug is mauled by a panda (how to you get that lonely that a panda becomes your only option for a hug?) and Chinese civilians attacked the police who caused a fatal motorcycle wreck.
• In Thailand, a country normally considered stable, protesters have succeeded in closing all international airports.
• Pakistan and India face new tensions following terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. These two countries, both nuclear powers, have been at war 3 times since the 1947. Furthermore, as recently as six years ago, the two were on the brink of nuclear war with each other. Could it really happen? See these links for more: [1] [2] [3] [4] (Of course, if such a war happens, where will companies direct our calls now?)
• Within the next few months, Iran will assemble its first nuclear weapon.
• A little closer to home, half-way across the Atlantic, tensions are rising in Iceland where the government-backed banks have failed and the country is on the brink of both bankruptcy and revolution.
• Of course, such things could not happen here, right? Americans are much more civilized, right?
  • A Wal-Mart worker trampled to death in New York as shoppers race for bargains. It has been rumored on Talk Radio that the worker was trying to protect a pregnant woman who was injured as the hoards of shoppers broke the doors down.
  • At another Wal-Mart, shoppers scuffled over an Xbox 360 console. Why? What’s the point? You can get one just fine on the other 364 days of the year.
  • Vermont actually passed a resolution to secede in 2005.
  • In fact, Secessionist movements are taking place worldwide, with many of the supporting groups in the US.
  • Gay advocates protest marriage bans across the US. (Is it really Government’s job to decide what makes up a family, or should that decision be made at the family level? How much else do we want Government to decide for us?)
  • A Russian scientist is predicting the decline and breakup of the US.
  • The United States government may wind up being replaced by a North American Union. Additional sources: [1] [2] [3] [4]
  • The Pentagon is training 20,000 troops to be stationed domestically in order to keep peace within our borders – troops that could be commanded to fire upon US citizens.

With all these things in mind, it appears our society has transfigured into something completely different than it once was. This has happened both locally and globally. As a people, we no longer seem to care for one another. When was the last time you said hello to your neighbor? When was the last time you said Hello to a stranger? Held a door for someone? Let someone in ahead of you in traffic? Did a good deed for someone who needed it? Even as trivial as such tasks may seem, I do believe they are healthy for us to do; they show we care, and that we have not lost our moral fabric, our obligations and loyalties to each other as a society.

So, what is causing these changes in Society?

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I began to wonder if such changes are part of nature, if we somehow do change when populations increase. There is a natural precedent for such a thing, consider the locust. Alone, or in small numbers, locusts are relatively harmless; however, they undergo a series of very remarkable biological changes when they reach a certain population density. When grouped together, the normally peaceful locust changes from green into a more colorful and much more harmful specimen. These changes are suspected to be triggered by hormones in the insects as population density increases.

Similarly, I suspect that we change as well. Consider the fact that inner-city areas have often supported Democrats in US federal elections and their social policies which regulate wealth more closely whereas more rural voters often favor more fiscally conservative values at the polls. Is this simply politics, or is it evidence of a change in humanity? While in the country, one tends to value survival of the fittest, yet in cities, many desire strength in numbers and, therefore, support policies and politicians granting them the most government-backed security.

Additionally, one can find end-time scenarios in the writings of most western and mid-eastern religions. Could they be wrong, or is there something fundamental about the human condition which drives us to a precipice of social collapse? This does become a very prominent question for theologians, philosophers and scientists everywhere, but should such thought be relegated only to those professions, or should we be asking ourselves too? So, what have you done today to make the world a better place? Have you done a good deed? Have you helped a stranger?

If society is to survive, we must do so out of understanding, kindness and compassion rather than through misunderstanding, misdirection and wars against those with whom we do not agree.

In summary, I believe the duty lies within us all to help one another. Should we fail in this duty, we put our society at risk of failure. In conclusion, I leave you with a favorite quotation of mine from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Many think this quote supports communism, however; I find that it actually begs us to be more responsible for our own deeds.

“Few people will dispute that in the world of nature everything reacts to an exact law; and physical as these laws seem in their outworking, they all originate from the spiritual universe. There can be no haphazard methods, for nature is very drastic with delinquents. This also happens in the spiritual spheres where the smallest action calls forth an exact reaction. This means that man’s thoughts become his creations, that they become like angels of good and evil to him; so that when he views his life from some higher plane of existence, he well realizes the disastrous nature of those mental creations of his – of gloom, depression and selfishness – which were and are his mental children. This has affected me deeply since my arrival here, for I was wont to create such characters, scenes and word-pictures. Mine was a vivid imagination; and, while I gave forth many a picture of joy, homeliness and beauty, my pen also depicted scenes of crudity, ugliness, crime and horror. While recognizing that such pictures may by their very contrast teach their lesson, on the other hand creations of ugliness and terror are apt to live on in men’s minds, and fill them with violent and unhealthy vibrations. Now I gaze down into the lives of men and women who have been considerably influenced by me for either good or ill. This I tell you only to illustrate the lesson. Some day every man will attain either the joy or the terror of seeing the effect of his creations, beautiful or the reverse; no matter whether they are merely fictitious characters or actual conditions of life resulting from actions of his which have considerably influenced the lives of others. He will then see his own personal contribution, be it positive or negative, to the collective whole.“

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Tags: brink of collapse, Society