In Honor Of Martin Luther King Day…
I am reposting a related article I first wrote here, that later appeared on www.clubmom.com.
America In Decline?
During a recent airing, talk show host Dennis Prager spoke to a man who apologized to his son for “giving a worse America to you than my father gave to me.”
A worse America? This wasn’t a new concept to me. Having grown up all around conservatives, I’ve heard this complaint many, many times. People lament what they perceive to be a decline in American values over the last forty years.
Although there may be a small amount truth in the statement, I have to wonder if it is really so, overall.
I mean, I’m sure the African Americans who, at one time, had to drink from different water fountains and go to different schools would disagree. And I’m sure the women who weren’t able to vote or leave abusive marriages would disagree. I’m sure the hispanics in my hometown, who were not allowed in the public swimming pools, would disagree.
I bet the girls who were blamed for their own rapes would disagree. I bet the parents of depressed suicidal teens, who were told their children had lost their seat in heaven, would disagree. I bet the children with ADHD, who were smacked with a whip in school for not controlling themselves, would disagree.
I wonder if the “love children”, the “bastards” who were labeled dirty for coming too soon, would agree? Or what about those permanently paralyzed by polio, before there was a vaccine? How about the single mothers who couldn’t get a decent enough job to feed their family?
We could go back a few more generations, to the lawlessness of the old west,
the ruling gangs of New York, the slaves of the south. Child labor? Public education by way of the Bible? Or what about no public education?
Oh, I know we could come up with an entire second list of injustices we have overcome. Improvements in American values.
Yes, there may be spots where America has done a nose-dive. But does it really balance out to a net loss? I don’t think so. I’d say that for many, America is a much better, safer place. It is a wonderful time to be raising children.
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January 15th, 2007 @ 5:04 pm
Hear hear!
Have you read The Way we Never Were by Stephanie Coontz?
Jen
January 15th, 2007 @ 5:52 pm
No, I’ve never even heard of it, Jen.
January 16th, 2007 @ 12:14 am
It’s the same twitch I get when people tell me the nation is in moral decline. Really? Do we still beat children and spouses like we did in 1910? Is it still legal to sell cocaine over the counter? Is it legal to put tainted meat into sausage? Is it legal to sell poisons as medicine? Do we still do nothing for missing children for 48 hours, to see if they are only sad runaways?
I could go on. Look: In America today, in most towns, you can get a decent cup of yogurt, a great cup of coffee is less than an hour away, most towns have pizza and tacos, and cars without air conditioning are rare. Pretty darn good, if you ask me.
Maybe that’s why no one asks.
January 16th, 2007 @ 6:03 am
Exactly.
I can’t understand why so many people are so passionate about preserving “traditional marriage” when so many of the changes in the way marriage works have been so incredibly positive.
I just posted a discussion of this the other day in relation to gay marriage: Discrimination against homosexuals: why? why? why???
January 16th, 2007 @ 10:13 am
A few years ago, I went through a fascinating exhibit at the American History museum at the Smithsonian. It talked about the northern migration of African Americans in the 20s and 30s. The exhibit had a klan uniform, among other things (the klan outfit was contraversial, understandably).
At one point in the exhibit, you had to walk through a split doorway. One half was labeled whites, the other colored.
While at one time, many people had to do this on a regular basis and didn’t even think about it. For me it forced me to think about what it meant - which doorway did I really belong to? I was forced to think about what assumptions people made/make on a daily basis about race. It was a powerful exhibit.
January 17th, 2007 @ 12:58 am
it might be true that america has, as a society progressed in all the terms that you mention but on other fronts like what the american govt is doing to the rest of the world is horrific! it is true that you have won a lot of battles and they are substantial indeed but what about the same americans becoming more and more immune to the killing of fellow human beings across the globe. in these terms america has not only turned worse but its quest for hegemony has grown out of proportions and sadly the people do not realize that!
February 4th, 2007 @ 11:30 pm
If you enjoy thought-provoking videos (a lot of which are about the world our children will inherit), you should check out the TED talks.
http://www.ted.com/tedtalks/
Dawkins was featured one year, as well as many other very interesting people that have very interesting ideas.