America is apparently changing, and not in a good way! We seem to be going back to the past, to what was known as the wild, wild west, only this time lawlessness is engulfing the whole country instead of a few western states. Americans have been proud to point to our society as a paragon of virtue, and have endeavored to take our form of “democracy” to other sovereign nations. If we don’t change, we cannot demonstrate for others the benefits of our way of life.
What appears to be happening is that a pall of negativity is blanketing America, possibly due to political infighting, climate change, an economy that needs to be on life support and general bad news. The fallout is manifesting in a heightening of widespread inhumanity and is not just limited to race; a lot of people are apparently losing their minds.
The African American community has not been spared. A dark cloud of negativity is engulfing it. This can be seen played out in public venues like grocery stores, where people are increasingly rude to each other, and thefts in commercial venues in the Black community, which are crippling local economies causing some stores to actually close.
It can also be seen in an apparent disregard for traffic protocols with people running red lights, disregarding stop signs, and demonstrating increased road rage. Along with this we can factor in cases of teenagers’ wilding out in downtown areas of major urban centers. Black people are participating in this trend, and public media exacerbates the situation.
One of the most appalling indications of this negative state of national affairs is the number of mass shootings taking place in the country. To date, (at press time, April 26), there have been at least 146. This is coupled with a very disturbing new trend wherein people are shooting and killing or maiming people based on things like accidentally driving up the wrong driveway or knocking on the wrong door.
As previously mentioned, we are seemingly witnessing a new incarnation of the wild, wild west. But this time automatic weapons like AR-15s are in the hands of many citizens. People probably think this is going to save them from the chaos of what is national spiritual decay. However, guns won’t save us, we must save ourselves based on changing our collective behavior toward each other.
One of our underlying problems is based on what people consider to be “spiritual decay” due to a heightened focus on material values. Because many of the folks who seem to disproportionately experience material success don’t often demonstrate a concern for others, there is a conclusion that selfishness works; it transcends any need to care for our fellow human beings.
The doomsayers think material wealth is an admirable goal, and spiritual values are not important; they don’t believe in hope or in a philosophy that actually says, “what goes around comes around.” They don’t understand that materiality is not our salvation. We see this all of the time when apparently wealthy and successful people are still very unhappy.
What is needed, among other things, is a renewed focus on mental health treatment. Our nation is losing its collective mind due to misplaced priorities; selfishness is reigning because we have not seen the connectivity that is apparent among human beings.
Truly, there is nothing we can do individually that does not directly impact every other person in our environment. This is something we must learn to understand. In order to survive this spate of negativity, we must embrace the concept of agape love—the love that is given whether or not it’s returned. We must realize that if we work together, we can offset the spiritual malaise that is engulfing our communities.
One more thing; a lot of people don’t believe in “spirituality,” because the material world has blocked an understanding of what it means or how it manifests. No matter what religion you embrace (if any), spirituality should include the previously mentioned love for one another and the rejection of selfishness. If we do this, we will notice that in building community, the true meaning of spirituality will eventually become evident; we will notice that making money is not a substitute for making life! A Luta Continua.
