Will the unthinkable happen?
Extreme political rhetoric has led to gunshots just like it did in the
1960s. I remember the day President
Kennedy was killed, the day Martin
Luther King, Jr. was killed, and the day Robert Kennedy was killed. The
1960s were very turbulent times. The past ten years have been turbulent times in politics just like those days.
Will people begin to deescalate political rhetoric? Not likely. Why?
Because people are afraid and believe anything can happen. Even satire sites on social media are believable because, again, people believe the most absurd musings are credible. We're not living in unique times from the perspective of political gossip and innuendo. But, many of us have become overwhelmed with the shear amount information we receive continually. We don't know how to handle it. We don't know how to sort and sift through the chaff to get to the grain. If it's overwhelming adults, imagine what it's doing to our children. They don't know any better. They've always lived 24/7 in their own social media worlds. Fear is a particularly dangerous emotion in an environment where anything is possible. Rumors and conspiracy theories are leaking out of Washington like a roiling river flooding a delta. Fear begets fear and people do and say things more out of panic than from reason. Where do people turn when they're afraid? They look for protection. Will the government protect us, or is the government the enemy? Good question! Some turn to faith trying to find peace, but faith is only as good as the object of one's faith. Some will find peace, but some will find more questions and uncertainty.In one sense we're living in times much like all other generations. But the rate of living has speeded up. Everything's faster, more urgent. We have to do things right now. We're afraid we might miss out on … what? The latest gossip? The latest danger? The latest hot new thing? In the 1960s America witnessed societal chaos in shootings, bombings, and riots over essentially the same issues people are arguing about today. How did we get over the 1960s? Looking at America today, I'm not sure we did get over the 1960s. Race relations today vs. the 1960s? Things are better today but race is still a central issue. Foreign entanglements now vs. then? Then we had Vietnam. Today terrorism is burning the world down around us. Big government vs. small government? Government is bigger at every level in every way today, but are we any better off? Besides technological changes, particularly in travel and communication, one of the most significant changes in America has been a loss of respect for individuals. Many of us have become obsessed with our group identities at the expense of our individual identities. Crude and crass language has become chic. Whatever it takes to attract attention to our cause. And, everybody's got a cause! We mourn the loss of common courtesy and civil language when interacting with others one-on-one. Fortunately, we're not living at the mercy of political gossip and innuendo any more than any other generation has faced. Other generations have survived their challenges, and we'll survive ours too … unless the unthinkable happens, because anything is possible these days!
Daniel L. Gardner is a syndicated columnist who lives in Starkville, MS. You may contact him at PJandMe2@gmail.com, or interact with him on the Clarion-Ledger web site.