There are two obvious truths. We live. We die. Everything else is supposition and interpretation.
In order for us to live together as societies, we agree upon some common truths to help guide our behaviors. Thus the greater good is served.
We are all, though, human creatures, not so much the higher beings that we would like to think of ourselves as. Every single one of us buries the truth from time to time. Sometimes it is out of kindness. Sometimes it is to mislead. Sometimes it is out of shame. Sometimes it is to disassociate ourselves from the past. Sometimes it is simply the most convenient thing to do at the moment.
None the less, in general, the concept of truth is important to most people in the most successful societies. Some societies will hold a specific common truth in the highest regard, while other societies may not. That is part of what differentiates cultures and nations from one another.
In the long run, in order for humans to prosper to their potential, both in personal ways and in material ways, truth must be held to a lofty standard.
In the United States right now, our nation's respect for truth has been thrown to the wayside, with too many citizens just standing by and watching it happen. We never have been a perfect union, but we have always had faith that the truth will eventually rise above any muck we may have gotten ourselves into.
In my lifetime, this is the only period when I've been scared that that won't happen and the "good guys" will not prevail. History as well as current world affairs reveal that this outcome is possible.
What scares me the most? The fact that ultimately it was the citizens themselves, participating in our electoral system, who put this disgusting man into power. I truly can't understand how so many people drank his Kool-Aid and are still gulping it down today. I don't understand how members of Congress stand mute as our national sensibilities are being purposefully disintegrated before our eyes.
What scares me the most? The fact that ultimately it was the citizens themselves, participating in our electoral system, who put this disgusting man into power. I truly can't understand how so many people drank his Kool-Aid and are still gulping it down today. I don't understand how members of Congress stand mute as our national sensibilities are being purposefully disintegrated before our eyes.
What have we become and how did that happen? Until historians can some day dissect this, ultimately, the answer now lies within each individual. How did the values of so many citizens become so ignorant, ugly, cheap, and self-centered? What will it take to bring back our better angels? Whatever scenario it will take to turn our course away from this one will probably be exceedingly difficult and frightening as well. Good luck to all of us.
