Finding My Morality

I've asked myself a number of times, why the world has become so crazy. At first, there are a number of things that come to mind. Untreated, or undiagnosed mental health issues, and greater access to current events and happenings, but neither of these are the root of the problem. Some might say we need greater gun control laws. Well, I'm still on the fence about that. I think a huge majority of people who own guns are responsible and safe gun owners. You NEVER hear about them. You only hear about the bad ones, the irresponsible ones, and when you do... well, let's not get into all that, okay. Because I don't think that's the problem.

The problem is, in general, a lack of morals. Not just alack of morals, but a bending of morals. A clear cut, defined, bending of morality that has become something akin to a sneaky bacteria that slowly infects all of society, and by the time you realize its there, it's too late, and it can't be removed without some very devastating consequences.

Recently, a child received a handgun for his birthday. Who bought this school age child a handgun? His parents. And when he was caught in school, drawing disturbing pictures, and writing "help me" on the paper, his parents insisted he stay in class, AND they refused to divulge that they'd just bought him a brand new handgun. Now, in my mind, those things right there, make you an accessory to murder, should this child take that gun to school, and kill someone. Oh yes, he surely did, but that is beside the point. The point is; in my opinion, both of the parents lack MORALS.

Morals, and morality, are the things that keep people from doing bad things. Now, lets define that. "Bad things"; Things that are unacceptable by those around you, society as a whole, or that hurt others, or yourself. You know, morals. Is it bad to kill a cow? Well, if it's your friends pet cow, and they didn't ask you to do it as an act of mercy, and you're not working in a slaughterhouse providing food for people, then I would say YES, definitely. Killing, in general, is a bad thing. Sometimes it needs to be done, in order to survive. In cases of defense of yourself or others, or in order to survive, killing can be condoned. Otherwise, it's WRONG. It's a bad thing. Unfortunately, with the rise of information being readily available, certain things have become misconstrued.

Back when I was a kid, I got caught with a magnifying glass in my grandpa's long driveway. I was using the sun to burn ants. I know, so cliché. But I also had a crawfish, which I was burning as well. My mom gave me a whopping and then she explained the difference between smashing ants, or spraying them with ant killer, and burning them with a magnifying glass. She never did see that I had been burning a crawfish, and I thank my lucky stars for that. She'd have really whooped me then. The difference, which you might not know, was this; One way, you're eliminating a pest out of necessity, when all other forms of containment or prevention, have failed. The other, is mindless, meaningless, torture and killing.

As I got older, I heard a number of times that what I did, burning ants with a magnifying glass, was something that a lot of kids my age did. Torturing animals too. I never did that. I did however, have to put down a cat that had both of it's back legs broken. I hated doing that, but at the same time, I knew, back then I thought, it was a necessity. As time went on, more and more, I heard instances where people had caught their own children torturing animals, or burning insects with a magnifying glass. But something had changed, and it was not a change for the better.

You see, as time went on, and the information was made more and more available, it became more and more acceptable. It became a thing that people expected, not something that people looked down upon, or an instance which was used to teach, and punish those who did it. Burning ants, torturing pets and animals, became a mark of age, and adolescence. When I was a kid, mothers would have said; "I caught little Johnny burning ants with a magnifying glass! Well, I whipped him good and then had the talk with him, and he promised he would never do it again. I told him he better not, otherwise, his father would hear about it next time." And today, mothers speak about it like this; "I caught little Johnny burning ants with a magnifying glass! I'm so proud of him. He's finally becoming a little man! I think he might be liking girls soon! I can't wait to tell his father. He might be ready for deer hunting next!"

You might think I'm saying this in jest, but I'm not. This shit is real, and parents these days are doing NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING, to prevent or regulate this stuff. I'm talking MORALS. Having the talks with your kids. Deep down talks about the way things are. I'll give you another example.

I watched a TikTok the other day, where a three year old child and his eighteen year old older brother, were having a conversation in their car. The three year old says to the eighteen year old, "I wish you were dead!" The eighteen year old looks surprised, and then hurt. He gets serious and asks the three year old what he said. Maybe he misheard him. The three year old repeats it, and then says, "I wish you were dead. I want you to die. To be dead." The Eighteen year old looks hurt again, and then tries to explain what dead means, but the child seems to get the gist of it. "I want you to die, and never come back. I wish you were dead, now."

Is this theater for likes? Possibly, but the actor, a three year old child, looks like he was clearly not trained to understand the true meaning of the words, and if he was, then I really really fear for his life and his decisions going forward. Clearly to me, he and his family, need counseling. Who knows what is truly going on there. But I believe this is another example of the need for morals. A true need for people to TEACH morals to their children, their children's friends, and others they see. MORALS need to be taught. "I think, therefore I am," is no longer the test for being a sentient being. Dogs can think. An insect can think. "I have morals, therefore I am human," is the new standard. Yes, I made a LOT of connotations there. I get it, and so should you.

And while we're at it, while we're contemplating all that is wrong with the world today, we should cover YOLO. Yes, YOLO. Once the rallying cry of those marginalized and oppressed, "you only live once" was a call to arms, a cry to do the things you've always wanted to, but never had the guts, drive, or motivation to do. Yolo might still have some of the same connotations it once did, but in today's society, those with minimal moral fortitude, have embraced it to mean something completely different.

YOLO, among the rich, or the driven, has come to mean the following; GET RICH or DIE TRYING, AND LET NOTHING HOLD YOU BACK. Criminality is no longer a barrier. Lying is perfectly acceptable. The only thing that matters anymore is power, wealth, and accumulation of both of those things. The rich can buy influence, power, escape from criminal consequences, powerful lawyers and public relations liars who can warp and twist the truth to no end. The powerful can bilk those who have little, out of their hard earned money, and become rich beyond their wildest dreams. It no longer takes back door dealings, and subterfuge in order to gain power, prestige and riches. You only need denial. Deny ever doing anything wrong, and as long as you have enough money, and power, you'll never pay the consequences.

I'll refrain from using a hundred thousand examples in today's society. Instead, I'll simply say, in the same ideal that one George Carlin might have; "We should bring back public executions. Put them on Prime Time." I think if more politicians and wealthy white collar criminals actually had to pay a price for their misdeeds, it might bring a screeching halt to such activities.

Another issue is the "I gotta get mine" attitude that is now flagrantly taught to all children, across all races, genders, positions of influence and/or otherwise. The rich and their sense of self-entitlement because they have money, teach their children that they should always make sure that if ANYONE gets ANYTHING, they need to make sure they are getting it too. Fair is fair, but entitlement means you get it first. And those who are not rich, teach their children, that if anything comes up, is given out, or is distributed, that they need to fight their way to the front of the line, make sure they have their hand out first, and that they deserve to get the handout, first. If they don't, they're a sucker, and they missed an opportunity to advance, and that is what life is all about. The ones who fall behind now-a-days, are those with manners. Those who sit back and wait their turn, only to find that the funds, or the handouts, or the distributions have run out, by the time they get around to them. The rich, the poor, the disenfranchised, and the overly aggressive, take more than their just share, with no regards for those with morals, waiting their turn. Those with morals, are now the suckers in life.

Someone once said that there is no such thing as bad publicity. Now, more than ever before, that has become true. It seems that anything that gets your name in the papers, is an advantage in life. No bit of drama is too small. No topic taboo. And the more sensational, the better. It seems that politicians, once satisfied with having slightly differing opinions and trying to make them seem outright opposite of each other, now rely on sensationalism, and lies, to further their agenda. There is no longer a penalty for lying to the American public, and lying has become the status quo.

When I was a child, we were taught from a very young age, that we should not be selfish, self-centered, egotistical, cruel, or unmindful of others. We, as children, were taught the value of sharing, caring, helping one another, identifying the difference between right and wrong, and what makes our nation better than all others on the planet. We were taught to be proud, yet not boastful. Honorable, yet not honor seeking. Courageous, yet careful. Helpful, and non-manipulative. We were taught to value our own self-worth, and then our team, and our community. Now, it seems, all of that has been lost, or rather, replaced.

Our sense of Pride has been replaced with a need to boast, non-stop, spouting out undignified, untrue accomplishments, in order to make ourselves look better, no matter the consequences. Honor has been replaced with power and influence, regardless of how it is won, or obtained. Courage is looked down upon as a form of snitchery, fame seeking for those who have neither wealth or power, and therefore, those who do not belong. Helpfulness, replaced with uncaring, and a need to benefit from every personal and business transaction, regardless of whether dealing with family, friends, loved ones, or strangers. We no longer value our country, our countrymen and countrywomen, or our real accomplishments. Now, we only value the lies we tell, the manipulations we can orchestrate, and the money we can bilk from those too dumb to understand they are being taken.

Anti-social behaviors have become the new norm, although, with social media, there seems to be a reversal of sorts going on. Many things that individuals are doing, real accomplishments and talents, are being viewed as valuable. The artist that shares their work online, and in videos, receives praise and oft times monetary compensation, while their accomplishments are viewed millions of times by those who can never hope to accomplish the same. Whether it be baking, forging items, creating things, metal detecting, or recording things others find of worth, slowly the things we have taken for granted, and finding their worth in sharing with the wider public.

I fear that this is the way of things, but it desn't have to be. As the word progresses, we will find the future and very dark and dreary place, as long as those with the money, and the power, seek to make sure those without, stay without. As technology progresses, computers and robotics will replace most human jobs.

As I type this, self-driving cars are transporting people and items across the nations highways. Soon, there will be a realization, and highspeed rail, driven by robots and automations, will move everything, and everyone, without the need for a single person to drive. All jobs involving manufacturing will be replaced with robotics. Processing plants will replace all humans with automated equipment. Planes will fly themselves. Ships will sail all on their own. Combines will harvest fields without drivers, send grains to plants which will unload and process these things, and ship out fresh baked bread in trucks driven by computers. Even grocery shopping will become automated, with giant stores that will fulfill your order, and send it directly to your home via flying drone for delivery.

We humans, will very quickly, make we humans, obsolete. Only the most artful, artistic, and creative ventures will require human ingenuity... and even then, with AI like Chat GPT, who knows. Soon, every creative rendition of everything, will be computerized. As we give meaning to every little thing we can accomplish, all things will become meaningless, and nothing accomplishable.

But there is hope. There is a chance. That chance, lies with the people who are willing to stand up and say, "I have MORALS, and MORALS are valuable!" More than that, those with morals, must make it a point to teach those morals to others, to show them that they have value, and that morals do not demand respect, honor, courage, or desire. Morals are desirable, respectable, honorable, and it takes courage to be moral.