Today's Moral Breakdown

At Home with Loretta...
From The Pages Of The Enterprise Newspaper...
                                             
             Today's Moral Breakdown



  I was trying to find a nice old movie to watch on television Sunday since LBP, public broadcasting station, has been fundraising. It was hard to find anything decent for my husband and me to watch together. I wince, yes cringe when some scenes come on the screen; and to think, children have access to the same basic cable channels.

  Yes, this breakdown is everywhere infecting every facet of society. Today, society seemingly is in a values vacuum. Reasoning of the majority seems to be: ‘each lifestyle is an acceptable alternative, be tolerant of mine and I’ll be tolerant of yours’. You do your thing and I’ll do mine. To each his own…there are many ways to go, and each is right; nothing is wrong! There is no sin anymore! Stand up for your rights. 

  Why whisper peacefully when you can turn up the volume with violence…it’s a form of free speech. Sex is open to expression with whomever you choose and in any way you want. Obscenity is art. Live and let live.’ Or, is it ‘die and let die’? Surely, you have heard some, if not all of these phrases. What was your reaction?

    People have very precise ideas about what’s right and wrong. What is moral and immoral; what’s honorable and dishonorable. The entire inventory of ideas about virtue, morality, honor, and ethics has been made to seem illogical, inhumane and unacceptable. 

  The ideas that became dominant exalted individuality, asserted the views of each to live according to self-determined goals. Now the acceptable mores are to be tolerated. Unfortunately, in this new philosophy, it is forbidden to forbid! The disastrous consequences of this philosophy have continued to escalate.

   Everyday newspapers, magazines, newscast, movies and television programs reflect the decline in traditional values. The barrage of this is so steady and unrelenting people have become numb to it! They are no longer scandalized by scandals as we were during our times. People are no longer outraged by news of the things happening in the world today that were shocking to older ones during our times.

  A good example is today’s music…it generates contempt for parents, for older generations, race and social institutions that oppose their lifestyle. Their goal is to offend, shock and grab attention with lyric that are outpourings of crude, uncouth, vile and loathsome gutter filth, crammed full of brutal abuse and degradation of women; sex, violence, drug use, violent rapes. There is no limit to the gross obscenities glorified. What a dying, decaying society we find ourselves living in today!

  Sadly, pretending it doesn't touch us is irrational…it is all around us! We need stabilizing limits and guidelines. We need desperately to work in the direction of human dignity. We need to return to the original source of true morals and values. Is it even possible in all this degradation that is permeating our world today?  

Submitted By: Loretta Thomas