As someone once said, times are changing. I guess from a personal perspective, no truer word could have said it better. Who ever thought that years ago our society would now be overwhelmed not only by a deadly pandemic, but by a world filled with unimaginable hatred, suffering and horror where countless millions are desperately clinging to any shred of salvation from their daily misery. Far from the days when I was young.
There are many factors that have brought the world to this point. The sociological changes that have occurred have underscored the moral decline that has led to so many different variables in the ways that society has changed. A change that perplexes many of my generation. The days are grayer now. Gone are the times when many defended the virtues of decorum and a certain dose of chivalry. The label that was displayed epitomized a calmer and calmer realm of reality.
We’d like to hold onto the past as much as possible, but there are always certain instances that prevent many of us from enjoying the jokes that we loved so much so many years ago. There always seems to be an invisible force that continually manages to keep separating the very framework of the ties that bind a society.
The way we are today reflects the changes that have been taking place over the past 60 years. To mark the definitive events that characterized the so-called evolution of our society, many could say that it is the music industry. The music industry has always influenced a change in the way society reacts and behaves. But it was not entirely the music and entertainment industry that brought society to where we are today. Most of the blame can be applied to government policies, which, in turn, had a great influence on education. All of which has only exasperated what our society has become.
What we can say is that each generation has been impacted by the music of its time. Music is considered by many to reflect the reality of their world and the events that shape our reactions to those events. Events in the world around us have always had profound effects on the daily life not only of our society, but also of others.
Now, there is no unifying rhythm that consolidates and unifies our society and nation. Our nation today is being torn apart from the inside out. When there is so much deviation, division, and deception occurring simultaneously, our society is likely to drift further from what is good and virtuous toward one of deception and disgrace.
When we look at what is really going on within us, we see a deterioration, a decrease in basic civility towards others. We have failed to adhere to the basic moral values that were instilled in people generations ago. We have discovered that the pace of our current existence has become as chaotic as life is for millions of people around the world.
It is quite evident that if a greater part of our youth had been exposed to the classics from birth, it could be said that today’s life would be less chaotic and depressing. Like education for which due to government intervention in the curricula for the last 55 years, this nation has lost 4 generations that were being exposed to a deterioration in educational standards. Make it 5 generations due to this current pandemic. The deterioration in the quality of education for our youth has also affected the deterioration in the quality of life for millions of Americans.
In certain sectors of the country they have realized what has been happening in education and are now trying to reverse course. Sadly, much of the rest of the country is still unable to do so. Education, music and the entertainment industry are not the only engineers in the orchestrated way that society has changed. Government policies and Supreme Court decisions have also influenced the way society has changed.
Sure, today’s society has some very good and basic qualities. There is more tolerance and acceptance of racial and same-sex internal marriages. But, we still have a long way to go to quench the flames of hatred and bigotry that have always kept this nation from coming together in a brotherhood and fellowship of humanity.